Since I am a bottom line kind of guy, I
will simply give you the bottom line on the Year 2000 bug
(Y2k).
I have been very concerned
recently to see how my friends and clients have been handling the
"Y2k
Scare." They have been killing a gnat with an atomic
bomb. They have gone out and
bought $3,000.00 and $4.000.00 replacement computers to handle
this problem. RIDICULOUS
!
Since our goal here at The
Computer Technician was to get all of our customers "Y2k
Compliant" by the beginning of 1999, we saw and are still
seeing many computers. We have seen few hardware (bios') that
were old enough to not be compliant. So far, we have seen a total
of ten that was not Y2k bios compliant. It also was simple to
remedy.
As I stated in previous
communications with you, the entire problem can be taken care of
with software. Y2k
is a "Media Scare!" The
only problem is if you don't have it taken care of. The cost is
so small that it cost no more than a simple service call on each
computer.
Y2k
Upgrade is in Three Distinct Stages . . .
1) The
BIOs must be tested and software upgraded if necessary.
2) The
Operationg System, Windows 95, Windows 3.0, 3.1 and 3.11 must
have a MS software patch. If running MS Dos, it has to be
upgraded to ver. 6.22. Windows 98 must also have a Year 2000
(Y2k) upgrade.
3) We
generally leave individual software programs to you to handle.
You simply need to contact your program manufacturer for the most
recent upgrade version.
We do have software that will scan
the computer to identify programs that are not compliant. But I
am confident that you already know which programs will be a
problem, such as Peachtree Complete Accounting, DacEasy,
Quickbooks, Quicken, etc. You simply need to contact the program
manufacturer for an upgraded version.
Note: Everything
needs to operate with four
digits for the year and also needs
to be able to recognize leap years.
We can generally Y2k upgrade each
computer system in less than an hour and it generally cost the
amout and an hour of general computer service in-office or
on-site. Price is subject to change depending on the time it
actually takes to perform the upgrade. In every case so far, it
has taken us under an hour.
Now doesn't the cost of an hour of general computer service sound
much better than $3,000.00 to $4,000.00?
Please don't kill a gnat with an
atomic bomb!
It is just
a "media scare!" It is only a problem if you don't
handle it.
The problem is that much of today's computer
software will be unable to handle the change of dates when we
enter the year 2000. Experts have made dire predictions of
commerce grinding to a halt as computer systems throughout the
world break down, unable to process transactions.
Things won't be that bad, because companies are
already working on the problem, but you should be aware of the
potential impact on your business.
The problem arises because most computers record dates using only the last
two digits of the year, assuming that the first two digits are
always "19."
For example, a date in 1998 is stored by the computer as "98." Unless changes are made, computers will read the
year 2000 as "00," and assume that this refers to the
year 1900. So if a company enters a payment as due in the year
2000, the computer will read this as 1900 and assume that the
date has passed.
Imagine how often computers are used to record
the dates of bank deposits, bond maturities, hotel and airline
reservations, and accounts payable, and you begin to see the
scale of the problem.
The good news is that major business and
software companies are already working hard to fix the problem.
For large companies with custom software, such as banks,
utilities, and airlines, the fix will take thousands of hours and
cost millions of dollars. They have to search through thousands
of lines of computer code to find every place where a date is
used, then make the necessary changes.
If you're a smaller company using standard
business software, you should be able to rely on the software
vendor to fix the problem in a future release. Companies such as
Microsoft and Intuit (seller of Quicken) have already announced
plans to issue fixes.
Meanwhile, you should inventory all your software to see what
might be affected and schedule time to install new releases as
they are issued.
By Smith, Cochran &
Hicks, CPA's
Y2k
Bug
By now, anyone who reads the
paper or watches television should be well and truly confused
about whether Jan. 1, 2000, will find the computerized world in
flames and civilization destroyed, or merely a little off-kilter
and shaken.
The original space-saving decision to use only the last two
digits of the year in computer programs is coming back to haunt
us as we approach the year 2000 -- which many programs will
interpret as 1900.
Governments and businesses the world over are scrambling to fix
the problem, which involves literally millions of lines of
computer code. It's a huge, expensive undertaking, a race against
time that many will win and some will lose.
But what does all this mean for regular folks who don't happen to
control vast computer networks or oversee national monetary
policies? What should they be doing to prepare themselves?
The problem breaks down into two main areas: things we have
direct control over and things we don't. If the automated teller
machines don't work for a week, you can't get in there and fix
them, but you can make sure you've got enough cash on hand to get
you through. At home, you can make sure that all your electronic
devices are ready for the year 2000 -- "Y2k compliant,"
in the jargon of programmers -- and that you sail as smoothly as
possible into the future.
USA TODAY'S Elizabeth Weise takes a walk through a typical
consumer's home, pointing out some appliances and systems to look
into.
Simple Technician's
Test for Y2k Compliance
This simple test is most likely how your technician will check
the BIOS in your computer to make sure it'll work into the next
millenium:
1. Set date and time to 12/31/99 11:59:00pm
2. Turn system off and wait at least 1 minute
3. Turn system on and enter the BIOS setup
4. Verify date reported by BIOS setup is 1/1/2000
5. Set date and time to 2/28/2000 11:59:00pm
6. Turn system off and wait at least 1 minute
7. Turn system on and enter BIOS setup.
8. Verify date reported by BIOS setup is 2/29/2000
9. Reset your date and time to the current settings
Please do not do this yourself, have it done by a trained
professional—complications could occur.
Hi computer technician! I personally think Bill Gates should personally
pay for everyone's Y2k fix, don't you? After all, he is responsible for
the problem in the first place. I'll present that idea to him.
Just thought I'd say "HI"!
Ruth
Hi James- I read your speech. Very
good! I also downloaded the test
program you recommended & apparently the IBM is just
fine. It just
needs to have it's date set manually on 1/1/00. Thanks!
Ruth
==
James Hale wrote . . .
>
My Dear Friend:
On Tuesday, March 2, 1999, I had the pleasure of
addressing the distinguished men and women of the Beckley
Rotary Club concerning the Y2K problem. That speech is
posted at the following Internet address for your review:
http://bkwrotary.cjb.net
One of the concerns of the
men and women of the Beckley Rotary Club was how to check
their computer for Y2K compliance. The Computer
Technician is making a Y2K Test Disk available to you so
you can test your computer hardware for Y2K
compatibility. The Y2K Test Disk can be picked up at our
location at 120 S. Fayette Street in Uptown Beckley
between 8:00am and 5:00pm, Monday thru Friday.
We have also designed a
web site to aid you in any area of your computer
adventure and areas of interest. The web site is the
"Online Computer Resource Center," the web site
address is: http://hale.cjb.net
Y2K Upgrade is in Three
Distinct Stages . . .
1) The BIOs must be tested
and software upgraded if necessary.
2) The Operating System, Windows 98/95, Windows 3.0, 3.1
and 3.11 must have a MS software patch. If running MS
Dos, it has to be upgraded to ver. 6.22
3) When the operating system is MS-Dos, patches must
still be added to Windows programs.
4) We do a software scan for software that will cause a
date conflict, but we generally leave individual software
programs to you to handle.
You simply need to contact your program manufacturer for
the most recent upgrade version.
It was recently discovered that Windows 98 is not Y2K
compliant Windows 98 needs a Y2K upgrade to become fully
Y2K compliant.
Simple Technician's Test for Y2K Compliance
This simple test is most likely how your technician will
check the BIOS in your computer to make sure it'll work
into the next millennium:
1. Set date and time to 12/31/99 11:59:00pm
2. Turn system off and wait at least 1 minute
3. Turn system on and enter the BIOS setup
4. Verify date reported by BIOS setup is 1/1/2000
5. Set date and time to 2/28/2000 11:59:00pm
6. Turn system off and wait at least 1 minute
7. Turn system on and enter BIOS setup.
8. Verify date reported by BIOS setup is 2/29/2000
9. Reset your date and time to the current settings
I agree with the
information on Viruses that you sent, however, I was sent a virus
online this last week that totally erased my hard drive. I had to start from
the beginning and rebuild and reinstall my hardware.
Hackers invaded my Yahoo Mail, my AOL Messenger and my
ICQ and replaced vital information with vulgar filth.
They changed my passwords and alternate e-mail address
and it too me all weekend to persuade Yahoo to send me a
new password so I could access my e-mail and receive my
password for AOL Messenger & ICQ.
********** VIRUS
ALERT **********
ALERT!!!! Watch-out for
the Chernobyl Virus, which is a CIH virus that will
activate on April 26. This virus will delete everything
on you hard-drive and prevent your computer from booting
up. You can find more information on this virus athttp://www.inetone.net/Moore1(Anti-Hackers)
Microsoft designed programs to gather your
private information into word docs, etc. Microsoft has now
released are programs on their site that will remove your
confidential information from those word docs. The address
follows: http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/articles/privacy.htm
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You're into computers... I always get some good links and
info from you so I
thought I'd return the favor. you heard
about microsoft puttin your name and such
into word docs and the like. Well, cuz of all the
bitching about it
they put up a coupla progs on their site that'll remove
that from word docs. I
thought u'd like the addy: http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/articles/privacy.htm
They got one that'll remove it from ur current docs and
another that
makes it so they dont store stuff on ur new ones. Check
it out.
Thanx for the warnings and stuff that you send me.
Chris
Long Distance Call Each Time You Access the Internet!
