We are four months away from the year 2000, and there is still no consensus about what Y2K will bring. Over the last year I have had the opportunity to moderate various debates and briefings. There is still a wide divergence of opinion. Some experts believe this will be a relatively minor problem, while others believe that it will be a major disruption in our lives.
Most people have the same set of facts, but they come to some strikingly different conclusions.
I believe the watershed issue is the power grid. If you think the power grid will stay intact then you are likely to see Y2K as a minor disruption. If you think the power grid will fail, you are likely to see a scary scenario in the future. It s just about as simple as that. Each day we receive electrical power through an infrastructure which is a marvelous and complex creation.