Your opinion. After GPS rollover.

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With the GPS rollover only eleven days away, what is your opinion on the possibility of failure, and the repercussions of same? Will your preps be affected if NOTHING goes wrong? Will DGI's GI if ANYTHING goes wrong?

-- ~ (abc@def.gov), August 11, 1999

Answers

If you can find a GI that is willing to make a prediction on when Y2K will become TEOTWAWKI, then you have found someone special. Predictions on the doom side are currently batting around a .002 on accuracy and that is factoring in + or - .002

-- MrWayCool (gi@havestoppedpredictions.com), August 11, 1999.

I think that any failures will be isolated, easily concealed, and in any case not generally reported. The Pollies will point to this as proof that Y2K will be a bump in the road.

Obviously no effect on my preps. I think that there is less than a 5% probability that the main event will make my preps necessary, but this still makes it worthwhile.

If something does go wrong of sufficient magnitude to make it into the media, I still feel that DGI's will not be converted unless they are directly and personally effected.

-- Mikey2k (mikey2k@he.wont.eat.it), August 11, 1999.


No big problems are expected, some smaller ones are possible. If the problems that do occure can be covered up and ignored (at both GPS and date rollover), for all practical purposes there were no problems. But it won't prevent us from joining the Veterans of Unfought Wars and telling hair-raising stories of the battles that might have been.

-- Flint (flintc@mindspring.com), August 11, 1999.

lol Flint...I'm feeling a little beat up about the GPS.

I have no clue what will happen and it's something I've been trying to get a firmer grasp on. I think your right on that if problems occur and they are obscure and no one notices then it weren't no big deal 'tall.

I just got off the phone with my brother in law who works as a "casual" on the docks of the LA Harbor. He had mentioned to me that much of what he does involves keeping track of containers with various field computer systems. From what he told me it does seem that at least one system uses the GPS to track each and every container position. If the container is not placed in the unloaded in the proper or exact space then the container can be tracked via the computer. So, my uneducated deduction would be that this system does use GPS. The LA Harbor has gone high tech in many ways and this is just one of them.

Well, first I was a little concerned for my B.I.L. until I started thinking about how many of these things will have to be done manually. This guy will be kept very busy bringing stuff into the harbor if the ships still move.

Anyway...I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the GPS rollover will be a total, non-event.

Mike

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-- Michael Taylor (mtdesign3@aol.com), August 11, 1999.


I think we're going to start seeing some trade problems since most shipping freighters use GPS navigation systems and many from foreign countries can't afford to fix them. Also, it is questionable how well the Panama Canal will function after this, but I think we can expect to see some delays and rising costs for importing goods into the U.S. Then of course we could even have some freighters running off course and heading into restricted foreign waters, alarming military defenses and escalating into World War III.

-- @ (@@@.@), August 11, 1999.


I asked my bank about GPS rollover and their international banking transfers being timed/tracked by GPS satellite and they had not a clue as to what I was talking about. I read that most international bank transactions are time tracked by GPS. Is this true and if so, will the banks be affected if they didn't know anything about it? One would think so. Anyone else know anything about this?

-- Valkyrie (anon@please.net), August 11, 1999.

The main thing to remember is that the GPS situation is smaller by a huge factor, and in many ways easier to fix.

For instance the State agency I work for has 22 GPS units to make compliant. It estimates about 3 Million lines of code (not a lot, really).

So IF people paid attention and did their jobs, I don't expect much to happen. If something significant DOES occur, it sends powerful reinforcement to believing Y2K will be a disaster.

It won't affect my preparations at all --- the situations are only similar in minor ways, not very similar technically --- except that things might "shut down", fail.

-- Jon Johnson (narnia4@usa.net), August 11, 1999.


GPS is used by a few international transaction systems; however ground-based time stamping is available as a back up. GPS receivers that do not operate properly after the reset were (and are) easy to replace.

Manufacturers of navigation systems and the insurance carriers for transportation companies have been involved in upgrades or replacements when necessary for over a year. Very few systems have a reset problem. GPS navigation is just onenavigation method. Aircraft and ships still use maps, compasses, celestial, radio beacon and dead reckoning methods to navigate.

Asking a local banker about the technology and details of international financial transactions is akin to asking the teenager behind the Mcdonald's counter about the status of the vendor order placement interface of their point-of-sale system... you can ask, but don't expect a satisfactory answer.

The reset of the GPS timing counters will have an outcome similar to the y2k fiscal-year rollovers. Some idiots in business who disregarded the notices may have a problem - if they are one of the unlucky few (less than 5%) who possess a receiver that does not account for the reset.

Expect even less problems on September 9, 1999. There is nothing magic about this date. Now, if we change the calendar, the 99th day of the 99th month in the 99th year will create some havoc. But not the 09th day of the 09th month of the 99th year. How supposedly intelligent people decided that 990909 is a 'potential trigger date' is more frightening than any problems that may occur on September 09, 1999.

I'm sorry for the boring response. I could have written or pasted something far more exciting and thought provoking. Such as:

The GPS reset is a NWO conspiracy to alter the gold market so seven families can gain financial control of the production of white vans and black helicopters which were reported to be seen in the area of the mysterious JFK Jr. aircraft accident, excuse me, downing, and witnessess confirmed that human-like bodies were transported to Hanger 51.

-- PNG (Peter Gauthier) (png@gol.com), August 11, 1999.


Peter,

I kinda liked your "boring" response. The other one doesn't suit you : )

Thanks for the info!

Mike

====================================================================

-- Michael Taylor (mtdesign3@aol.com), August 11, 1999.


New (compliant) hand-held GPS navigation units are availanble for under $100. Almost everyone can afford one...

There are some older navigation units out there that may fail.

In answer to the major question, with failures, would there be more GIs? A few... I still see the major change of attitude about January 4, after 3+ days of blackout on the east coast...

-- Mad Monk (madmonk@hawaiian.net), August 11, 1999.



The reset of the GPS timing counters will have an outcome similar to the y2k fiscal-year rollovers. Some idiots in business who disregarded the notices may have a problem - if they are one of the unlucky few (less than 5%) who possess a receiver that does not account for the reset.

PNG, do you have a source (URL) for the 5% figure? Thanks. ELC.

-- Lane Core Jr. (elcore@sgi.net), August 12, 1999.


I had thought it would be no big deal. Then...

I went to this site:

http://www.navcen.uscg.mil/gps/geninfo/y2k/gpsmanufacturers/manufactur ers.html

This is the list of GPS Receiver Manufacturers, provided by the Navy/Coast Guard. Users are advised to contact the manufacturers of any of their GPS devices, etc....

I went to this site, expecting to see Motorola, Texas Instruments, etc. Y'know, makers of those nifty hand-held GPS gizmos that he-man yuppy SUV driver-types love to buy.

Take a look. Go to some of their sites. Look at what they manufacture. I found the site for Corvallis Microtechnologies especially amusing (www.cmtinc.com). You have to click on the "Y2K & GPS" image to get to the good stuff. Read through it. Especially the part that says:

"At any time (regardless of the Year 2000 issue), do not use any CMT products for life-support or mission critical applications."

Spend a little time looking at these Manufacturer's sites, and see if your opinion about the GPS rollover changes at all...

-- Arewyn (isitthatlate@lready.com), August 12, 1999.


My nephew works as a computer/systems specialist in the oil exploration field...goes out with the boats for five weeks at a time. When I first talked with him about GPS he didn't think there was anything to it...said they surely must have the newer GPS systems and would have mentioned it to him if there were any problems. On his next trip he asked his boss about it...didn't get much of a response. Then on his last trip out they handed him the remediation task and he spent five weeks remediating. That was July -- Talk about just in time! He will be out on the boat on the 21st...hoping nothing was missed.

-- Shelia (Shelia@active-stream.com), August 12, 1999.

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