If the Y2K problem is a date problem, then why can't the electric companies simply turn back their clocks to say, 1980, and operate? The date rollback/adjustment would give them 20 years for remediation.

Do they all sync to an external date and time source?

-- Anonymous, October 01, 1998

Answers

If we could turn back time...

Wouldn't that be nice - too bad: We would have to simultaneously change all the times or risk time differential problems in the communications systems

Many systems did not exist in 1980 and may not work with or be able to set such a date

Dates effect things like phase of moon, sunrise and sunset, holidays, and so forth. There may be physcial interactions

If time is used to make decisions about maintenance and so forth, we may have spent fuel rods in the reactor for a long time - or we may do other similar problems that relate to actual date.

There are other similar issues such as time locks and time differentials in systems to consider.

Some operations - such as auditing - require time bases in order to work - and legally - in order to be admissable as evidence.

But it's a good idea for some systems. For example, I think it's a good idea for a router in a network I operate - but the people who manage the routers don't agree. It seems their software uses dates and times for something or another.

Hope this helps.

FC

-- Anonymous, October 01, 1998