As New Zealand is one of the first places on Earth to enter 2010, I'm delighted to report that the new year has not caused my computer to lock up. Planes are not dropping out of the sky. The electricity is still on. The phone still works. The Internet isn't broken. Even the TV still works.
Ten years ago, of course, that was newsworthy. Around the end of 1998 and early part of 1999, "Y2k" was widely predicted to cause all manner of IT disasters, and indeed it may well have done were it not for the enormous effort put into Y2k remediation work around the globe. By the middle to end of 1999, most of us were sick and tired of the doomsday predictions, recognising that Y2k projects were going to plan. For once, with a fixed end date and no way to run over, organizations prioritized rigorously and applied whatever resources were needed. The work was done and doomsday was averted.
The backlash started even before the end of 1999, though. I distinctly recall a number of journalists talking about the IT industry lining its pockets on unnecessary Y2K work. When the world didn't end, instead of thanking all those who had been working ridiculous hours under extreme stress for many months, the most prominent commentary was that the whole thing was fiction, a needless waste of money.
I hope you will think about this again when you need to quote the date in the new year. Is it 2010 or just "ten"?
Happy new year everyone.
Gary Hinson
CEO, IsecT Ltd.
New Zealand
January 1st 2010.
Happy New Year, Gary.
I remember the pendulum swinging both ways back then. With doomsayers on one end and then the media calling it a non-event on the other. The end benefit was that systems were brought up to date and optimized. Of course, no one mentioned that.
Think how we referenced to the 19xx years. Fully named, we would usually say nineteen-ninety-six (1996). Informally, we would refer to the year as ninety-six ('96). So, for the 2000+ years, I'd recommend twenty-ten for 2010, and ten for the shorter, informal reference.
My work here is done.
Posted by: Guy L. Pace | 31 December 2009 at 01:02 PM