Your last-minute Y2K prep primer

You're probably the type of person who waits to do their taxes on April 15th. Now that devil-may-care attitude has brought you hard up against the Y2K problem and you want to take some steps to prepare your PC and home for Y2K.

Fortunately, like your taxes, Y2K preparations do take less than a day for most folks. Checking your PC takes the most time, because you need to make an inventory of the applications you count on. These need to check the Y2K compliance of these applications, as well as your hardware and operating system.

SH: Hardware

Your hardware is the first line of defense. If your PC is less than a year old, the hardware is most likely completely Y2K ready. But, you should still check it to ensure older components weren't used. Apple Macintosh systems are Y2K compliant, but application software still needs to be checked. If you are running LINUX or UNIX, the operating systems are compliant, though your hardware and applications still need to be checked separately.

Begin at the manufacturer's Web site. You'll need to know the model name and number.

Dell Y2K site: http://support.dell.com/us/en/advisor/index_year2000.asp

IBM Y2K site: http://www.software.ibm.com/year2000

Gateway Y2K site: ttp://www.gateway.com/about/y2k/index2.shtml

Compaq Y2K site: http://www.compaq.com/year2000/search.html

Hewlett-Packard Y2K site: http://www.hp.com/year2000/pc/index.html

SH: Software

Once you've checked the database, you'll know what kind of fix you need if the system is non-compliant. If the BIOS and Real-Time Clock are noncompliant, you'll need to install a hardware fix (a compliant BIOS card that plugs into an expansion slot on your motherboard) or a software fix that, essentially, patches the BIOS at startup. There are several variations on software fixes, but the packages used with success by ZDY2K include:

Intellifix 2000: http://hotfiles.zdnet.com/cgi-bin/texis/swlib/hotfiles/info.html?fcode=0011Z2

Norton 2000: http://hotfiles.zdnet.com/cgi-bin/texis/swlib/hotfiles/info.html?fcode=000W0H

ClickNet Y2K: http://www.zdnet.com/products/stories/reviews/0,4161,402228,00.html

There are also a number of reliable Y2K fixes at ZD Net's Download Library, located at: http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/topics/y2k.html.

PC users have the biggest challenge. Most versions of Windows are not Y2K compliant, rather they are described by Microsoft as "compliant with issues." Remaining problems will not likely crash your system or corrupt data, but they can result in misfiling by date, miscalculations of totals in spreadsheets and so on if left unremediated.

Check the Microsoft Web site for the status of Windows and Office applications. Fixes are available for all versions of Windows and Windows NT after Versions 3.1. The Microsoft search interface returns a list of downloadable fixes you'll need, though they are buried in poorly articulated explanations of Y2K issues.

Microsoft also provides an application analyzer that searches your hard drive for Microsoft applications that may not be compliant and generates a report that includes links for gathering updates and information. Ironically, Excel 2000 still is not completely Y2K-compliant and can cause errors when exporting dates to another file and in some financial functions.

The rest of your application software needs checking, too. The Intellifix, Norton and ClickNet applications above will provide useful reports about the compliance of Web applications, graphics programs and other tools you rely on.

Once you identify problem applications, visit the vendor's Web site for updates. In some cases, there won't be a fix. The challenge then, is to determine whether the problems will cause data errors and, if so, to replace the application with a compliant one. As noted, most application software will operate normally even when it isn't compliant, but you need to take extra precautions:

Make two back-up copies all your data files in exportable formats, so you can get at the data if the application crashes catastrophically.

Print data files you rely on, like your financial records and important spreadsheets.

Shut down the application and PC on December 31st and turn it on again after the New Year begins.

Open the application and the files in question. Check the data against the paper print-outs. If there are differences, open one of the back-up copies and check to see if the data in the back-ups are affected by the application. If there are still errors, close the file without saving changes.

Find a compliant alternative to the application. Import data into the new application and check the data against your paper records.

Check your data against paper records each time you open the file after the New Year, even if you haven't had to replace your application software.

All this sounds much more imposing than the problem really is. In all likelihood, your data will not be corrupted by Y2K, but these steps will allow you to respond carefully and intelligently if there is a problem.

Peripherals are infrequently affected by Y2K. Generally, basic functions are not affected while reporting features, like date and time a fax was received, may be misreported. Just as you did with PC hardware, start your research at the manufacturer's Web site. Fixes may be available, often for free.

SH: Your small business

Records are the key to your business' survival, and Y2K poses a risk to the data you rely on. Tax and sales records, and customer data need to be backed up and checked against pre-Y2K records to ensure you have an accurate picture of your business.

In addition to the steps described for home PCs, small business owners need to look at additional issues, including a contingency plan to respond to interruptions of critical products or services. Only a few major problems are expected globally, but what if your accounting software isn't compliant and, as a result, you file incorrect W-4s for your employees? You get audited. Can you afford that? Will the time and expense of an audit wipe out profit for the year?

Check your servers and ensure that you have a back-up strategy that will give you a clean and accurate copy of records to work from. Shut down your systems before midnight on December 31 and bring systems back up one at a time, starting with servers, after the New Year. This will let you isolate any problems that may be present.

Why should you go to the extra expense of these data protection efforts and, if you sell a product, having some extra inventory on hand? Because your customer counts on you to conduct business normally. If you are planning on staying home this weekend while customers call your business, then you are missing the chance to impress them with your concern about them. Even if you have to cater to people who want to stockpile at the last minute - and you have extra supplies on hand to ensure others can still get the products they need - then you have the chance to win new customers or increase customer loyalty. Can you afford not to do this?