Y2K 3
First of all, what is Y2K? Well, this increasingly popular word represents the "Year 2000". January 1, 2000 will be incredibly significant, not just because it represents the beginning of a new century, but also because on that date, a problem that will affect the whole world will occur. A large percentage of older computer systems and software will either stop working or malfunction. This problem is referred to as the "Millennium Bug". It is the bug that when the date is switched from 1999 to 2000, the computers are not able to recognize the differences and will mistakenly believe that it is 1900, since there are only two digits that stands for dates. Y2k is going to be a bomb with non-changeable deadline to our society. It is our duty to raise awareness of the Year 2000 Problem in our communities. Let your Head know that we take this problem very seriously and we must take appropriate action. This bomb was setup in the 60's by the programmers who wanted to save spaces and money. During that period, the large mainframe computers needed were very expensive to build and to operate. A large amount of memory was needed to show dates in four digits, because for every one more digit, there is ten times the memory needed.
In an attempt to save money and precious memory, programmers discovered that they could eliminate 'unnecessary' data by shortening dates to only two digits. So, the year 1974 was shortened to just 74, and so on... Y2K is not the end of the world! There is no reason to pack up and "move to the hills". The point is to insure that you are safe and reduce the impact on you daily life as much as possible. Take advantage of the days ahead to prepare for your family, your friends and those around you. Talk to them and find out where they are in relation to this issue, and encourage them to begin their own preparation today. There is still time for individuals to prepare without panic, but there is no time to waste. Many people predicted that what will happen in January 1, 2000, is that all the computers that are affected is going to shut down or malfunction. Electricity will be out, water will not be available, transportation will be disrupted, food will be high demanding, and the whole world will just be in chaos. It is impossible to finish all the work in time, but we can at least reduce the impact of it by well preparing for it. Most of the businesses, including the U.S. Government, is separating the operations into "Critical" and "Non-Critical", and then focusing on the ones that are most necessary needed to be fixed for day-to-day operations. There is no easy way to fix this problem. The only way is to test the suspected chips, and then replace the ones that fail. Where software is involved, it is necessary for programmers to physically check the lines of code in the software that deal with dates, and then rewrite the software to accommodate the full date. There is a shortage of such qualified programmers to accomplish this task, making it difficult to finish the tasks in time. This task is also high-cost, with an estimate
Some common words found in the essay are:
Millennium Bug, Bug Yes, , Critical Non-Critical, daily life, dates digits, computer systems, january 1 2000, 1 2000, 2000 computers, systems fixed, millennium bug, y2k world, january 1, reduce impact,
Approximate Word count = 1251
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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