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To: Hawkmoon who wrote (19652)	9/24/1998 7:54:00 PM
From: Giraffe	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116759

>>Now concerning the international scene... I don't care to make a prediction.<< I remember a story a few months ago that said that all the Japanese banks put together were spending less on Y2K than even one largish US bank. But a Japanese official was quoted as saying that everything was under control. Wonder what would happen to all these complicated derivatives if one of the major players couldn't get his computers to boot up.

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (19652)	9/25/1998 12:58:00 AM
From: John Mansfield	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116759

Hi Ron << Y'know John.... I was at that very same DCY2K Workgroup meeting and I didn't get the impression that Koskinen or the Federal Gov't had "given up" as Cory so negatively put it. >> Well that sounds reassuring! << I think Cory is filtering this event through his own doom & gloom bias. >> Might be the case. But I have read all his Weather Reports on Y2k and other posts on news://comp.software.year-2000 since summer last year. This guy has a profound knowledge on enterprise IT (in terms of years of experience; awareness and know-how of Y2k issues; network of friends/colleagues working on enterprise IT at the F500 co's etc etc). He is one of the few people 'in the trenches' who know what they are talking about. About a year ago he was was not in a doom/gloom mood at all. He was upbeat 'we have to fix the systems' we have to concentrate on mission critical systems etc'. During the last 12 months or so, he gradually changed his mind. All in all, knowing this guy through internet newsgroup postings for over a year now, it do not dismiss his remarks and opinions lightly. You are right: 'preparing for the worst; hoping for the best'. Regards, John

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (19652)	9/25/1998 1:30:00 AM
From: John Mansfield	Respond to of 116759

OT - 'HEADLINE: ANALYSIS - JAPAN'S SCARY DELAY IN DEALING WITH Y2K BOMB DATELINE: TOKYO, Sept 22 BODY: Japan Inc. is dramatically and dangerously far behind other major economies in dealing with the so-called Year 2000, or Y2K, computer bug. Alerted by the delay, the government has whipped up an action program to deal with the millennium bomb. But unless the government exerts strong leadership and mounts an industry-wide drive to fix the problem, it could really invite a costly digital disaster. The problem originated in what has turned out to be a ludicrously shortsighted shortcut in which many system programmers in the days of expensive memories set aside only two digits to denote the year in dates, as in 21/09/98 instead of 21/09/1998. Trouble is, when the computer's clock strikes 2000, it can mistake 2000 for 1900, or 2001 for 1901, and so forth. Left uncorrected, the Year 2000 glitch could cause millions of computer systems to go haywire with devastating economic and social consequences. The cost of fixing all Y2K-affected programs in the world has been estimated to be somewhere between US$ 200 billion to US$ 600 billion. The task would cost 2 to 3 trillion yen in Japan alone. Beset by the worst recession in many decades, Japanese companies are lagging way behind their rivals in the U.S. and Europe in handling the issue. Even among financial institutions, which have renewed their computer systems several times, only 48.3% had their key accounts systems repaired at the end of June, according to a survey by the Bank of Japan. Even at the end of this year, which the Bank for International Settlements has recommended as the due date for finishing the work, no more than 79.2% of Japanese financial institutions will be Y2K ready. Some institutions are expected to fail to meet the deadline at the end of 1999. Only half of the companies in the non-financial sector will achieve full Year 2000 compliance for their systems by the end of this year, according to a survey by an organization of chief information-system officials of Japanese firms. In this age of a networked world, any serious disruptions in a computer system in Japan could cause major international repercussions. Japanese companies must realize that delay in disarming the millennium bomb would be felt around the world. Some leading foreign firms are terminating business with outfits that are neglecting the fix. It is also important to prepare a crisis management system to minimize damages if the Y2K crunch hits. The sheer number and complexity of computer programs that use dates and the slow progress in removing the bug so far make it almost impossible to prevent troubles completely, so effective backups to keep economic activities going are vital. Besides pressing public organizations to expedite their preparations, the government ought to launch a nationwide campaign to improve Y2K readiness and supply financial aid to cash-strapped small businesses to do the job. It also should help arrange industry-wide tests simulating the rollover to Jan. 1, 2000 to pinpoint major trouble spots. The time left for defusing the time bomb is growing slim. (Nikkei) web.lexis-nexis.com