NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The year 2000 (Y2K) problem, also known as the millennium bug, was a major source of computer concerns 25 years ago. It was expected to cause computers to fail and lead to critical disruptions in banking, transportation, and power systems.
In December 1999, some people across the country began to take extreme measures in case their Y2K prediction came true. When Jan. 1, 2000, arrived, people realized their fears were unwarranted and computers were still intact.
Plenty of noteworthy things happened in 1999, from the Columbine High School massacre and the death of John F. Kennedy Jr. in a plane crash, to the release of the book “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” and the Space Shuttle Discovery being the first shuttle mission to dock with the International Space Station. However, at the end of the year, Y2K brought fear to millions.
“A bunch of online hype that was generated outside traditional mainstream media that caused people to panic about the scale of problems going to happen on January 1, 2000,” David Hyde, a computer science professor at Vanderbilt University, said. “There was a very real fear that, as soon as the clock struck midnight, planes weren’t going to be able to fly, transit was going to shut down.”
Hyde explained how Y2K was based off computers not recognizing the correct time. Although Y2K didn’t cause any major disasters, he said there were some minor disruptions.
One of those disruptions involved a man in Germany receiving $6 million in his account. Hyde believes this was through the computer not recognizing the correct time and giving him several decades of compound interest.
In 2038, Hyde thinks another Y2K could happen as computer programmers work to avoid this situation. The problem still revolves around programming for a computer to understand time.
Computers are much more important in today’s society compared to 25 years ago, so Hyde’s concern revolves around correcting the problem before it can cause a major disruption. He is confident that world leaders have programmers working to prevent this issue.
