(i'm posting the entire article because it will be gone from the site in a day or so)
City to tackle Y2K when time comes
By Susan Greene
Denver Post Staff Writer
Dec. 13 - Let it break, then fix it.
That's part of Denver's strategy as the city prepares itself over the coming year for the so-called
"Y2K'' computer problem.
Officials say there's no way Denver can reprogram every computer chip in every piece of city
equipment before midnight on Dec. 31, 1999. So they're concentrating on repairing things
deemed critical to public safety - and rolling the dice on the rest.
Items expected to be inoculated against problems arising come the year 2000, or Y2K, are traffic
lights, police cars and security systems at Denver jails.
Those that could be left alone include sprinklers, air conditioners and elevators in city buildings,
intercoms and hot water systems, modems, fax machines, copiers and maybe even phones. It's
possible, city officials say, that lighting in parks could be crippled. Sewer lines may go
unmonitored. Recycling trucks and street sweepers may not be able to make their neighborhood
rounds.
"We'll oftentimes just wait until the clock rolls over to see if things work or don't work,'' said
Dave Bufalo, Denver's Y2K director. "I don't think the world's going to come to an end. But I
can't say exactly what will happen, either.''
The problem, in short, centers on computers, software and chips expected to go awry because
they recognize dates only in two-digit formats. When computers' internal clocks change to Jan. 1,
2000, many will "believe'' it's actually 1900. Unless they're reprogrammed, they could shut down
or go haywire.
Crews and consultants began working on software for the city's 6,000 computers in 1996. In
February, they shifted much of their focus to "embedded chips'' - tiny devices that regulate the
functions of the product they're in, making sure that cellular phones ring and elevators stop
running if they're due for repair.
Locating and either repairing or replacing all embedded chips in all city equipment would be
impossibly time-consuming and expensive, officials say.
The city is outlining its efforts to handle the problem in a disclosure statement expected to be
released at the end of this month. Drafting of the document is being overseen by Mayor
Wellington Webb's chief of staff, Stephanie Foote - a sign that Y2K compliance is a high priority
for the mayor.
Preparing city offices, equipment and Denver International Airport for the millennium is expected
to cost city taxpayers at least $44 million over three years. That price tag - which doesn't even
include the quasi-independent Denver Water Department - is conservative, and exact spending
totals keep rising.
"It's a variable target for me,'' Bufalo said of the bottom line.
Setting priorities for Y2K repair is sort of like hospital triage.
Once equipment related to public health and safety is tested and compliant, crews will focus on a
second tier of the city's fix-it list, which includes security cameras, burglar alarms, keypads,
parking meters, elevators, cashier systems, fueling operations and heating systems. They're also
working to ensure that the city continues to levy property taxes, speeding fines, license fees and
dozens of other revenue sources that keep the electric bills - and Y2K consultants - paid.
Those tasks are expected to take up consultants' time as the clock ticks over the coming 12
months.
That will leave a third tier of equipment untended and possibly broken until higher priority
equipment is fixed. Explaining the strategy, Bufalo said it may be cheaper to let things break than
to spend the money and manpower identifying every microprocessor in every Xerox machine,
garage door opener and thermostat.
"Sometimes you can spend a lot more money trying to analyze and solve problems than just
dealing with them later as needed,'' he said.
The year 2000 will start on a Saturday, leaving city officials hoping to solve problems in third-tier
equipment before the workweek begins. Problem is, experts say, businesses and governments
throughout metro Denver also will be scrambling to fix their broken thermostats and copy
machines.
"Just as there simply aren't enough people to fix the problems beforehand, there won't be enough
to repair breakages immediately after,'' said Steve Segal, an attorney specializing in Y2K issues at
LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae.
Anticipating glitches, Mayor Wellington Webb recently issued an order putting critical city
workers on warning not to take vacations next winter so that they'll be on hand to handle year
2000 issues.
That could mean directing traffic or addressing and stamping tax bills by hand.
Bufalo says Denver is "slightly ahead'' of other cities in dealing with its embedded technology.
Chicago and Albuquerque are lagging behind the national curve, while Portland and San
Francisco lead the effort, local experts say.
In January, Denver will spend $30,000 to hire the Washington D.C.-based Public Technology
Incorporated to, as Bufalo put it, "give us a sense of how we stack up against other cities
nationwide.''
Still, no matter how much time and money city officials sink into the effort, experts say Denver
will never be fully prepared for the millennium. Not even the wealthiest and most foresighted
private companies will be totally ready.
"You cannot completely get to compliance. It's just not possible,'' said Cathy Moyer, a computer
consultant who lectures throughout the state on Y2K preparedness.
"It's hard to say anybody's doing enough.''
Experts say Denver's plan - or lack thereof - is neither unusual nor unwise. Governments,
agencies and big companies throughout the nation are realizing that time and budget constraints
will keep them from fully inoculating all their high-tech hardware from the year 2000 computer
problem.
What's different about Denver's approach, experts say, is the city's candor - admitting the
likelihood that low-priority equipment will bust at midnight of the new millennium.
In the private sector, leaders of publicly traded companies are bound to disclose information
about factors that could affect future financial results - including potential Y2K problems. Those
withholding information could face fraud charges.
Even though experts say most companies won't fully prepare for Y2K problems, few, if any, are
openly acknowledging that they'll suffer technical problems, as the city is.
"I'd probably cringe if a client took that approach,'' Segal said. "On the other hand, the city should
be lauded for being that forthcoming. Many companies aren't.''
City officials aren't bound by the same rules, but still are responsible to be forthright with
taxpayers and holders of hundreds of million of dollars in city bonds. That, officials say, explains
the city's candor about likely Y2K inconveniences.
"We as a government have a responsibility to serve our citizens,'' Bufalo said.
And preparing for the millennium may have as much to do with public relations as it does with
technology. Sources close to the city's Y2K efforts say the Webb administration wants to avoid
making promises it can't keep - making itself vulnerable to the kind of disappointments that
haunted Webb after repeated delays in opening Denver International Airport.
"No one wants to look like we're not doing enough, like we're in Y2K denial,'' said one city
official who asked to remain unnamed. "But on the other hand, no one wants to spend tons of
money preparing for a disaster that likely won't happen.''
Said Moyer: "The best thing we can do as a community is to just get an attitude adjustment, to
lower our expectations. People need to anticipate that things will break.
"The moral of the story: Expect inconvenience.'' |
