Year 2000 problem: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 06:59, 16 July 2008

Revision as of 11:14, 16 July 2008

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* This view was adopted by most of the (fairly limited) official examinations of Y2K projects undertaken after their completion.<ref>[http://canberra.usembassy.gov/hyper/2000/0127/epf407.htm Department of State Washington File: Transcript: What Happened to Y2K? Koskinen Speaks Out<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

* It has also been suggested that on [[9/11|September 11, 2001]], the New York infrastructure (including subways, phone service, and financial transactions) were able to continue operation because of the redundant networks established in the event of Y2K bug impact<ref>[http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2002/terror-1120.html Y2K readiness helped New York after 9/11], article by Lois Slavin of [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] News, 20 November 2000</ref> and the contingency plans devised by companies.<ref>[http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2002/03/cumming.htm September 11 and the U.S. Payment System], article by Christine M. Cumming of the [[International Monetary Fund]]</ref> The terrorist attacks and the following prolonged blackout to lower Manhattan had minimal effect on global banking systems.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Backup systems were activated at various locations around the region, many of which had been established to deal with a possible complete failure of networks in the financial district on [[December 31]], [[1999]].<ref>[http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2002/terror.html Y2K readiness helped NYC on 9/11], article by Rae Zimmerman of [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT News]], 19 November 2000</ref> Had the emphasis on creating backup systems to deal with Y2K not occurred, much greater disruption to the economy could have occurred.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Decentralization of infrastructure &mdash; in particular, the creation of multiple sites for backup data &mdash; helped keep banks up and running.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

* It was suggested that Y2K plans were used to ground aircraft on 9/11, but the grounding was a variant of the SCATANA procedures developed in the 1970s<ref>[http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/text/i503036p.txt Plan for the Security Control of Air Traffic and Air Navigation Aids (Short Title: SCATANA)], April 1980</ref>.

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* The lack of Y2K-related problems in schools, many of which undertook little or no remediation effort. By [[September 1]], [[1999]] only 28 percent of US schools had achieved compliance for mission critical systems, and a government report predicted that "Y2K failures could very well plague the computers used by schools to manage payrolls, student records, online curricula, and building safety systems".<ref>[http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showstory.cfm?ArticleID=404 White House: Schools lag in Y2K readiness: President's Council sounds alarm over K-12 districts' preparations so far], article by Jonathan Levine of eSchool News, 01 September 1999</ref>

* The lack of Y2K-related problems in an estimated 1.5 million small businesses that undertook no remediation effort. On 3 January 2000 (the first weekday of the year) the Small Business Administration received an estimated 40 calls from businesses with computer problems, similar to the average. None of the problems were critical.<ref>[http://www.rickross.com/reference/y2k/y2k37.html Most small businesses win their Y2K gamble], article by Kent Hoover, 10 January 2000</ref>

* The lack of Y2K-related problems in countries such as [[Italy]], which undertook a far more limited remediation effort than the United States. In an [[October 22]], [[1999]], report, a US Senate Committee expressed concern about safe travel outside of the United States. The report stated that overseas public transit systems were considered vulnerable because many did not have an aggressive response plan in place for any problems. Internationally, the report singled out Italy, [[China]] and [[Russia]] as poorly prepared. The [[Australian government]] evacuated all but three embassy staff from Russia.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/am/stories/s69974.htm Y2K travel warning issued], report by Fiona Reynolds of ABC Radio, 1 December 1999</ref> None of these countries experienced any Y2K problems regarded as worth reporting.<ref>[http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/law/st_org/iptf/headlines/content/1999112801.html Fight or Flight?: Assessing Your Y2K Travel Risks], article by Tracy Davis of Boston College, 1999</ref>

* The absence of Y2K-related problems occurring before [[January 1]], [[2000]], even though the 2000 financial year commenced in 1999 in many jurisdictions, and a wide range of forward-looking calculations involved dates in 2000 and later years. Estimates undertaken in the leadup to 2000 suggested that around 25% of all problems should have occurred before 2000.<ref>[http://www.enquirer.com/editions/1999/02/14/fin_lights_out_y2k.html Lights out? Y2K appears safe], article by Elizabeth Weise of [[USA Today]], 14 February 1999</ref> Critics of large-scale remediation argued, during 1999, that the absence of significant problems, even in systems that had not been rendered compliant, suggested that the scale of the problem had been overestimated.<ref>[http://www.uq.edu.au/economics/johnquiggin/news/Millennium9908.html Y2K bug may never bite], article by John Quiggin of the Australian Financial Review, 02 September 1999</ref>