It's 6:24pm on the East Coast now... if anything GPS related happens this thread is where you can submit any failures in the next 24-48 hours, so we can keep them all together for future reference, and discuss the events or lack thereof.

-- (fact@list.maker), August 21, 1999

Answers

A half hour ago I was the King of Spain

But now after the GPS, I'm a Great Dane

But it's not the quite same

in a mud wrestling game!

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.com), August 21, 1999.

Shut up dumbass!!!!!!!!!!

-- ... (...@...), August 21, 1999.

T minus 10 minutes and counting....

Its now or never.

-- watcher (watcher@t-minus.com), August 21, 1999.

...@...has turned into a shutup dumbass after GPS rollover.

Anf I hate being a Great Dane! Get me outta here!

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.com), August 21, 1999.

Ok, dont know what it means but the fire department here is doing radio checks from all 5 fire houses. "Chief" said something like "5 more minutes, then all stations report in". What could a fire department being checking for.?

Will be monitoring Police, Fire and Fema for rest of night.

-- Fat Tony (FatTony@youmammashouse.com), August 21, 1999.

Fat Tony,

I understand you can use a scanner to monitor localpolice and fire and EMS but how do you propose to monitor FEMA?

-- Bill P (porterwn@one.net), August 21, 1999.

FEMA has several frequencys here. Air Patrol too as well as Coast guard. Dont know if anything will pop up but I am scanning them all.

If you got a scannner turn it on now, anything that happens you are going to hear it hours before the news gets it.

So far nothing. Just checks from the FD.

-- FatTony (FatTony@youmammashouse.com), August 21, 1999.

Kewl....

UPS GMT rollover +20 Min and I still got power....

Will wonders never cease?

-- Its (All@Conspiracy.com), August 21, 1999.

8:22pm CNN Live is discussing GPS Rollover and saying it will be in a few hours at local midnight?

-- Bill P (porterwn@one.net), August 21, 1999.

where is local ?

-- confused (hazy010100@msn.com), August 21, 1999.

No, it should have been 12:00 gmt or 5pm PDT or 8pm eastern.

Nothing at all so far , but will keep listening to all freq's for any weird stuff. Might have something goofy or funny to report but nothing so far.

People with scanners should turn em on NOW to pick up anything. At least some schmoe with a old gps on a boat is bound to get stuck somewhere.

-- Fat Tony (FatTony@youmammashouse.com), August 21, 1999.

Local time to the GPS is UTC, its over, gone,..

NOTHING HAPPENED...........

Have a nice weekend, see you next year.....

(it's all a hoax......................)

-- Its (All@Conspiracy.com), August 21, 1999.

Internet web site for scanners http://www.jrwhipple.com/z2k/morecams_a.html

-- beanman (nitescanner@onnet.com), August 21, 1999.

If the GPS satilites are to change over at 8pm or even midnight, will all satilites change at the same time? Today? What about the satilites that are in the Australian hemisphere? Yesterday was August 21, 1999 for them.

-- Lea D. Ferris (Y2KEYES@open.com), August 21, 1999.

All birds in the same hemi must roll at the same time.

We are done and all is quiet.

Aussies, I dont know about.

-- Fat Tony (FatTony@youmammashouse.com), August 21, 1999.

It stands to reason they would change, all at the same time. The satilites that are closest to our hemi. must also change with ours or ours with theirs. Other wise the cargo ship moving down the sea way will loose position when they roll over to the next satilite feed that still hasnt changed over. I will bet the sea captians or some of there ship mates at the helm right now may be reading this forum for possible clues to what lays ahead. If there are any such readers of this site, on the sea right now, check in. Help us land lovers sort this thing out. Or if we see problems first, we can help you out. If nothing at all happens, great! On to the next mole hill!

-- Lea D. Ferris (Y2KEYES@open.com), August 21, 1999.

Fat Tony,

you're not hearing anything on your scanner because it uses the GPS system you fool!

-- andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), August 21, 1999.

Andy, either your being sarcastic and thats funny or your being serious and your stupid.

Anyway, its been two hours. Not a damn thing has happened. Time for me to shut the system down, grab a bottle of wine and go next door and make love to my neighbors wife.

Yeah, yeah, I know, you're not supposed to do that.......

-- Fat Tony (FatTony@youmammashouse.com), August 21, 1999.

Aw shucks Fat Tony you said you'd be UP all night monitoring FEMA... funny name, did you mean monitoring a female...

-- andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), August 21, 1999.

1) Could not get out of state on the internet for about 1/2 hour.

2) Lat I checked, unable to get the time from the phone company...but that isn't much of a loss...

-- Mad Monk (madmonk@hawaiian.net), August 22, 1999.

Aloha Madmonk -- Where've you been? I suppose you've got a life to live, but now that I know you're (relatively) close by, I just feel more comfortable talking to you than anyone else here. I guess it's that aloha spirit talking -- anyway, the silly lady on the phone doesn't seem to be having any trouble now about telling me what time it is -- BEEP --. Hope all is well with you and yours -- Aloha always, Grngrl

-- grngrl (jhandt@gte.net), August 22, 1999.

wow,nothing happened!I wish I hadn't chopped off my testicles and bought all those running suits

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), August 22, 1999.

Ouch zoobie...

No Glitches With Navigation Tool

Saturday, August 21, 1999; 9:23 p.m. EDT

LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) -- It appeared to be smooth sailing Saturday for boaters and aviators who rely on a satellite-based navigation system that reset itself, which was expected to confuse older locator units.

The U.S. Coast Guard here and the Federal Aviation Administration reported receiving no calls for stranded boats or airplanes having problems in determining their coordinates by using the Global Positioning System, or GPS.

``Just a regular weekend. It's actually been a very slow day,'' said Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Danny Phee.

The FAA in Washington also had no reports of problems, said agency spokesman Les Dorr, noting that small, private plane pilots had been warned to check their systems.

Time clocks on the popular GPS receivers reset to zero at 5 p.m. PDT Saturday, which could possibly confuse units made before 1993. Those units may take longer to pinpoint a location, be off in their calculations, or be unable to find the location.

GPS receivers determine location by using signals of three to 24 satellites. To do this they need the exact time, which the system determines by counting the weeks since Jan. 5, 1980 -- up to 1,024. But GPS reached its maximum number of weeks on Saturday.

Manufacturers offer upgrades. Otherwise, some receivers may think it is 1980 when the clock reset, according to the Transportation Department.

GPS, originally designed for the military, is booming in the commercial market, often offered in luxury cars as a mapping device. Aviators and boaters have been using GPS for at least a decade and only in recent years have hikers begun to use hand-held units.

A nationwide, private tow boat agency, Vessel Assist Association of America, based in Newport Beach, reported no GPS-related problems Saturday.

``Definitely not. We haven't had any troubles at all,'' said Steve Ryan, a dispatcher for Vessel Assist.

) Copyright 1999 The Associated Press

-- andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), August 22, 1999.

Via Roleigh Martin's listserv:

I rate Japanese Car Drivers Hit By GPS Bug

"The screens on some car navigation systems went blank while others froze up as a computer bug struck Global Positioning System (GPS) devices, electronics company Pioneer Electronic Corp said. Pioneer, one of several car navigation system makers battling the bug, had received several hundred phone calls since the problem started at 9 a.m., a spokeswoman said."

-- Lane Core Jr. (elcore@sgi.net), August 22, 1999.

Didn't Peter mention Pioneer as being a known problem as regards GPS a ways back...

-- andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), August 22, 1999.

Friday - 8:37am - GPS system in Acura went to 0:00 then corrected itself - within 5 minutes car smelled of smoke - check the truck and smoke was coming from what I think is the GPS box - Called my dealer - (75 miles) away and told him I had to get guests to Airport - he instructed me on what to disconnect - I did - started on our trip - the GPS came back up(with unplugged wires). This morning(8/22) I set the GPS for 3 different trips _ In all three cases the mileage is at least 25% wrong - taking it to the dealer tomorrow -

-- Jude LeBlanc (jude@aginet.com), August 22, 1999.

August 18, 1999

Global positioning glitch threatens Japan's urban navigators

-- (G@P.S), August 22, 1999.

Jude, what a totally bogus lie of a post.

Just couldnt admit that nothing happened could you, had to invent a fake story so unbelievable that nobody would accept it, didnt you.

-- truth seeker (truthseeker@dontlie.com), August 22, 1999.

It is now 1;20pm EST and I just check the Acura - Tried two of the places I programmed this morning @ 9:10 and the mileage is now correct. However, still going to the dealer tomorrow since the GPS is unplugged.

-- Jude LeBlanc (jude@aginet.com), August 22, 1999.

http://www.tampabayonline.net/news/apbreak.htm

8/22/99 -- 2:18 PM

Hundreds of cars in Japan hit by GPS glitch

TOKYO (AP) - Hundreds of people in Japan complained Sunday after their automobile navigation systems went haywire - the result of a Y2K-like glitch in the satellite system used in navigation devices worldwide.

Screens went blank and bizarre symbols turned up on the electronic navigators, essential for millions of drivers in a country where urban streets are a chaotic jumble.

Pioneer Corp., a major manufacturer of car navigation systems, received about 600 calls on its help hotline, said company spokesman Hidehiko Shimizu. Shimizu said callers were directed to the nearest repair shop, where their systems were fixed for free.

The breakdowns stemmed from a glitch in the Global Positioning System - a navigation system that uses a series of satellites to pinpoint exact locations on Earth. Boats, cars and other vehicles use the GPS, and hand-held versions are also sold for hikers and others who need something more high-tech than a compass.

GPS receivers pinpoint locations by using satellite signals. To account for variations in the Earth's orbit and rotation, they need the exact time, which they determined by counting the weeks since Jan. 5, 1980.

But the systems were only designed to count to 1,024 weeks. That maximum was reached Saturday, so the time clocks on the locators were resetting to zero. Because of this Y2K-like glitch, some receivers were expected to work more slowly or be unable to find locations.

Fears that ships could lose their bearings when the GPS rolled over have so far proved unfounded, New Zealand Maritime Safety Authority director Russell Kilvington said Sunday.

``So far, so good. That's all we should be saying at the moment. We're still monitoring the situation.''

In the United States, the Coast Guard and Federal Aviation Administration received no immediate reports of problems. Pilots and boaters had been warned to upgrade their systems, and newer GPS models are designed to compensate for the clock rollover.
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-- Ashton & Leska in Cascadia (allaha@earthlink.net), August 22, 1999.

"...the electronic navigators, essential for millions of drivers..."

Car navigation systems are "essential?" Most Japanese systems are car navigation/televisions. I think most people are watching TV while sitting in 10 km traffic jams every Sunday. If they are "essential," why don't the millions of taxis have them?

I better run out and buy 2 more. You never know. I don't want to be caught without something essential. Toys, I tell you. They are expensive toys.

-- PNG (Peter Gauthier) (png@gol.com), August 22, 1999.

This doesn't have anything to do with GPS but it sure made me think. At horse show today and a transformer blew up and we lost power for abt an hour.

-- Moore Dinty moore (not@thistime.com), August 22, 1999.

Well, another milestone that came and went. I knew the GPS rollover would be a big nothing. I think it's time to start pawning off some beans at the local food pantry. I think we have been suckered into one of the biggest hoaxes of modern civilization. Y2K Shmy2K. Gotta give Ed and the others credit for making a buck, though. My panic filled days are over. Time to start living again. Mark my words. Y2K will be a non-event.

-- anti-chainsaw (tree@hugger.com), August 22, 1999.

We haven't been suckered into anything except being better prepared for the Big Earthquake heading for the Cascadian Subduction Zone. We've actually drastically lowered our food bill by learning the bargain places/methods of shopping. We only over-stocked one item for barter, and it will come in handy when we start camping out more if we survive Y2K and its aftermath.

Our social life (nonexistent due to 24/7 hospice work) got a real boost from this Forum and all the wonderful people we've met. Our goal throughout this life will be the country bug-out retreat, and we've learned a lot!

We get flickers of hope and truly want Y2K to be a non-event. However, it looks to be a massively disruptive series of occurrences. Time Will Tell soon now. We're very glad the GPS rollover does not seem to be affecting the infrastructure -- not that we ever thought it would be much of anything except for sailors with outdated equipment.

If Y2K turns out to be nothing (not a chance), the last person we will "blame" is Ed Yourdon! We will just be grateful he was brave and concerned enough to alert many ppl and prode the remediation effort along with greater awareness/intensity.

-- Ashton & Leska in Cascadia (allaha@earthlink.net), August 22, 1999.

Buried deep in this article that says we can relax about Y2K because the GPS rollover was mild, is the first evidence I've seen that there were a few GPS problems in the U.S.:

http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Politics/Reuters19990822_640.html

[snip]

The U.S. Coast Guard said it was unaware of any serious distress calls from boaters related to malfunctioning GPS receivers.

``It takes a while for those kinds of calls to work their way all the way here to headquarters,'' said Commander Jim McPherson, a Coast Guard spokesman in Washington. ``But if anything did happen, it doesn't appear to be anything major, or we would have heard something by now.''

He said fewer than 12 Coast Guard cutters, aircraft, boats, cars and other auxiliary vessels reported a glitch, however fleeting, when their GPS receivers failed to update automatically.

[snip]

-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), August 22, 1999.

Ashton and Smashton,

Great way to justify being suckered. Wait and see! I'm right! The power will stay on and life will continue as usual. You'll be farting from the beans for the next 10 years.

-- anti-chainsaw (tree@hugger.com), August 23, 1999.

Another article that mentions a few GPS problems:

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/tech/DailyNews/gps990823.html

Few GPS Glitches Reported

Main Problems With Older Devices

The Associated Press

L O N G B E A C H, Calif., Aug. 23  A glitch in a satellite- based navigation system caused many users to lose contact with the system, U.S. Coast Guard and Japanese officials said.

Pilots, boaters, motorists and even hikers with hand-held devices use the Global Positioning System to pinpoint their locations with the help of satellite signals. To account for variations in the Earths orbit and rotation, the system requires an exact measure of time.

Many older units were only designed to count a fixed number of weeks  a maximum that lapsed Saturday. Their time clocks had to be reset, making some users vulnerable to a break in service.

From Boaters to Hikers and Drivers

GPS, originally designed for the military, is booming in the commercial market, often offered in luxury cars. Aviators and boaters have been using the system for at least a decade and in recent years hikers have begun to use hand-held units.

A nationwide, private tow boat agency, Vessel Assist Association of America, based in Newport Beach, reported scattered GPS outages Sunday.

The biggest problem is that it takes us a long time to find the mariner in distress if we dont have an accurate position. We had some delay in serving boats today, said Bob Cunningham, an agency dispatcher.

No Serious Risk

No boaters were in any serious danger, he said.

The Coast Guard in California received at least two calls: one boater hadnt yet left the harbor when his GPS failed, and another was lost and had to fire a flare to summon help, said Petty Officer Dawn Butler.

The Federal Aviation Administration had no reports of problems, said agency spokesman Les Dorr, adding that private plane pilots had been warned to check their systems.

In Japan, where as many as 5 million drivers rely on the system to navigate the countrys maze of roads, a top Tokyo manufacturer of auto devices, Pioneer Corp., was flooded with thousands of complaints about its machines going haywire. But there were no reports of traffic accidents.

Copyright 1999 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), August 23, 1999.

An update on the Japanese GPS situation. Be sure to notice the last paragraph:

http://www.foxnews.com/js_index.sml?content=/scitech/082399/gps.sml

[Fair Use: For Educational/Research Purposes Only]

Car Navigation Maker Receives 2,000 Complaints for Glitch

2.33 p.m. ET (1833 GMT) August 23, 1999

By Yuri Kageyama

TOKYO  A top Tokyo manufacturer of car navigation devices has been flooded daily with thousands of complaints about its machines going haywire over a satellite glitch.

Pioneer Corp., the manufacturer of 80 percent of the problem machines in Japan, received more than 2,000 calls Sunday, the day the devices began to either not go on at all or to pick the wrong locations.

About 50,000 troubled systems made by Pioneer are still on the roads, Hideo Seki, a company spokesman, said today.

There were no reports of traffic accidents or other confusion on the roads because of the system breakdown.

Callers were directed to one of 330 nationwide Pioneer repair shops. One Tokyo repair shop was taking customers to a nearby coffee shop  where Pioneer picked up the tab.

"It is very, very busy," said Seki, adding that he expected it to get worse in the week ahead. "The battle begins today."

In Japan, 5 million drivers depend on such systems to find their way through a maze of chaotic, crowded roads. None of the problem systems were exported.

The problem results from a glitch in the Global Positioning System  a navigation system that uses a series of satellites to pinpoint exact locations on Earth.

Boats, cars and other vehicles use the GPS, and hand-held versions are also sold for hikers and others who need something more high-tech than a compass.

GPS receivers pinpoint locations by using satellite signals. To account for variations in the Earth's orbit and rotation, they need the exact time, which they determined by counting the weeks since Jan. 5, 1980.

But the systems built before 1997 were only designed to count to 1,024 weeks. That maximum was reached Saturday, so the time clocks on the locators were resetting to zero.

Starting at 9 a.m. Sunday, the glitch caused some receivers to work slowly, point to wrong locations or not switch on at all.

An article in today's Asahi newspaper warned that the car navigator problem was a precursor to what could happen next year, when a glitch is expected to cause old computer systems that can't understand the year 2000 to malfunction.

Pioneer made 270,000 of the 340,000 old-style navigation systems sold in Japan. Pioneer realized the problem in 1996 and began a campaign in 1998 to get the word out so that repairs could be made in advance. Those who brought in their systems ahead of time totaled 150,000.

On Sunday, 770 repairs were completed. But thousands more are expected.

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-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), August 23, 1999.