The Y2K glitch has yet to disrupt any key infrastructure systems, with just a few minor problems affecting individual computer systems that were able to be fixed within a few hours or so, according to government officials and industry observers.
However, some warn there is still plenty of time for the bug to
wreak havoc as more and more businesses bring their complete systems
back online.
"My concern is that some will let their guard down because we are still overly focused on the next few days rather than the next few weeks, especially for embedded systems," said Leon A. Kappelman, an associate professor at the University of North Texas and Y2K expert.
One fairly high-profile Y2K issue: Software giant Microsoft said it is
Microsoft's Internet Explorer software is displaying the date as 3900 on
some Web pages when it reads outdated programming language commands
scripted in some sites, Bloomberg reported. Microsoft also
experienced a "minor" glitch in its Hotmail email program that can cause
an error in some message dates.
"We are likely to see glitches pop up here and there in the coming days
and weeks, but I think they will be localized and transitory and will
not pose a threat to the nation's economy," John Koskinen, the
White House point man on Y2K, said in a press briefing late yesterday.
Out of 36 state governments surveyed by the White House yesterday
afternoon, 18 reported no glitches, minor or otherwise. The
other 18 states reported a wide range of minor non-disruptive Y2K
problems.
Koskinen said several states have encountered glitches in
licensing processes, motor vehicle division problems either in issuing
renewal licenses or conducting drivers license testing. Others reported
cosmetic date-related problems, such as printing out the wrong dates for
functions.
Industry organizations have also reported a small amount of problems
related to the Y2K glitch.
The Airports Council International reported that on Jan. 1, a
telephone system at the Birmingham Airport showed the date as December
32. It didn't affect operations and was fixed.
Also in the transportation sector, the White House reported a cargo
discharge monitoring computer at a West Coast port went offline when
it activated Jan. 2 to transfer cargo. The computer support team on site
got the system up and running correctly after just 2 hours. Reasons for
the malfunction weren't known, though authorities are still
investigating the failure.
The small business community, long a big concern by many analysts who worried about the community's lack of effort to prepare for Y2K, is reporting no significant failures related to the technology problem, according to the White House.
However, a small Portland, Ore.-based trucking firm could not access any of
its accounting information yesterday. According to the Small Business
Administration, the business will have to purchase an upgrade to the
system to make it Y2K-compliant, and the agency is assisting the company
in getting the upgrade.
The U.S. Postal service reported that a small number of automated retail
scales displayed the Jan. 1, 2000, date when first started yesterday
morning. The date was easily corrected, but officials said a few
receipts may have Jan. 1, 2000, printed on them instead of Jan. 3.
In addition, the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA)
experienced a Y2K problem with a database of reservists and
regular staff that FEMA uses to deploy personnel when a disaster is declared. The system apparently went down right after the rollover.
A workaround has been developed. As of late yesterday, the code had been
repaired, and testing of the system was underway. The system is expected
to be re-deployed later this week.
Federal Housing and Urban Development officials reported some minor
glitches with some of its systems, including one with the Single Family
Insurance System that prevented users from terminating Federal Housing
Administration mortgages. The system has been repaired.
The White House Y2K team headed by Koskinen will continue monitoring the
Y2K front on a day to day period over the week. The team is expected to hold a briefing at the end of the week.
Most reported Y2K bugs turned out to be fairly minor. For example, at Super Video, a video store in New York state, a customer at the store got the shock of the young century on New Year's Day when the charge for renting "The General's Daughter" came to $91,250, Reuters reported. The store's computer was charging customers as though they were returning videos 100 years late. "The clerk and I were shocked, and then zeroed out the late charge and gave the customer a free video rental and wished him Happy New Year," s said Terry Field, owner of the store.