Chronology Current Month Current Thread Current Date
[Year List] [Month List (current year)] [Date Index] [Thread Index] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Date Prev] [Date Next]

Unnoticed WIN/NT Y2K bug



FYI, I am forwarding the following:

If you have a computer running Win95/98/NT, run this check before
year end.
You may think your PC is "Y2K" compliant, and some little tests
may have actually affirmed that your hardware is compliant, and you
may even have little company sticker affixed to your system saying
"Y2K Compliant"... but you'll be surprised that Windows may still
crash
unless you do this simple exercise below.
Easy fix, but something Microsoft seems to have missed in certifying
their software as Y2K compliant. This is simple to
do, but VERY important.

Follow these steps:
* Click on "START".
* Click on "SETTINGS".
* Double click on "Control Panel".
* Double click on "Regional settings" icon
(look for the world globe - you may have to look farther down on the
page)

* Click on the "Date" tab at the top of the page
(last tab on the top right)
Where it says, "Short Date Sample", look and see if it shows
a "two digit" year format ("YY").
Unless you've previously changed it(and you probably haven't), it will
be
set
incorrectly with just the two Y's...it needs to be four!

* Click on the button across from "Short Date Style"
and select the option that shows, "mm/dd/yyyy" or "m/d/yyyy". (Be sure
your selection has four y's showing, not just "mm/dd/yy). Then click on
"Apply".
Then click on "OK" at the button.

Microsoft made the 2 digits setting the default setting for Windows
95, Windows 98 and NT. This date format selected is the date that
Windows feeds*ALL* application software and will not roll over into the
year
2000.Left unchanged,
it will roll over to the year 00.
Easy enough to fix. However, every "as distributed" installation of
Windows worldwide is defaulted to fail the Y2K rollover...


Bob Sciamanda (W3NLV)
Physics, Edinboro Univ of PA (em)
trebor@velocity.net
http://www.velocity.net/~trebor