Avery, Barrie and List... I downloaded the program to check my computer and found that to my surprise it is not Year2000 compliant. Apparently the bios is one of the problems. It suggested I invest in a new motherboard or buy a program which will keep track of my internal clock. What a pain...Has anyone else checked their computers and found the same thing? You can post me privately if you like... David Ilvedson, RPT Pacifica, CA > Date: Thu, 25 Jun 1998 13:02:34 -0500 (CDT) > From: Avery Todd <atodd@UH.EDU> > Subject: TOURBUS - 23 June 1998 - Best of Tourbus: Y2K > To: pianotech@ptg.org > Reply-to: pianotech@ptg.org > List, > > If the year 2000 problems don't concern you, please feel free to > delete this post now. > I have asked for, and received, permission to post this onto the > list. Because of all the list talk about it lately, I thought it might > be interesting and/or useful to many of you. > > Avery > > ========================================================================= > _________ ____________ ________ __________ _____________ ___ _ > / | / | | / | \ > / JOIN THE INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY PANEL / | \ > |__________|__________/__________|__________|___________/ | \ > / /______|----\ > | Answer Questions on Interesting Topics and |//////| | > | Win $$$ Prizes. Email: Info@AdvisoryPanel.com |//////| | > | Or <a href= "http://www.AdvisoryPanel.com" > Click!</a> |//////| | > \________________________________________________________|______|____| > / \ / \ / \ > \___/ \___/ T h e I n t e r n e t T o u r B u s \___/ > > > TODAY'S TOURBUS TOPIC: Best of Tourbus #1 - Y2K > > Hi All. Today, we kick off the 1998 Best of Tourbus series, and on > this momentous occasion I've decided to revisit the Year 2000 (Y2K) > issue. Back in September 1997 I wrote about this topic, but it has > grown in relevance and importance. So I've touched up the original > article and added some new links and information. > > But as always, be sure to thank today's Tourbus sponsors. Pop in at > AdvisoryPanel.com (see above) and our brand-new sponsor Tropi-Ties. > > +------- TROPI-TIES... Everything For The Tropical Traveler! ------+ > Go tropical with our E-zine & Catalog! Great travel, food, sports and > garden stories and bikini photo contest. Shop for everything under the > sun in our secure, online catalog. Free shipping and fast delivery! > +--- <a href= "http://www.tropi-ties.com" > CLICK TO VISIT </a> --+ > > > Does Your Computer Have The Millennium Bug? > ------------------------------------------ > > Even if you have a brand new PC, there's a good possibility it may > not work correctly come January 1, 2000. And even if you don't own > a PC, you could be in for some major trouble the morning after that > turn-of-the-century party. (Phooey on the purists who insist - right > or wrong - that the new millennium begins on 1/1/2001.) > > In a nutshell, the Millennium Bug refers to computers that are unable > to cope with the year 2000. It's estimated that over 90% of > computers in use today are susceptible to this problem, which arises > from the fact that many computers and software programs use only two > digits to represent the year. > > Programmers chose this course of action to save precious memory and > disk space in the early days of computing, but unfortunately this > shortcut is still used in some software today. People use notation > like 12/31/99 all the time, but what's a computer going to think when > the date suddenly becomes 01/01/00? Some computers will think it's > the year 1900, others will reset to 1980 or some other random date. > > WHO WILL BE AFFECTED? > --------------------- > > It is reported that 93% of computers built before 1997, and 43% of those > built in or after 1997 will have a Year 2000 problem. But since computer > and software vendors are scrambling to prepare for the year 2000, the > problem will likely be minimal for the average home PC user who purchases > hardware or software in the near future. > > But many corporations and government officials are sweating bullets. > In addition to facing huge bills to address the problem (it'll cost > Uncle Sam about $20 billion) they have to worry about the impact on a > societal level. > > A report by UK-based Corporation 2000 forecasts the new millennium > will throw New York City into chaos, severely disrupting power > supplies, schools, hospitals, transport and the finance sector. The > study predicts that on January 1, 2000, electrical supply will be > only 50% available for 10 days. Wall Street will be closed for eight > days, hospital service will be emergency-only for a full month, and > serious problems will cripple telephone, transportation and postal > services. > > Pundits are making statements ranging from "no big deal" to "doom and > gloom", but whatever the case, the problem is not limited to New York > City or even the USA. It would be wise to check with your bank, school, > and any other institution you deal with to see if they are Year 2000 > compliant. If you get a blank stare or an evasive answer, take your > business elsewhere. > > TESTING YOUR HARDWARE > --------------------- > > If you think you'll still be using your current computer in December > 1999, you'd better do a little checking to see if it'll survive > the Year 2000 (or Y2K) changeover. In addition to faulty software, > it's likely that your computer's BIOS or CMOS (hardware that controls > the function of your computer and interfaces with the operating > system) has the Millennium Bug too. I ran a diagnostic on my trusty > '486 and found to my surprise that it's going to have a major Y2K > hangover. > > The best way to test your computer's hardware for potential Year 2000 > problems is to get a free diagnostic tool such as TEST2000. You can > download this program via the Web at > > http://www.RighTime.com > > Also check out this site for other Y2K testing & patch resources > > http://www.mitre.org/research/cots/COMPLIANT_BIOS.html > > or have a look at the online Year 2000 Information Center where > you'll find a wealth of information, articles, and other helpful > tools. It's at > > http://www.Year2000.com > > If you can't get your hands on a diagnostic tool, here's a test you > can try from the DOS prompt to test your hardware for possible Y2K > troubles: > > - Set the system clock to 11:59 pm on December 31, 1999. The > commands DATE 12-31-99 and TIME 11:59p will do the trick. > > - Turn the computer off, wait two minutes, and turn it back on. > > - Issue the DATE command from a DOS prompt. > > If your computer reports the year as 2000, that's good. But if the > year is 1900, 1980, or something other than 2000, you've got the bug. > Even though some systems can cross the century bridge and maintain > the correct year, they may have trouble dealing with a date of 2000 > or greater. Here's another test to check for that problem. > > - Set your computer's date to 01-01-2000, turn the computer off, wait > a minute, and turn it back on. > > Most PC's will show the wrong date after this test, even if they > passed the first test. If your computer fails either test, think > about getting a motherboard upgrade. For less than $300 you can move > up to a Pentium class machine and leave your troubles behind. But > make sure the vendor certifies your new motherboard is "Year 2000 > Safe" or you'll have a hotrod that can fail the Y2K tests even faster > than the old machine. > > TESTING YOUR SOFTWARE > --------------------- > > Macintosh users, you don't have to worry about hardware-related Year > 2000 problems, but software may still be an issue for Mac and PC users. > > Most commercially available software, as well as the Windows 95/98 and > Mac operating systems, are year 2000 compliant. But you may have an > older spreadsheet or database program which keeps track of years with > a two-digit field. If so, you'll have to upgrade or replace the > software. > > You can test your software by setting the system clock to some date > in the year 2000, and then try to exercise as many features as > possible. Pay special attention to any programs that do date > calculations or comparisons, such as spreadsheets. If your > amortizations come out wrong, your software may have a problem. If > you have a database with date fields, run a battery of reports and > look for unusual or negative values in the listings. > > In addition to giving all your software a Year 2000 checkup, visit > the Web sites of software vendors to find compliancy information. > Most companies will be releasing upgrades in the next year to fix > Year 2000 problems, so be sure to upgrade before doomsday. > > MORE Y2K LINKS > -------------- > > Visit these sites for additional info on the Year 2000 issue: > > http://www.garynorth.com - Gary North > http://millennia-bcs.com/nfcass.htm - The Cassandra Project > http://www.y2kchaos.com/survival/s35p121.htm - Understand Y2K in 5 Steps > http://www.y2kwatch.com - The Y2K Watch > > See you next time, and don't forget to vote for your favorite Tourbus > issues. Visit the archives (see below) to cast your votes. --Bob > > =====================[ Tourbus Rider Information ]=================== > The Internet Tourbus - U.S. Library of Congress ISSN #1094-2238 > Copyright 1995-97, Rankin & Crispen - All rights reserved > Archives on the Web at http://www.TOURBUS.com > > Join: Send SUBSCRIBE TOURBUS Your Name to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.AOL.COM > Leave: Send SIGNOFF TOURBUS to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.AOL.COM > ===================================================================== > > ___________________________ > Avery Todd, RPT > Moores School of Music > University of Houston > Houston, TX 77204-4893 > 713-743-3226 > atodd@uh.edu > http://www.music.uh.edu/ > > > >
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