There is understandable resentment that the coterie of computer engineers who neglectfully implanted the Y2K bug in the first place should now have profited so immensely from the necessity to neutralise it. Most people, however, will be glad that there has been no catastrophe, even though there may still be some date-related computer troubles to come. Ironically, the massive expenditure on Y2K precautions is said to have given the Australian economy a significant boost. We can only wish that it could have been directed towards meeting more deserving needs in the community. The whole affair is a reminder of how dependent civilisation and the economy have become on computers, and how vulnerable these intricate machines are to inherent malfunction or malignant interference.
Eternal vigilance is increasingly the price of the computer age.