Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Computers host websites composed of HTML and send text messages as simple as...LOL. There were other, secondary, concerns. While “Y2K” itself is simply a numeronym for the year 2000, it was fears of a technological meltdown that really started the whole Y2K craze. Software and hardware companies released programs that expanded the date to a four digit number. Hack into this quiz and let some technology tally your score and reveal the contents to you. Y2K: An Oral History But you’d be surprised how many systems still run on old programming. Canada’s leaders were worried that a … This is because computer memory space was pricey then and memory was saved by using two digits for the date instead four. As the first day of January 2000 dawned and it became apparent that computerized systems were intact, reports of relief filled the news media. Not having the correct date would throw off these calculations and possibly put nearby residents at risk. The brief period beginning on December 31,1999 was one in which the world held its collective breath. In an effort to encourage companies to share critical information about Y2K, U.S. Pres. Of or relating to the year 2000. force pressed on an object or area by water in contact with it. Hardware is the machinery of the computer itself. electronic programs of code that tell computers what to do. Other computer programs that projected budgets or debts into the future could begin malfunctioning in 1999 when they made projections into 2000. Y2K didn't happen tho! Governments, especially in the United States and the United Kingdom, worked to address the problem. She or he will best know the preferred format. Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Y2k was the fear that all the technology that we currently had was driven by computers whose chips could not deal with the calendar changing from the 1900 to 2000. Washington, DC 20036, National Geographic Society is a 501 (c)(3) organization. And even before the dawn of 2000, it was feared that some computers might fail on September 9, 1999 (9/9/99), because early programmers often used a series of 9s to indicate the end of a program. Jeff Hunt, Mary Crooks, National Geographic Society 1. All rights reserved. These were followed by accusations that the likely incidence of failure had been greatly exaggerated from the beginning. So, the term Y2K boils down to ‘The Year 2000’. Countries such as Italy, Russia, and South Korea had done little to prepare for Y2K. Sustainability Policy | Santani Teng The British government announced that its armed forces would be prepared in time and would provide assistance to local police if utilities, transportation systems, or emergency services failed. Y2K is a numeronym and was the common abbreviation for the year 2000 software problem. Wilderness survival bootcamps abruptly grew popular approaching the expected disaster. Code of Ethics, The Y2K bug was a computer flaw, or bug, that may have caused problems when dealing with dates beyond December 31, 1999, Geography, Human Geography, Social Studies, World History, This lists the logos of programs or partners of NG Education which have provided or contributed the content on this page. The Y2K problem was not limited to computers running conventional software, however. Y2K synonyms, Y2K pronunciation, Y2K translation, English dictionary definition of Y2K. A Y2K preparedness survey commissioned in late 1998 by Cap Gemini America, a New York computer industry consulting firm, showed that among 13 economic sectors studied in the United States, government was the least ready for Y2K. Y2K: The New Year's disaster that never happened. The flaw, faced by computer programmers and users all over the world on January 1, 2000, is also known as the "millennium bug." person who designs and builds software or hardware. For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited. If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. Hilary Costa In the end, there were very few problems. Until the 1990s many computer programs (especially those written in the early days of computers) were designed to abbreviate four-digit years as two digits in order to save memory space. © 1996 - 2021 National Geographic Society. Additionally, the programmers did not expect the programs to last up to the turn of the century. Many skeptics believe it was barely a problem at all. Powered by. Melissa McDaniel Nothing happened. amount of money a lender charges a customer for a loan. There had, according to numerous reports, been several roll-the-clock-forward tests of Y2K problems, including one that caused a nuclear power plant to malfunction. So, Y2K stands for Year 2000.) (Rated highest for preparedness was the software industry.). It became known as the “millennium,” “Year 2000,” and “Y2K” bug. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. These computers could recognize “98” as “1998” but would be unable to recognize “00” as “2000,” perhaps interpreting it to mean 1900. A nuclear energy facility in Ishikawa, Japan, had some of its radiation equipment fail, but backup facilities ensured there was no threat to the public. Supposedly at Midnight on January 1, 2000, all electronic devices would cease to work. object or event meant to deceive or fool observers. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. The abbreviation combines the letter Y for "year", the number 2 and a capitalized version of k for the SI unit prefix kilo meaning 1000; hence, 2K signifies 2000. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. Many other countries, notably Asian countries suffering at that time from an ongoing economic crisis as well as small or geographically isolated countries, were thought to be less well prepared. Many feared that when the clocks struck midnight on January 1, 2000, many affected computers would be using an incorrect date and thus fail to operate properly unless the computers’ software was repaired or replaced before that date. The cause of the Y2K problem is pretty simple. If you have questions about licensing content on this page, please contact ngimagecollection@natgeo.com for more information and to obtain a license. The U.S. detected missile launches in Russia and attributed that to the Y2K bug. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Exploring Your World: The Adventure of Geography." The 1900 and 2000 both … The year 2000 was a leap year, and many computers—even leap-year savvy systems—didn’t take this into account. adj. Those who had worked in Y2K-compliance efforts insisted that the threat had been real. Until recently, computer programmers have been in the habit of using two digit placeholders … When complicated computer programs were being written during the 1960s through the 1980s, computer engineers used a two-digit code for the year. (actually 27,000,000,000,002,451 B.C. Programmers adopted the technique decades ago to save memory, which was expensive at the time. So things might already be clear to you that the Y2K bug is, in some way related to the year 2000, or the beginning of the current century. Mainframe computers, including those typically used to run insurance companies and banks, were thought to be subject to the most serious Y2K problems, but even newer systems that used networks of desktop computers were considered vulnerable. i.e. This made year 2000 indistinguishable from 1900. Dunn, Margery G. (Editor). Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. (The letter K, which stands for kilo (a unit of 1000), is commonly used to represent the number 1,000. In the 1960s and 1970s, when computer engineers worked on complex computer programs, they used two-digit codes to represent the year. Lots & Lots of people stocked up on food & household items. from the year 2000 A.D. (i.e. Engineers shortened the date because data storage in computers was costly and took up a lot of space. The Year 2000 problem (also known as the Y2K problem, the Millennium bug, the Y2K bug, or simply Y2K) was a problem for both digital (computer-related) and non-digital documentation and data storage situations which resulted from the practice of abbreviating a four-digit year to two digits. It’s bad enough to have to work on New … Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. You cannot download interactives. Australia recalled almost its entire embassy staff from Russia prior to January 1, 2000, over fears of what might happen if communications or transportation networks broke down. Y2K bug: This was a bug which rose due to the inability of the computer to differentiate between the years-- 1900 and 2000. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media. It was uncertain how this would affect the tightly integrated world economy and physical infrastructure. It was also named the "Millennium Bug" because it was associated with the popular (rather than literal) roll-over of the millennium, even though most of the problems could have occurred at the end of any ordinary century. Kara West. group of people who believe the Earth or human society will end soon. The first two digits were left out. They had no more technological problems than those countries, like the U.S., that spent millions of dollars to combat the problem. by John Sheesley in Classics Rock , in Software on January 2, 2009, 7:15 AM PST. The change was expected to bring down computer systems infrastructures, such as … The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. Tim Gunther, Jeannie Evers, Emdash Editing Y2K was introduced into the mainstream lexicon in the late 1990s, as experts weighed in on the potential likelihood of a digital pandemic. The scare consisted of the fear that the entire computer systems were going to fail on New Year's Eve 1999. Updates? In the late 1990s, we had lots of computer systems and programs running that never expected to still be around in the year 2000. Of … The Y2K bug was a computer flaw, or bug, that may have caused problems when dealing with dates beyond December 31, 1999. Catastrophic Y2K pre-testing. energy released by reactions among the nuclei of atoms. Banks, which calculate interest rates on a daily basis, faced real problems. If a year is divisible by four, it’s a … They maintained that the continued viability of computerized systems was proof that the collective effort had succeeded. energy, emitted as waves or particles, radiating outward from a source. Astral Realm 2451 A.D. equivalent to A nallion D eccacrescent 27 QUADILLION B.C. Power plants depend on routine computer maintenance for safety checks, such as water pressure or radiation levels. Omissions? But first, let’s understand the problem. In December 1999 the … Kim Rutledge Y in Y2K refers to year and 2K refers to 2000. Oh my, I … Corrections? to reach a conclusion by mathematical or logical methods. Airlines in particular were put at risk, as computers with records of all scheduled flights would be threatenedafter all, there were very few airline flights in 1900. Many devices containing computer chips, ranging from elevators to temperature-control systems in commercial buildings to medical equipment, were believed to be at risk, which necessitated the checking of these “embedded systems” for sensitivity to calendar dates. It was feared that such a misreading would lead to software and hardware failures in computers used in such important areas as banking, utilities systems, government records, and so on, with the potential for widespread chaos on and following January 1, 2000. Programmers wanting to avoid the Y2K bug had two broad options: entirely rewrite their code, or adopt a … … The simplest solution was the best: The date was simply expanded to a four-digit number. Instead of a date reading 1970, it read 70. Bill Clinton in October 1998 signed the Year 2000 Information and Readiness Disclosure Act. computer flaw that might have caused problems when dealing with dates beyond December 31, 1999. As December 31, 1999, turned into January 1, 2000, computers might interpret December 31, 1999, turning into January 1, 1900. Privacy Notice | Another New Years goes by … In the United States, business and government technology teams worked feverishly with a goal of checking systems and fixing software before the end of December 1999. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. For instance, a kilobyte of storage went for as high as US$100. Terms of Service | The Y2K Bug is also known as the Millennium Bug. There was no computer malfunction. They though it would crash them and we would have power outages and anything computer based would fail. The main reason for leaving out the first two digits was to save on storage space which was too costly. Also in the ’90s the Y2K virus (a computer software problem that makes computers interpret the year 2000 as 1900) triggered a new wave of apocalyptic thinking among premillennial preachers such as Chuck Missler, Jack Van Impe, and Jerry Falwell and became the great ecumenical apocalyptic prophecy of the age.…. Also called memory. Before proceeding further, we should know about what Y2K refers to. Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. On September 9, 1947, a team of computer scientists reported the world’s first computer bug—a moth trapped in their computer at Harvard University. 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