Re: Looking for ammo -- MIDRANGE-L

Lance,

In a message dated 97-12-19 11:09:43 EST, you write:

>         My boss feels the year 2000 thing is nothing but hype.  He feels it
>  is nothing more than an issue of a two character field becoming a four
>  character field.  I would like to hear from you all some details, examples,
>  etc... of just how complex and serious this issue is.
>  
>          P.S. - the "boss" happens to be my dad so do not rag on him too
much!

Hard to "rag" on someone about this issue that doesn't understand programming
or computers!  There are people that "know the business" that consider the
problem in the same simplistic terms.  The issue is too complex to detail all
of it here, but a few problems are:

1.  The operating systems on _ALL_ of your computer systems (PC's, time
clocks, environmental control systems, automobiles, watches, security systems,
VCR, microwave, etc.) may not recognize a year beginning with zero ('0').

2.  If you fix your applications for Y2K, will your "middleware" still support
them?  Do you have a change management system?  A third-party job scheduler?
A code generator?  A query tool (EIS)?  Will _ALL_ of these perform date
calculations properly, even against an enhanced database?

3.  Will your interfaces to suppliers/customers work?  This is perhaps the
most important consideration.  Especially if you are running JIT
manufacturing, you can upgrade your systems all day long -- a tiny supplier in
Singapore that didn't do the same could bring your plant to a halt.  You could
suddenly be expediting orders to hundreds of customers whose EDI orders
suddenly become 100 years past due!

4.  The software that you have been running "for free" all these years could
suddenly cease to function when the key validation program (even for permanent
ones) cannot recognize the date.

5.  "Dateline Anywhere, Earth:  Liability Exposure Forces Company to Fold.
Today, Z Corporation was forced into bankruptcy after a summary judgement by a
federal court determined that the company had willfully mislead its customers
into believing that they were "Y2K compliant".  Despite the fact that Company
Z responded to all inquiries as to their Y2K compliance in a positive manner,
the company was not compliant and failed to meet the delivery criteria of
their contracts."  

Companies are mailing/faxing/e-mailing now for compliance certification,
merely to support future litigation.  Are you ready?

Regards!

Dean Asmussen
Enterprise Systems Consulting, Inc.
Fuquay-Varina, NC  USA
E-Mail:  DAsmussen@aol.com

"Laugh and the world laughs with you; snore and you sleep alone." -- Mrs.
Patrick Campbell
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