From: Hal Finney (hal@rain.org)
Date: Tue May 05 1998 - 13:50:25 MDT
That long URL points to a short article in ComputerWorld Australia which
describes the poisoned water supply story as a myth. There is not much
detail in the article itself, though.
A poster on c.s.y-2000 claimed that the Sun-Herald, which printed the
original claim, was a lightweight, semi-tabloid newspaper better known
for its entertainment value than its news coverage.
Even though this story is apparently not true, potential failures in
embedded computer systems are a serious problem which the industry is
only beginning to grapple with. The possible consequences of failures
of the infrastructure are at least as bad as failures of the financial
system or the government.
Unfortunately, liability concerns are forcing many companies into making
only ambiguous Y2K statements, with no guarantees of success. The concern
is that even if they think they are compliant, giving guarantees will
open them up to liability in the event that something goes wrong, even
something out of their control (like phones or electricity failing).
This makes it difficult for outsiders to determine what is the true
state of affairs.
Hal
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