Software in many computers, especially older ones, uses only two figures to represent years. So 1997 is 97, and 2000 would be 00. But when computers see 00, they'll read it as 1900. 2000 problem is simple, but finding it is not. It's scattered through millions of lines of code in each of millions of computers.
Programmers have to go over every line of code, then test every bit of software.
That can take months or years. Gartner Group predicts half of all companies will have computer problems come Jan. 1, 2000. Even if a company's internal computers are OK, it might still have trouble doing business. Telecommunications networks could be disrupted, experts say. The federal government is likely to have trouble operating.