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A New Zealand firm decided to run a y2k test in advance. This has proven costly.
This apppeared in THE INDEPENDENT (Nov. 28).
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The scale and level of incidence of Year 2000 problems in embedded chips is starting to emerge. Something like 3.3 billion chips were shipped in 1995 hidden away in alarm systems, control valves, switches and the like. Early assessment suggests that problems occur in about two or three in every 1000. . . .
"One Auckland organisation decided to test its building's lighting management system by changing the clocks and simulating running it into the Year 2000. It rolled over fine, but then wouldn't return to its regular setting. The system became locked into its night time cycle, sounding an alarm every hour, then turning off all the lighting in the building until reset by a key-holder. Consequently they had to turn the system off. At the time of writing it was still off. At least it raised awareness of the Year 2000 problem!"
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