TAVA/Unisys mentioned in ITAA Y2k outlook (email report)
'ITAA's Year 2000 Outlook
October 23, 1998 Volume 3, No. 39
Published by the Information Technology Association of America, Arlington, VA
Bob Cohen, Editor bcohen@itaa.org
Read in over 80 countries around the world
ITAA's Year 2000 Outlook is published every Friday to help all organizations
deal more effectively with the Year 2000 software conversion. To create a
subscription to this free publication, please visit ITAA on the web at
itaa.org. To cancel an existing
subscription, visit itaa.org.
ITAA's Year 2000 Outlook is sponsored in part by CACI International Inc., DMR
Consulting Group Inc., and Y2Kplus
Development Bank Official Offers Candid Latin Perspective
Is Y2K just a bad hair day for most Latin American countries? A trifle in
comparison with more immediate and pressing concerns?
Carlos Guedes, CIO and Deputy Controller of the Inter-American Development Bank,
appeared at the Washington DC Y2K Users Group this week and indicated that many
of the criticisms leveled at the slow pace of Y2K progress in Latin America are
unfortunately true. The key is understanding why.
As a development bank, the IDB works with Latin countries to assist in
restructuring their economies and to pursue socioeconomic issues like poverty
reduction and social equity, modernization and integration, and the environment.
The bank is providing $2 billion to fix Y2K problems in Latin America and the
Caribbean.
But survival of the techno fittest takes on new meaning in the Latin context.
As an example, Guedes said Equador suffered the equivalent of 50 years of rain
in 1996 and 1997. The rain sank the country's banana crop. When the rains
stopped, an earthquake in 1998 (measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale) destroyed
what was left. Add a major drop in oil prices and a two-digit crisis over a
year away simply dries up in the Quito sun.
"South of the equator, procrastination is not a sin," Guedes said. "It's part
of the equation. It's not all about planning. If I have no food today and I'm
going to starve in two months, I'm not worried about 2000."
That doesn't mean that the bank is not trying to avoid a serious calendar
crunch. According to an IDB Y2K Policy Statement, the bank is "working
diligently to encourage its business partners…and borrowers to assess their
potential risks associated with Year 2000 system failures." The bank also
expects its business partners to get the whole job done by next June (the same
date it has picked for its internal efforts, estimated at $22.5 million).
Whether IDB partners act on that expectation remains to be seen. Guedes says
one banker compared the situation to a major overall of computer systems
undertaken in response to that nation's 10,000 percent inflation rate. The
change was conducted over a weekend. "Why is Year 2000 a big deal?" this
individual asked him. As Guedes points out, the change involved known
requirements implemented in specific systems, not a search for two-digit days in
millions of lines of code. "That's why acrobatic pilots die," he said, "One day
they do the trick and it doesn't work."
Despite his real-world view of Y2K efforts in the region, Guedes predicted many
small problems in small countries (as opposed to economic show-stoppers). On
the contrary, he suggested big problems like bank runs are more apt to be the
work of Y2K extremists.
Clinton Signs Y2K Bill; Congress Introduces One More
President Clinton signed S. 2392, the Year 2000 Information and Readiness
Disclosure Act, into law this week.
"Many organizations have been reluctant to share valuable information about
their experiences in dealing with the Y2K problem or the status of their Y2K
efforts for fear of lawsuits. The Act's limited liability protections will
promote and encourage greater information sharing about both experiences and
solutions, which will significantly enhance public and private sector efforts to
prepare the Nation's computer systems for the new millennium. However, the bill
will not affect liability that may arise from Y2K failures of systems or
devices," the President said.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4756, the Year 2000
Preparedness Act of 1998, which would "encourage" Y2K Czar John Koskinen to
develop best practices guidelines and standards for remediation and validation.
Introduced without co-sponsors by Congresswoman Connie Morella (R-MD), the bill
moved directly from the Science Committee to a vote of the full House. Along
with guidelines, the legislation seeks a national assessment of the Y2K computer
problem, covering banking and finance, energy, telecommunications,
transportation, vital human services, and more. The bill calls on the President
to allow the Y2K Czar to step in and exert leadership in civilian Federal
agencies put at Y2K risk by "ineffective management."
The bill also requires agency heads to schedule data exchange test and
implementation schedules, possibly including national test days for end-to-end
verification of critical processes; to notify data exchange partners of the
"implications" of missing test dates; to give priority to the installation of
filter technology to prevent data corruption; and to develop and implement
contingency plans for data exchange snafus. Data exchange meetings and reports
are a required part of the package. The bill would also launch outreach and
awareness campaigns for small and mid-sized companies and consumers.
The bill is expected to be re-introduced in the next Congress.
FTC Calls Y2K Problems in Some Consumer Products Unlikely
A consumer alert from the Federal Trade Commission says some consumer products
are unlikely to experience Y2K date-related failures. The alert says that small
and large appliances, heating and cooling equipment, home entertainment
products, photographic equipment and other devices contain microchips. Some
devices, like programmable microwave ovens and coffeemakers, use clock but not
calendar functions, the alert notes. Other products, like refrigerators, may
track cycles rather than dates. The FTC rolled out its "Y2K? Y 2 Care"
campaign this week, composed of a series of publications aimed at businesses and
consumers. The pubs are described at
ftc.gov.
Gore Calls for Sustained Y2K Effort
With the nation's Year 2000 Action Week drawing to a close, Vice President Gore
issued a statement calling on American businesses to make aggressive efforts to
fix the date problem in computer and embedded systems. "Progress on the Y2K
problem among businesses is not uniform," Gore says. "For those getting a late
start, access to technical information on experiences and solutions will be
critical. The legislation that President Clinton signed Monday, which provides
legal protections for information sharing, will help many smaller organizations
that are just beginning their Y2K work. The President and I urge trade
associations and umbrella organizations to collect such information from their
members and provide it to others through websites and other means devoted to
discussing Y2K experiences and solutions."
Closer to Home
ITAA announced this week that Oracle Applications Division of Oracle Corporation
of Redwood Shores, California has received ITAA*2000 certification. ITAA*2000
is the industry's century date change certification program. The program
examines processes and methods used by companies to perform their Year 2000
software conversions. Oracle Applications Division of Oracle Corporation
participated in a rigorous evaluation of its approach to date conversion, with
extensive analysis in eleven discrete process areas deemed necessary to a
successful Year 2000 conversion.
Business to Business
Alydaar Software Corporation, Charlotte, NC, has been awarded a Y2K remediation
contract by Idaho Power Company.
Unisys Corporation, Blue Bell, PA, and TAVA Technologies have entered into a
worldwide business agreement. Under this agreement Unisys will be able to
resell TAVA's plant Y2KOne software and professional services as part of the
Unisys TEAM2000 solution portfolio.
Software Testing Assurance Corporation, Stamford, CT, has developed an SEC Y2K
compliance verification and validation process. |
