Masonry Magazine October 1997 Page. 42
The cost will increase dramatically if it's delayed any length of time. Multiply $1.50 times one million lines of code and you can easily see how expensive it can get.
Your Stand-alone PC Test:
On your PC, exit ALL applications (absolutely no applications running).
Using the Windows control panel or DOS:
Set "date" to 12-31-99. Press enter (at C:> type "date" if it doesn't automatically display).
Set "time" to 23:59:00. Press enter (at C:> type "time" if it doesn't automatically display).
Check that "date" and "time" are set.
Wait 2 minutes.
Check the date and time. It should reflect that it is now a minute after midnight on January 1, 2000. If it does not, the PC is not year 2000 compliant.
Reset the date and time back to the current date and time.
Switch off the PC.
Switch on the PC.
Check to make sure the date and time reflect the current date and time.
For Programmers. If you have developed a database(s) which is maintained on your local hard drive (C:), review the code to make sure all YEAR date fields are in four digit format (Year 1998, not Year 98). Any code referring to a date field must reflect that four digit YEAR. This applies to MACRO code in spread sheets as well as other programming code. Also, don't forget that year 2000 is a leap year that means year 2000 is 366 days, not 365.
For Macintosh PCs.
Does this also apply to a Mac, and how do you test a Mac PC?
For Mac SE type PCs: (monitor and processor in one unit Mac +, SE30, etc.) OR other Macs with System 6.x or below:
Under the Apple on the menu bar, select Control Panel.
At the Time section of the Control Panel, set the clock to 11:59.50 (click on the Time field to activate changes).
Set the date to 12/31/99 (click on the Date field to activate changes).
Click on the Calendar field when finished.
The date should change to 1/1/0 as the seconds advance the clock.
For Mac II type PCs (separate processors and monitors) OR Macs operating under System 7 or above:
Under the Apple on the menu bar, select Alarm Clock.
Set the clock to 11:59.50 (click on the clock field to activate changes).
Set the date to 12/31/99 (click on the date field to activate changes).
Click off the date field when finished the clock won't advance until you do so.
The date should change to 1/1/0 as the seconds advance the clock.
In either case above, if the year 2000 date is given as 0 instead of 2000, it indicates that it may not be year 2000 compliant but this may not be a problem because we can not be sure that 0 represents year 2000 and not year 1900.
Also, in case you're wondering, if 0 is the first year, then year 2 really equals 2001, year 3 equals 2002, and so on. See why this can be so confusing and I've got so many gray hairs? Subtracting 1999 from O would normally confuse your PCs calculations as well as any math major, however database and spreadsheet calculations do not normally operate off the system clock so it may be of little concern. In fact, most PC software applications do not operate in concert with the system clock so the year 2000 problem should not be a problem. When a spreadsheet like Excel uses the clock to date stamp a document, it converts it to the style of date you select for example, four digit (January 1, 2000) or two digit (1/1/00).
If you have MACROs or other application software operating from the system clock (a scheduler or timer, for example), it will probably not matter since the system date will still be current (only the year will look odd represented as 0). If that still presents a problem to you, call your local Macintosh dealer to see what corrective options there are.
A Final Word. By all means, test your machine to know if is compliant. Remember, even if it isn't it may not be anything you need to be concerned about. If you use your PC for letters and writing that great American novel, then it is fine if it is not compliant. If you are going to purchase a new PC soon, try the test at the store, and make sure the system displays the right date. If it doesn't, shop elsewhere.
A byte is generally equal to one character.
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42 MASONRY-SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER, 1997