I have some questions which I hope some of you can answer.

1 Would getting new computers solve the problem with y2k? or isn't there enough time for them to be built, or transfer data-or would this corrupt the new computer? Couldn't an army of data input individuals transfer the data so the new computers wouldn't be corrupted?

2 regarding the electricity grid, I understand when one area goes down the entire grid will go down. Since this is known, couldn't an electrical producing facility be taken off the present grid, such as a dam, or even windmills to have a consistent source of electricity. to repair the computers. Then as the computers are repaired the electrical grid will gradually, over time, be built back to normal?

Many of you are much more knowledgable in computers than I am. Please let me know if either of the things mentioned are workable. Also, please give the reasons why they would, or would not work.

Alan

-- alan mostert (alanmos@yahoo.com), August 23, 1998

Answers

>2. regarding the electricity grid, I understand when one area goes down the entire grid will go down. Since this is known, couldn't an electrical producing facility be taken off the present grid, such as a dam, or even windmills to have a consistent source of electricity. to repair the computers. Then as the computers are repaired the electrical grid will gradually, over time, be built back to normal? <

2. The answer is no. The power grid was designed to function as one entity and all generating facilities are tied together. One company's system cannot be isolated to operate as a stand-alone. I believe this was required by law.

-- Herman (winners@magiclink.com), August 23, 1998.

Alan The Y2k problem is not generally with the computers themselves but with the software, either ikn the operating system or the application programs. Most larger companies have hundreds or thousands of custom written programs that have been developed over years or decades. These programs represent the unique way in which different businesses operate. It takes a great deal of time to review these programs line by line and make corrections regarding date related calculations

Some companies are buying new software packages which can be tailored to the needs of the company, but such customization can take months or years. So either way, it takes a long time and a lot of labor.

When the problem is in the operating system, it may be that there is no replacement operating system for the particular model of computer that is owned, so some people will get newer computers so that they can get a compliant operating system - but that will generally involve a big conversion task to get old applicaiton programs to run under the new operating system.

In many cases, awareness of the problem and response has been delayed so that there is insufficient time to remediate. And it is further compounded and delayed by the wide spread attitude that IT'S NO BIG PROBLEM! Which attitude is one of the reasons that eventually IT REALLY BECOMES A BIG PROBLEM, when people finally GET IT, but don't have time to fix it! (Can you believe it, some people still DON'T GET IT! - even though there are fewer than 500 days left to go, and much fewer than 500 work days.) ....................<>

-- Dan Hunt (dhunt@hostscorp.com), August 24, 1998.

Somewhere, on the Net, I read an explanation that even this old granny can understand. Suppose someone gave you a cup full of marbles and a cloth. You were to polish them and complete the job in one week. No problem! Now, suppose someone gave you a cloth, took you to the Grand Canyon which was full to the brim with marbles and you had one week to polish them. The problem is not your ability to polish; the problem is how many have to be polished in the alloted time. There are millions of lines of code; and gazillions of microprocessors--some of them underground, some under water (off shore oil pumping stations). As of today, there are 495 days til 010100. The job will get done, but not by then!

-- Holly Allen (Holly3325@juno.com), August 24, 1998.