Subject: RE: [netatalk-admins] is Netatalk Y2K Compliant?
From: Mark Donnelly (mark@coe.missouri.edu)
Date: Mon Oct 26 1998 - 12:17:24 EST
On Mon, 26 Oct 1998, Marc Matteo wrote:
> I can think of a few reasons the no one answered:
>
> 1) no one knows :)
As further clarification, I (at least) do not know:
a) what exactly Mitch means by 'Y2K Compliant.' That's always seemed to
me like a buzzword (much like the dreaded 'information superhighway')
which, although it's probably well-defined somewhere, doesn't mean a whole
lot.
b) the appletalk protocol. I have no idea how the
appletalk/ethertalk/tokentalk/ASIP protocol deals with dates.
> 2) It's a baited question where if on January 1st your Netatalk server blows
> up your lawyers come trolling for the person that answered "yes"
*builds a thermoneuclear-war-safe fallout shelter, locks the door behind
me*
Ha! I'd like to see a sue-happy lawyer come in after me now!
> 3) I don't think it's relevant is it? Wouldn't Netatalk's Y2K compliance be
> more tied to the underlying OS?
Astute observation. However, there could be a couple of other places
where things could go wrong:
1) you already mentioned the underlying OS - Linux, Solaris, AIX, *BSD,
etc...
2) The transport - I believe that there's nothing in IP/ethernet/tokenring
which would break at with time, but I don't know enough to say anything.
This could also include routers, switches, hubs, etc. Hmm...I wonder if
the year 2000 will cause a global corrosion of the copper in our ethernet
wires? Let's head for the hills! ;)
3) MacOS clients - how well do they handle dates? My guess would be
fairly well, given how well Apple dealt with dates from the very
beginning.
So, I'd say that the only way you're going to know how well things will
happen is to take an unused weekend in a computer lab, set everyone's
clock ahead (aren't network time servers nice?), and let it roll over.
Personally, I doubt that Y2K actually will be much a problem. There's a
much larger problem on the horizon for all humanity - the 100 GigaBurger
problem! There will be mass chaos, public famine, economic collapse, and
an end to McDonald's. (See
http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~keithv/vox.8.html#tag96 for more of this
humour mailing.)
So, anyway, you'd probably have to talk to Wes or Adrian for the real
lo-down, but they're unlikely to give anything near a guarantee (for
reasons stated before).
--Mark
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