I am a resident here in Maryland and have some interesting information to post. Please note that I am neutral on my view of Y2K and feel it necessary to post just what I know and what close associates of mine have told me. No hype or wishes of self fullfilling prophecies here. I work closely with several medium sized companies in Maryland and Northern Virginia in the area of financial management. While working with the vice president of a firm the other day and his newly hired IT consultant, I learned many startling revelations about the state of affairs here in my state. First of all, this gentlemen's firm is not even ready for Y2K. They anticipate MAJOR problems in regards to inventory and customer database management. They will be working 24/7 intil the end of the year to try to correct this. Secondly, the newly hired consultant confided in us that the large, local phone company (initial's B.A. You do the deciphering....it won't be hard) are in such bad shape that they are rebooting their entire systems every morning at 3 am and sometimes twice a day. He also informed me that while his firm was working with a major grocer in Northern Virginia the other day, something astonishing happened. They ran their first real time Y2K rollover test with live customers in the store and in line. In a matter of fifteen seconds, every single cash register locked up tight as a drum. His firm immediatley advised management to evacuate the store and that is what they did. (Funny, didn't even hear about this in the news...!!) Take it for what you will....I personally don't like the sound of it all.

-- Tim Wells (Timwells12@usa.net), December 03, 1999

Answers

Tim, Hi, I am in Anne Arundel County. My husband often speaks to a technician he knows who works for Baltimore Gas and Electric Company and was told recently there were still a hundred or so embedded chips that they haven't been able to find.

You should share your info. with MEMA, (Md. Emer. Mgmt Agcy.) email is: bmerritt@mema.state.md.us I just sent them an update on embeddeds in case they're interested. I've been reading a mailing list for Emergency Mgmt. Officials and it's amazing how these folk have been kept "in the dark" along with the rest of us, (no pun intended!) Charli

-- Charli Claypool (claypool@belatlantic.net), December 03, 1999.

Tim,

Are you saying that with a month to go a major communications company is still scratching their heads? Aren't TELCOS oone of the 3 absolutely essential components of the "Iron Triangle"? Whoooooaa Boy! Strap yourselves in folks!!

-- TM (mercier7@pdnt.com), December 03, 1999.

Tim:

Thanks for the post. I live about 15 minutes away from Hagerstown in the southern part of PA. Our electric company is Adams Electric which is affiliated with Pennlec. A close fried of my wife works for Adams and she stated to my wife that Adams is in such bad shape that the "higher ups" refuse to do any testing this month. If you were to call them and ask about they're Y2K readiness, the refer you to FEMA's website and advise you to "adhere" to FEMA's suggestions. Pennlec also puts out a quarterly newsletter and they are telling their customers that "they are ready for the rollover but, you should make preps for, at least, 3 days.

-- Familyman (prepare@home.com), December 03, 1999.

Tim,

Interesting story, but where's the source, what grocery store?

Since there were "customers in the store and it was ordered evacuated", it would seem that there's no secret to keep. Also, why hint at Bell Atlantic with initials rather than just say "Bell Atlantic"?

I keep being confused as to why someone goes to all the trouble to post stories without supporting evidence. Please explain to me the logic here, 'cuz I just don't get it.

Most respectfully yours,

-- Randers (coyotecanyon@hotmail.com), December 03, 1999.

They've had several years to fix this problem and they haven't fixed it yet? And they are telling people to prepare for 3 days, does that mean they can fix it in 3 days?

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), December 03, 1999.

DUH RANDERS. do you have sources for everything you see first hand or hear from your friend in daily life? what is tim supposed to do publish names, dates, times, etc? i doubt it. i sure wouldn't do it with the current litigation client and our government's anti truth stance.

i think there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that we ought to be concerned. there are literally thousands of reports like this (i have a few from my Erie insurance rep regarding the serious problems they are having with their system that is being caused by the telecoms) -- they can't all be lies.

-- tt (cuddluppy@nowhere.com), December 03, 1999.

By the way, my father is a nuclear engineer for B.G. and E. as well. He works at Calvert Cliffs. He cannot disclose certain things to me but assured me that we will be in good shape for the new year in the nuke facilities. He and his people, however, are preparing a thirty day supply of the same things that us Y2K kooks are because many of them live in areas that get most of their power from facilities other than Calvert Cliffs!!! What does that tell you?

-- Tim Wells (Timwells12@usa.net), December 03, 1999.

tt,

You know, I try to be polite and respectful. I ask genuine questions and most times get non-answers and insults. You would not speak like this in person, why do so just 'cuz you're on the web?

My question was directed to Tim. It's a simple question. It's not an attack and Tim will certainly not be sued by Safeway (or whomever) for telling an anicdotal story.

There is no accusation of lying either. I honestly do not understand why a person leaves out pertinent information. We wouldn't accept it from reporters or government officials, why individuals?

Once again, with ultimate respect, Tim, Why no names?

-- Randers (coyotecanyon@hotmail.com), December 03, 1999.

This Y2Kook is preparing for more than 30 days, fer sher.

It cannotbe that all these reports are false. Our Kentucky Utilities is claiming 'readiness', but does that just mean they can get out of the plant before something blows? That would be 'ready'!

Kook

-- Y2Kook (Y2Kook@usa.net), December 03, 1999.

Randers, I respect and admire your skepticism and desire for my sources. I would love to oblige, but there are just too many close parties involved and too much liability on my part that I do not want to assume. Next thing yo know, Channel 11,13, and 2 show up at the variou locations asking for so and so.....too ugly. I will not even go down that road. I think Mr. CEO did the right thing and so will I. If you and the rest of the forum participants would rather I not post anymore because of my failure to disclose names, etc.....I will oblige and I will understand perfectly. No hard feelings here. Best of luck. By the way, that is not my real email address, so please don't flame me to death....I don't use my real email address anymore because the last time I did that I had to change it within three days because of the spam and flaming. Have a great holiday season and happy New Year. Tim

-- Tim Wells (Timwells12@usa.net), December 03, 1999.

Tim Wells is a man of honor.

No flames (ever from me), although I'm still perplexed

-- Randers (coyotecanyon@hotmail.com), December 03, 1999.

Thanks for the post. I wonder what kind of system BA is rebooting every morning. Probably an administrative or maintenance system. These types of systems won't affect service immediately, but will cause delays in repairs and connections for new customers. Eventually, they can have a very serious effect. I wonder why people keep insisting on names of people who disclose this type of information. Realistically, that is not going to happen. I am thankful for every bit of information, even if it cannot be verified.

-- Dave (dannco@hotmail.com), December 03, 1999.

My ISP is Bell Atlantic.Net and it boots me off line several times every AM without fail..now I know why.

Bell Atlantic - Year 2000 Readiness: Homepage http://www.bellatlantic.com/year2000/cont.htm

From a page last updated 11/11/99...

.................Although we are confident that our efforts will be successful, our network and systems span across 13 states and the District of Columbia, use hundreds of thousands of components and rely on services and facilities of numerous third party providers. Given this scope, complexity and interdependence, there remains a possibility of Year 2000-related disruption and we believe that it is prudent for us to have contingency plans to avoid or mitigate the impact of such disruption.

BGE and the Year 2000 http://www.bge.com/ (And BTW the comments on Y2K the movie here are hilarious!!!!)

From a page last updated 11/17/99 they say: One-hundred percent of our mission-critical systems for electric and gas production and delivery are ready for rollover of the millennium. But they go on to say: Due to the magnitude and complexity of the Year 2000 problem, even the most conscientious efforts cannot guarantee that every problem will be found and remediated prior to January 1, 2000. BGE expects to provide the same reliable gas and electric service that we have in the past. We will be prepared for any emergency that may arise, Y2K or otherwise.

Find Your Local Utility Company ((((( SPIN))))) Here... http://www.y2kspecialist.com/welcome/Y2kindustry/utilites/utility%20co mpanies.htm

-- Charli Claypool (claypool@belatlantic.net), December 03, 1999.

http://www.y2kspecialist.com/Y2kindustry/index.htm

For your local UTILITY ((((SPIN)))) This link works

-- Charli Claypool (claypool@belatlantic.net), December 03, 1999.

Tim: Please don't take offense, this is certainly not intended as a personal attack.

A great many of us here are continuously performing a personal risk/stakes assessment so as not to overreact or underreact. We've been presented with lots of information here and it is our task to sort through it all somehow, decide upon credibility and take action (or not take action) accordingly.

So the insistance upon sources and verifiable data is important. Let me give you a recent hard example. On November 9th of this year, Gary North posted a piece on "Mr. CEO", who, according to Gary was "a principal and the Chief Executive Officer of a large software engineering firm specializing in work with "embedded systems."

The original post is at: http://www.garyno rth.com/y2k/detail_.cfm/6776

Mr. CEO offered the following very scary quote:

""If we lose power in 40-60% of the country from between 2 weeks and a month; and, if we have dirty power all next year that is rationed, Ill consider that a home run."

If this statement is even close to accurate, a great many people could die as a result. Serious stuff here. While my family is personally prepared for such an outage, the vast mahjority of our population is neither prepared for nor expecting such an outcome.

We must somehow make a personal decision as to the credibility of the source. Gary often passes along such information and in this instance, it was impossible to verify. Without verification, we must assign it the the 'unverifiable' pile.

That is, we can evaluate the statements on their own but must keep in mind that it may not be true, or that even if true, Mr. CEO may not have the inside knowledge that he claims to have, or he may know what he is talking about but be incorrect in his conclusions. In other words, until the information is verified, we should neither accept nor should we dismiss the information. How can we assess the credibility of Mr. CEO's statement? It is problematic.

The fact that Gary passed it along does not in itself add credibility - at least in my opinion. Gary is not, nor has he ever claimed to be, an investigative journalist. He simply passes these items along with his interpretation and it is up to us to evaluate. We acknowledge that Gary North has his own agenda but we certainly cannot say Gary's agenda is in any way 'hidden'. Gary makes his personal philosophy abundantly clear.

The fact that a few others, most notably Jim Lord, have stepped forward to confirm Mr. CEO's credentials has, in my mind added some credibilty to the statement. However, it is not the same level of credibilty that might have been achieved had Mr. CEO followed through with his plans to be interviewed.

So, as it currently sits, you can see why Mr. CEO's statement is very difficult to evaluate from a personal risk perspective.

This is but one example. That is why many of us here are continuously asking for links and sources. Understanding the potential risks of Y2K is difficult enough, especially for people who have never spent much time thinking on a macro scale. But determining precisely what will happen is all but impossible.

So we ask for corroborating evidence where it exists. Regards and best wishes.

-- Arnie Rimmer (Arnie_Rimmer@usa.net), December 03, 1999.

Charli: Do you like to mudwrestle?

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.cum), December 03, 1999.

Affadavitts, sworn and notarized, scanned and posted, would be ideal for rumors.

Heh, just bein an a$$hole.

-- Hokie (nn@va.com), December 03, 1999.

If you really want to know what is going on with your local utilities, don't follow Kosky's advice and call their PR flacks.

Just go out and talk to the local linemen. If you can find them at the local bar it is even better.

A few pointed questions and you will get the idea.

Hint: in many areas it is not pretty.

-- cgbg jr (cgbgjr@webtv.net), December 03, 1999.

for those of you insisting on names and faces before you will consider credibility, keep in mind what defense lawyers have over the years managed to downplay: eyewitnesses are nice, but circumstantial evidence is still evidence.

-- Cowardly Lion (cl0001@hotmail.com), December 03, 1999.

Cowardly Lion, ...and truth is the best defense against lible!

-- Charli Claypool (claypool@belatlantic.net), December 03, 1999.

All you MD, PA, VA,DC folks. Come on down to Clarks Do It Center tomorrow, Sat. Dec 4, 10-2 and chat with me and anyone else who shows up.

About a mile or 2 west of RT 29 on RT 40.

-- Sally Strackbein (sally@y2kkitchen.com), December 03, 1999.