The Millenium Bug

In plain English, the author explains the gravity of the computer problem posed by the year 2000; its potentially catastrophic impact on government, banking, utilities, and personal computers; and what the average person can do to protect himself. IP.

This account outlines an ominous view of how computer systems will be able to deal with the year 2000 problem. Power grids go dark, 911 call centers descend into chaos, Visa cards die, and the industrialized world is reduced to hunting and gathering in Hyatt's millennium nightmare.

With lots of quotes popping out from the pages and plenty of bulleted lists, The Millennium Bug is written in typical manager-book style. It's heavy with case studies, news items, and endnote references to the author's sources. Hyatt's purpose is to alert technology decision-makers to a plausible worst-case Y2K scenario and to motivate them to do something about it. The author presents a range of possible developments, from mere annoyance with consumer services to widespread starvation as a result of infrastructure breakdown. Hyatt also foresees a plague of lawsuits filed by shareholders, the families of deceased patients, and swarms of other people harmed by Y2K failures.

Hyatt's advice: move to a small town with a volunteer fire department, stockpile food, secure access to a reliable source of fresh water, and buy a gun and ammunition for fending off looters. The winter of 1999-2000 will be a hard one, Hyatt predicts, and the crisis may last a long time indeed--have reading material on hand. --David Wall