Re: Year 2000 or Apple IIe

[lippdinos@aol.com (Lippdinos)]

the year 2000 problem that most people talk about is a software problem. for
most of us it doesn't make a difference.
	what happens : many companies have programs that were made for them before
anyone even thought about year 2000, and they were created using  spagetti code
(meaning, no structure to the code). the problem with that is : nobody knows
those programming languages anymore and if they do they wouldn't be able to
find them in the original source code (the program).
	now, what that means to us :
		if you have a database that is meant to delete customers after, say, 1 month
of activity, as soon as the year goest to 2000 some programs will imagine that
we are back in 1900 and will imagine ALL customers to be inactive for over 100
years (and delete them). 
	I only consider this a problem for old and large companies because everyone
else who depends on the date stamps on their computer for professional use
(mostly) has a new computer and can probably fix the software problem with an
update from the manufacturer if not just an adjustment in the preferences of
the application.
	there are some other problems to it but I really can't think of any reason for
us mere mortals to worry about it.