What Y2K? It's 2,451,543.5

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What Y2K? It's 2,451,543.5

Updated 3:13 PM ET December 20, 1999

By MATTHEW J. ROSENBERG, Associated Press Writer

ARECIBO, Puerto Rico (AP) - Researchers at the Arecibo Observatory need not fear the millennium bug. For them the date on New Year's Eve will be 2,451,543.5 - measured in days, and completely Y2K compliant.

"We aren't worried about the millennium," said Arun Venkataraman, head of computing at the unique facility.

He said the site's main computer programs were responsible for controlling its centerpiece: the largest single-dish radio telescope on Earth, used for everything from listening for alien messages to tracking asteroids and discovering planets.

Like other astronomy-related applications - "it uses the Julian date (which) has nothing to do with the year 2000."

It's a system that measures the number of elapsed days since 4,713 B.C. Invented in 1583, its goal was to simplify computing the numerical difference between different calendar dates - Y2K compliance being a probably unforeseen additional benefit.

The Arecibo observatory was built in this U.S. territory in 1963, placed near the equator to provide scientists with a better view of planets and stars passing overhead. It features a 1000-foot concave receiver composed of 38,000 aluminum tiles, listening to sounds in space instead of depending on optics.

Venkataraman said there were other programs at the facility that had to upgraded and changed to avoid the millennium bug - the problem of computers that use two digits for the date and might confuse next year with 1900.

But they involved merely "day-to-day applications where people keep records and bookkeeping, dates in e-mails ... These aren't exactly mission-critical."

Venkataraman added that in any case, the observatory was better prepared than most for dealing with a potential Y2K crisis because of its location in hurricane-prone Puerto Rico:

"If a hurricane passes through, we are typically cut off from utilities and make do with provisions. I suppose Y2K will not be any different."

====================================== End

Ray

-- Ray (ray@totacc.com), December 20, 1999

Answers

They do not use Word or Excel????

-- Rainbow (Rainbow@123easy.net), December 20, 1999.

Rainbow:

You're so totally right. And they have also outlawed all BIOS, CMOS, ROM, EPROM, PLC, or PROM chips from any of their systems.

-- Dana (A_Non_O_Moose@xxx.com), December 20, 1999.


Hi, I'm from the future. I was going through the archives in this foruma nd saw this thread. Using my time-defibralator USB port I am sending you all a message from the 23rd century.

I came across these little excerpts from my memoirs and thought that the way we handle the date in the future might be of some benefit to you now to avoid potential Y2K problems. (Just ignore the text below it... that got sent automatically with the rest of the excerpt).

You see, we just make up random numbers every day to amuse ourselves. Since there isn't any money in the future we figured heck, why should there be dates and time too? Try it, it's fun!

Captain's Log:

Stardate 14.6.8175

"Mr. Spock and myself have just conlcuded a preliminary examination of the planet's surface. Having found no probable cause to believe that there was any beer, we returned to the ship".

Captain's Log:

Stardate 8.8.9876

"Commander Sulu has just informed me that we are serious risk of not being able to pick up HBO signals if we venture out into the Neutral Zone. Well, to hell with the distress signal, Real Sex #9876 is coming on and none of us want to miss it.".

Captain's Log:

Stardate 9.10.5541

"Having just beaten Spock in the fourtieth hand of Gin Rummy in a row I want to make a note that Vulcans DO have egos. He threw the cards on the floor, muttered something about illogical human games, and then stomped out of the Rec Hall. Oh well, what a sore loser".

-- Jim (caught@somewhere.in time), December 20, 1999.


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