-Caveat Lector- >Other electronic equipment besides computers may also be vulnerable. So >engineers everywhere are clambering over pipes, behind walls and into >closets in a giant scavenger hunt for computer chips that control >factories, oil platforms, aircraft, traffic lights and building-security >systems. Why do I have such a hard time finding a computer programmer that I know that's even mildly concerned w/ Y2K? I've asked all my programmer friends the following questions: 1) Are you the least bit worried about Y2K, and 2) Are any of your colleagues worried about Y2K? The answer to both is always no, though I don't know any fundie apocalyptic programmers with predispositions towards this sort of panic. >Several potential Y2K problems have been discovered during simulations. >When Chrysler Corp. set the clocks on the electronic equipment at one of >its factories ahead to 2000, for example, the security system locked all >the doors. So, set the clocks back to 1980 and you have another 20 years to fix the problem. QED. I have a real problem w/ this sort of apocryphal story (which I've heard many many times, always with a different organization/corporation). It defies common sense. Furthermore, it goes against everything I know about industrial equipment. Very little industrial equipment and/or embedded systems have a realtime clock. What little does has to have a way of resetting the clock. Why? The batteries run down every 3-10 years, at which time on every powerup the clock resets to some set date around the time of the clock's development (usually in the early 1980's). Anyone w/ a PC that's more than a few years old has encountered this. So, if your equipment has a Y2K problem, reset to an earlier date, or go around and yank the batteries for a few seconds and your problem is solved for 20 years. Before which time the equipment will have depreciated and/or worn out and been replaced. Mainframes are a different problem, but corporations that use mainframes have the resources to fix the old code. PCs? Most programmers I know have known about Y2K since before they went to college. >The year 2000 problem raises vexing questions for consumers. Most home >appliances and cars should work fine, manufacturers say, though many >people will have to test and fix personal computers. I have a Mac that's been Y2K compliant since 1987, but I don't use Micro$oft products. The only reason they're not Y2K compliant is so they can sell you an upgrade. See how smart Bill Gates really is? Bastard. >Some alarmists scoff at the notion that such organizing will stave off >the societal breakdown they see coming from large-scale computer >failures. When profits are at risk, corporate types will find workarounds. People tend to be very creative when their ass is on the line. >Bankers are especially worried about possible major withdrawals. > >The Federal Reserve Board has already said it will set aside an extra >$50 billion of currency reserves at the end of 1999. > >"When we get down to 1999, the retail public is going to panic and want >cash, and we better have it for them," said David Iacino, head of the >year 2000 program at BankBoston. This is my biggest worry - a media hype crisis, not a computer-created one. There's a slim chance of some government power-grab under cover of a staged Y2K crisis, but my paranoia doesn't reach that far. Your mileage may vary. Of course, w/ the media's natural tendancy to accentuate the negative, it's hard to say whether this is the usual fear-mongering or a deliberate disinformation campaign. I'm leaning towards the former. Che DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
