Q: WHAT IS THE
YEAR 2000 PROBLEM?
A: The year 2000 problem deals with the date change-over from December 31st 1999 to
January 1st 2000.The Problem comes from computer programming that uses only the last two
digits of the year to report a date. Therefore, your system will read the year 2000 as 00,
which means as far as your computer is concerned, the year will be 1900 on January 1st.
Q: WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? AND WHAT WILL BE AFFECTED BY THIS
PROBLEM?
A: It means that any or all of the following may be in danger. Your PC Network
Computers(Servers) Application Software All date Sensitive materials-
records,receipts,archived data.
All of the above depends on correct date reporting. The potential for all of these to be
corrupted exists if the problem is not addressed which could seriously affect your
business.
Solution-ACT NOW!
Q: WHAT HAPPENS IF I CHOOSE TO IGNORE THE PROBLEM AND DO NOTHING?
A: Your business or your personal use may be disrupted in many vital areas. The
level of disruption depends. To put it simply- THE PROBLEM IS REAL-DO NOT IGNORE IT.
Q: HOW SERIOUS IS THE Y2K
PROBLEM?
A: According to research, 90% of systems in use will be affected in some capacity
by the Y2K date problem. It is estimated that many Fortune 100, 500 and 1000 companies
will spend anywhere from 50 million to 100 million dollars on the problem.
Q: I HAVE A PENTIUM SYSTEM, CAN I BE AFFECTED BY THE MILLENNIUM
BUG?
A: Potentially- Yes. There are millions upon millions of Pentium class systems that
are NON-Y2K compliant. Many Pentiums that were shipped as late as 10/97 were shipped with
a NON-Y2K BIOS. So in addition to the estimated 17 million 486 systems in use that are
NON-Y2K compliant, millions of Pentium class systems are not exempt from the Millennium
Bug.
Q: IS THE MILLENNIUM/PRO™A
TOTAL FIX FOR THE Y2K PROBLEM?
A: No. The Y2K Compliance entails 3 parts:
1)Operating System
2)Application Software
3)BIOS
Numbers one and two depend upon a Y2K compliant BIOS for overall Y2K compliance. The
MIllennium/Pro™ensures Y2K BIOS compliance.
Q: HOW CAN I TEST MY SYSTEM FOR
Y2K COMPLIANCY?
A: On our Homepage, click on the free Y2K test at the top of the page. Our test
takes only a few seconds and results are displayed immediately. The test checks your
system's BIOS to see if it can handle the year 2000 roll-over.
Q: ARE THERE SOME PC'S THAT WILL NOT ACCEPT THE MILLENNIUM/PRO™CARD?
A: Nearly every PC since the first IBM in 1981 have been made with an 8 bit ISA
slot. As long as you have an available ISA slot, you can easily install the Millennium/Pro™ in a matter of seconds.
Q: WILL I NEED TO INSTALL ANY SOFTWARE ALONG WITH THE
MILLENNIUM/PRO™?
A: No. The Millennium/Pro™ is a hardware fix.
By installing the Millennium/Pro™, it becomes a part
of your hardware, therefore becoming a permanent fix for your PC. Simply plug the card in
and forget it.
Q: WHAT IS THE RTC(REAL TIME CLOCK) AND DOES THE MILLENNIUM/PRO™ADDRESS THE RTC ISSUE?
A: The real time clock is a one hundred year clock, therefore upon 12/31/99 11:59
:59, the RTC will automatically roll back to the year 1900. It is because of this that the
RTC will always fail ANY Y2K TEST. Yes, the Millennium/Pro™does
address and take care of this problem by intercepting the RTC's incorrect dating before it
gets to the BIOS, and then reports the correct date to the BIOS-ensuring Y2K BIOS
compliance.
Q:WHY SHOULD I PURCHASE A
MILLENNIUM/PRO™WHEN I CAN SIMPLY RUN A Y2K TSR?
A: The Millennium/Pro™is operating system
independent. The advantage is that it will not disappear when the user formats the hard
drive and installs a new operating system. Also, there is no sure way of knowing that the
TSR will remain whenever you shut your system down, which means that you may have to load
the TSR daily. In turn, a TSR is not permanent or foolproof. If you would ever happen to
have to reformat the hard disk or boot from a floppy disk, the TSR will not be recognized
which means your machine will not roll over. The Millennium/Pro™ISA
card is a permanent and automatic solution to Y2K BIOS compliance.
Q: SHOULD I GET A MILLENNIUM/PRO™
OR SHOULD I UPDATE MY BIOS?
A: The choice is yours. The best solution is a BIOS upgrade for your machine if one
is available from Unicore Software. We are the world's largest provider of BIOS upgrades,
so chances are we have one for your system. The advantage of obtaining a BIOS is simple.
When you upgrade your system's BIOS you get instant compatibility with all of today's
latest technology for your system in addition to Y2K BIOS compliance. A BIOS upgrade is
also a permanent solution to the Y2K problem.
This Q&A has been put together as a service to provide a concise,
yet simple understanding of the issues associated with the Y2K problems and solutions. The
best advice is to ADDRESS, ASSESS AND ACT NOW.
800-800-BIOS(2467)
y2k
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