Keep dreaming Bernie! As a survivor PC user I used to think that
all Y2K meant to me is that my wordprocessor and browser would put
the wrong datetime stamp on things. I was wrong.
I'm with you on the 9999 thing - but, hey! It was a possibility.
Here in the Philippines, I believe that 4 vessels had problems with
their navs on the GPS rollover. Nothing untoward happened - but that
_just might_ have been because people were alert to the possibiliies.
I know that in Japan, many car owners were upset to find that their
new-fangled GPS navigation systems in their cars stopped working. No
great shakes - but still it was inconvenient - and it proved the
point.
Yes, the Y2K issue is often overblown - and in the next few months
the media will probably milk it for all it is worth. But the
technical problem does exist - that is undeniable. We who use
survivor PC's have the evidence on our desktops. And as Internet
users, we have access to resources to help us skim the cream from
the milk. What actually happends on 000101 depends to a
great deal on how people react. And in that respect preparation and
information can only help.
As you may guess, I am a little bit involved in educating
people about this issue locally. My greatest concern is that
people err on the side of safety and avoid panic buying, bank runs,
etc.... all of which are irrational human reactions to a very
POSSIBLE set of technical problems. There are many great sites on
this issue. As a Christian pastor, I like this one:
www.josephproject2000.org/about.html
IMO their views are balanced and positive.
The common folk will look to those of us who are computer "experts"
to give them a sense of what's happening. If we err, I'd rather err
on the side of warning people about something that might happen and
doesn't than to err by telling them that nothing will happen, and
something does.
Bob
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