Are You and Your PC Ready?

By ASHLEY DUNN

June 21, 1999 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Procrastination is one of the great pleasures of being human. Why do today what you can do tomorrow--or better yet--not at all?

While that ethos usually works well with dishes and laundry, it may not hold up so well Jan. 1, 2000, when one of the greatest movements of mass procrastination must come to an end.

For decades, engineers have been aware that the use of two-digit years in some computer programs and electronic devices could cause serious problems because of the ambiguity of years such as “00,” which could be interpreted as either 1900 or 2000.

Corporations and governments have spent billions of dollars to fix this problem, which has lingered for decades.

If you’re like most people with a home computer, you probably have spent more time thinking about what type of pizza crust to order than about how to rid your computer of the millennium bug.

Fortunately, despite all the stories of doom, gloom and mind-bending technical complexity, ridding a home computer of the year 2000 problem can be quick, painless and, if you don’t have much date-sensitive material, free as well.

The problem is well understood at this point, and the software tools to fix the problem generally are effective and simple to use. Some of the most important ones are available free over the Internet.

For the true slackers who will do nothing to their computers, the good news is that their computers generally will work just fine too.

The year 2000 problem can affect four major areas of the personal computer--the system hardware; the operating system, such as Windows 95; the software applications, such as Microsoft Excel; and the data files for those applications.

Apple computer users should have an easy time with much of the repair work, since Apple has stated that both its computers and operating systems were originally designed to handle the transition to the year 2000. That still leaves Apple users to check the software applications that they use and the data for those programs.

Users of Windows/DOS computers have to look at all four parts of the computer, but they still should have a relatively easy time using a few software repair tools.

Repairing data files is the most difficult part of the job, and if you have large and complex files, you may have to buy one of the commercial year 2000 repair programs, such as Norton 2000 or Check 2000 PC, to locate all traces of the millennium bug.

The first step in the repair process is to look at your system hardware. Three pieces of the computer are involved in timekeeping: a battery-powered real-time clock; the Basic Input/Output System, known as the BIOS; and a chunk of memory known as the CMOS.

Virtually all IBM-compatible computers have had the same clock since the mid-1980s. The clocks record years with two digits only and thus are by definition non-compliant. But this is ultimately an unimportant point, since the job of correctly assigning the date belongs to the BIOS.

This is a key point to remember, since some repair programs will shoot up a red flag at every instance, saying your computer needs to be fixed because the clock is noncompliant. It means nothing, since essentially all clocks in PCs are noncompliant.

To test your system hardware properly, the best bet is to use one of two programs that are available free on the Internet. The first is YMARK2000, a program written by NSTL, an independent laboratory that is widely used in the industry to test the performance and usability of computer equipment.

Virtually all the major PC makers, including Dell, IBM, Compaq, Gateway and Hewlett-Packard, have used YMARK2000. The program essentially checks to make sure a computer’s BIOS correctly handles the century change and the fact that 2000 is a leap year.

If you have a noncompliant BIOS, the best solution is to contact the manufacturer and get an updated version.

But if there is no update available or if you don’t feel like going through the trouble of updating your BIOS, an easy solution is to enter the correct date manually on Jan. 1, 2000, through the operating system or the BIOS setup program.

Mark Paxson, NSTL’s manager of design verification, said that once the date is set, the computer should keep the correct time and date from that point forward.

Paxson added that even if you do nothing and simply leave an incorrect date, your computer will work fine, although you could have problems with software applications drawing the wrong date from the BIOS or operating system.

“On a hardware level, absolutely nothing is going to happen,” Paxson said. “On the software level, you do have to check all your programs and date. But the hardware is not going to care what the date is.”

Another free program to check IBM-compatible hardware comes from Symantec, the maker of Norton Utilities and Norton 2000. Symantec’s program covers about the same terrain as YMARK2000, but it also has a little companion program that will ensure that your computer will handle the date change with no problems.

The Norton BIOS Test and Fix program essentially loads into memory and stays there until Jan. 1, 2000, when it will automatically enter the correct date, essentially resolving the hardware side of the year 2000 problem, said Dan’l Leviton, development manager for Symantec’s Norton 2000.

Testing and repairing hardware shouldn’t take more than an hour or so, but it is only the beginning of the repair process.

Step 2 involves looking at the operating system--the main controlling program of the computer. For most users of IBM-compatible computers, the operating system will be Microsoft’s Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows 98 or, for those who have stubbornly remained in the old days, some version of DOS.

All of Microsoft’s operating systems have some small issues involving the year 2000, but for the most part they are minor and are easily repaired. In virtually all cases, the computer will continue to work even if the operating system is not fixed.

One problem is the inability of MS-DOS to accept a two-digit year in setting the time after 2000 through the “date” command. MS-DOS was written so that you could enter two-digit years from 1980 to 1999. After that point, all dates must be entered as four-digit years.

Windows 95 has a tiny issue involving an older component included with the operating system that is used by programs written in the Java language.

The simplest solution to all the Microsoft operating system problems is just to get a copy of the company’s Year 2000 Resource CD-ROM. The disk includes all the latest operating system updates that fix the problems. You can get the disk by calling Microsoft at 888-MSFT-Y2K (673-8925) or ordering it from the company’s technical support Web site at https://www.microsoft.com/y2k. The disk is free, and Microsoft will even pay the postage. For other information, visit the consumer Web site at https://www.computingcentral.com/guide/year2000/msy2k.

“This is a serious issue, but something the average PC user can deal with,” said Jason Matusow, year 2000 product manager for Microsoft.

The final part of checking the operating system is to make one tiny change in the way it displays the date. In Windows 95 and 98, users should click on the My Computer icon, then Control Panel and then Regional Settings.

Select the date tab and change the Short Date format from mm/dd/yy to mm/dd/yyyy so your programs will retrieve a four-digit year from the operating system.

Now that your operating system has been scrubbed, you’re ready to check your software applications and their data files.

This can be an incredibly tedious process, requiring a check with all the manufacturers of your software and getting their latest update patches.

Fortunately, many programs, like most games and Internet applications, do not care what the date is and will have no problems dealing with the year 2000.

The most vulnerable programs are databases, spreadsheet and home finance programs that routinely manipulate dates and are usually highly customized by users.

Microsoft provides another free program on its Year 2000 Resource disk called Product Analyzer. The program scans your computer for Microsoft software and then compares it with its own list of potential year 2000 problems. It then suggests updated versions and software patches--most of which are included on the disk--to repair the problem.

Users of Microsoft’s popular Office 97 suite of software can repair their programs easily by updating the programs with what is known as the SR 2 update, also included on the resource disk.

To check software from other companies, you can visit their Web sites or call technical support, but one of the most powerful tools in this search is a Web site that has been put together by EDS, the information technology service company.

EDS has compiled year 2000 information on more than 150,000 products from 3,000 different companies into an easily searched Web site (https://www.vendor2000.com). The company’s database has some of the clearest descriptions of problems and includes links to product makers.

The last step in year 2000 repairs is to scan your data files. If you have only a few mentions of a date in either an entry or a function, you can change them yourself to a four-digit format.

Microsoft provides four little programs, also on the Resource CD, that will help you locate dates in Excel 97 and 2000 data files. Microsoft’s Matusow said later versions of the programs will also scan Excel 95 data files.

The do-it-yourself approach probably will not work for most small businesses and those who use complex or custom software.

But with a little time and care, average users should have few problems fixing their home PCs.

With a fully scrubbed computer, New Year’s Day won’t have to be a dreaded showdown but a relaxing weekend with plenty of time for the really important things, like finding a good bottle of champagne.

Times staff writer Ashley Dunn can be reached at ashley.dunn@latimes.com.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Year 2000 Status of Common Consumer Software

America Online

AOL 4.0: Still testing

AOL 3.0: Still testing

Intuit

Quicken 99 for Windows (latest version): Compliant

Quicken 98 for Windows: Compliant

Quicken 98 for Macintosh (latest version): Compliant

Quicken 6 and 7 for Macintosh: Not compliant

Problem: Online banking features (account access, investment tracking and payment) will not support dates after Dec. 31, 1999.

Remedy: Users will be able to upgrade for free to Quicken 98 after receiving authorization from their financial institutions.

Quicken 5 and 6 for Windows: Not compliant

Problem: Online banking features will not support dates later than Dec. 31, 1999.

Remedy: Users will be able to upgrade for free to Quicken 98 after receiving authorization from their financial institutions.

Netscape

Communicator 4.6 (latest version): Compliant

Navigator 4.08 (latest version): Compliant

Communicator 4.0 to 4.06 and Navigator 2.02 to 4.06: Compliant with small concerns

Problem: A component provided by a different company that is necessary to run programs written in the Java language may cause occasional year 2000 problems.

Remedy: Upgrade to latest version of Navigator or Communicator, both of which are free.

Microsoft

Microsoft MS-DOS 5.x and 6.x: Compliant with small concerns

Problem: Main problem is the inability of DOS to accept two-digit years from 00 to 79 through the DATE command.

Remedy: Enter four-digit years.

Windows 98: Compliant with small concerns

Problem: Several minor issues, such as the inability of the telephone dialer to correctly log dates past 2000, although the dialer itself will continue to work. A component provided by a different company that is necessary to run programs written in the Java language may cause occasional year 2000 problems.

Remedy: Apply the Windows 98 year 2000 update, available for free on Microsoft’s year 2000 resource disk or on the company’s Web site.

Windows 95: Compliant with small concerns

Problem: Several minor issues, such as the inability to search by date for files created after 2000.

Remedy: Apply Windows 95 year 2000 update, available for free on Microsoft’s year 2000 resource disk or on the company’s Web site.

Windows 3.x: Compliant with small concerns

Problem: Same issues as DOS and is unable to set the date with the mouse to Feb. 29, 2000.

Remedy: No software update available, although a solution is to simply not set the date on Feb. 29 or to use the keyboard to set the date.

Internet Explorer 5.0 (latest version): Compliant

Internet Explorer 4.0x: Compliant with small concerns

Problem: One of the minor problems involves the immediate expiration of unusual browser “cookies” that have two-digit “00” expiration dates. A component provided by a different company that is necessary to run programs written in the Java language may cause occasional year 2000 problems.

Remedy: Apply the SP2 update for IE 4.0x, available on Microsoft’s free year 2000 resource disk or on the company’s Web site.

Internet Explorer 3.x: Not compliant

Problem: Similar cookie and Java problem as IE 4.0x and other issues.

Remedy: Upgrade to IE 4.0x, which is free.

Money 99 (latest version): Compliant

Money 98: Compliant

Outlook 2000 (latest version): Compliant

Outlook 98: Compliant

Office Professional 2000 (latest version): Compliant

Office Professional 97: Compliant

Problems: Some versions that have not been patched with the SR 2 update may have some very minor issues.

Remedy: Apply the SR 2 update available on Microsoft’s free year 2000 resource disk or on the company’s Web site.