September 1997

Q 1: What is Microsoft’s overall position on the Year 2000 issue?
A 1: Microsoft's products have been designed for use in the year 2000 and well beyond. Microsoft cares deeply about its customers and feels a responsibility with the industry to raise the awareness about this issue. Because of the important role that data plays in our customers business, we strongly recommend that companies and governments take a complete look at their information systems to ensure they transition smoothly into the next century.

To assist our customers with potential technology issues in the transition to the Year 2000, Microsoft has given our customers the ability to:

• Enter and store 4-digit dates well past 1999
• Enter 2-digit short cuts for a year but actually have all 4 digits of the year stored
• Override a 2-digit short cut by entering all 4 digits of a year
• Handle calculations of properly stored dates that span the 1900's and the 2000's
• Recognize the year 2000 as a leap year
• Avoid applying any special business meaning to a date

While minor compared with the issues facing legacy systems, a few of Microsoft's products have had year 2000-related issues. These issues and solutions are highlighted in answer 6 below and the Microsoft KnowledgeBase. In addition, users of personal computers may encounter year 2000 problems including problems arising from the computer BIOS (described in answer 14 below). It is important that IT organizations look at their information systems end-to-end for potential Year 2000 problems. This is particularly appropriate since most organizations use technology from multiple vendors.

To assure the most reliable data and to reduce the potential for errors or unexpected results, Microsoft also recommends that our customers consider taking the following steps:

• Update PC-based applications with date fields that don't accept 2000 and beyond
• Set client computers to display all 4 digits of a year as the default so that users are aware of possible errors as dates are entered
• Check the impact of BIOS problems on older systems
• Convert all years stored as 2 digits to 4 digits and confirming the accuracy of the conversion
• Establish a consistent date format using all 4 digits of a year for exchanging dates between internal or external systems
• Place business logic in key parts of a system to watch for data entry errors or bad data sources
• Train help desk personnel for the year 2000 transition
• Upgrade systems to take advantage of new ease of use functions for dates into the next century
• Re-host systems with Year 2000 problems to provide a flexible foundation for the future

Microsoft looks forward to working with you as we transition to the 21st century.

Q 3: What is the difference of the Year 2000 impact between Microsoft’s products and mainframes?
A 3: Many mainframe applications were deployed that only stored 2 digits to represent a year. This was typically done for efficiency reasons. If these systems are not updated to handle 4-digit dates, serious consequences are possible (e.g. inventory systems that make EDI orders for stock that is not really obsolete, or inaccurate mortgage, age, or other calculations).

By contrast, all of Microsoft’s operating systems, including MS-DOS, were designed with the ability to handle 4-digit dates well into the next century. Users can enter 2-digit shortcuts that are then stored as four digit dates by Microsoft products based on documented assumptions. Since there is no industry-wide standard on how to interpret 2-digit shortcuts, some PC applications in use today may interpret a 2-digit date differently than a user needs, and that user will need to type in all four digits (e.g. "2000" instead of "00") in order to ensure accurate data. Users must of course take responsibility for the accuracy of the data that has been entered under either the 2-digit or 4-digit method, but Microsoft products give users the ability to properly enter and store dates into the next century. Relative to the severity and expense of the mainframe problem, this is a minor issue.

Q 4: Can I use 2-digit short cuts but have my PC display the 4-digit year as a default setting?
A 4: Yes. You can continue to use 2-digit short cuts and have the year be displayed in a 4-digit (YYYY) format, by going to the Control Panel and selecting Regional Settings, the Date tab, and then changing the "Short date style:" to display all four digits of a year. Then all applications will display dates in the 4-digit format as a default.

This simple step will enable you to enter data using 2-digit shortcuts, and let you immediately see the 4-digit date the computer is storing. Thus, if you were unfamiliar with the shortcut in Excel 95 and entered "18" for "1918," this default setting would immediately show that you had actually entered "2018," and allow you to correct your data by re-entering the year in 4-digit form — "1918."

Microsoft Web sites:

Other Web sites with Year 2000 information include:

Q 8: What are the 2-digit short cut details for Microsoft database products?
A 8: Every Microsoft database product including Microsoft Access, Visual FoxPro, and Microsoft SQL Server stores years in 4-digit form. Microsoft provides users with the ability to enter 2-digit short cuts for year data (i.e., "96" instead of "1996"). When a user types in a 2-digit year, Microsoft’s programs actually store the complete 4-digit year — unlike many older mainframe programs, which store just the 2-digit form. There is no standard way in the industry to interpret 2-digit year short cuts and as a result, errors can occur when dates are entered and displayed only using 2-digits. Of course, users of Microsoft products can always type in all 4 digits of a year to clearly identify the date they want to store in order to reduce possible data entry errors.

Microsoft Access 97 interprets manual year input from "00" to "29" as short cuts for the years "2000" to "2029." Access 97 converts all 2-digit years within imported text files to 1900-based years. It is recommended that all legacy data sources be updated to contain 4-digit years to avoid incorrect conversions. Microsoft Access 95, and earlier versions, interpret manual year input from "00" to "29" to be short cuts for "1900" to "1929."

Microsoft Excel versions 4, 5, and 7 all interpret "00" to "19" as short cuts for "2000" to "2019." Microsoft Excel 97 interprets 2-digit years from "00" to "29" as "2000" to "2029" and the short cut "30" will resolve to "1930."

Q 9: What is the full range of dates Excel for Windows 95 (v7.0a) can handle?
A 9: Excel 95 is ready for the year 2000. Month and day order may be interchanged internationally. Here is the full range of dates it handles:

Note that Excel versions 5 and 4 also work this way!

Q 10: What is the full range of dates Microsoft Excel 97 can handle?
A 10: Excel 97 is also ready for the year 2000. Month and day order may be interchanged internationally. Here is the full range of dates it handles:

Q 11: Will Microsoft warrant that its products are year 2000 ready?
A 11: The real Year 2000 readiness issues are more about testing, good practices, and user education than product warranty. We will continue to provide detailed information to customers about year 2000 readiness, but contractual warranties specific to Year 2000 readiness are not appropriate given the true nature of Year 2000 issues and the simple fact that a single technology provider, even one as well prepared for the year 2000 as Microsoft, cannot solve all issues related to the transition to the Year 2000. Warranties for Microsoft’s products are set forth in the end user license agreements (EULAs) that accompany the products and we recommend that customers read those warranties to understand their rights. The information we are disseminating about year 2000 readiness does not constitute an extension of any warranty for Microsoft products. Microsoft is providing this information to assist our customers in evaluating and correcting potential issues for using dates into the next century.

Q 12: If Microsoft products are Year 2000 ready, why does Microsoft recommend that PC software be upgraded to versions from 1997 or later?
A 12: This is just a recommendation. There is no Microsoft software that must be upgraded. The reason for the suggestion is that Microsoft continues to add new functionality with each product release that may include improving year 2000 ease of use. One example of this is with 2-digit short cuts handling dates further into the next century. Customers should evaluate upgrading Microsoft products based on the overall business benefit of all the new features like new Internet capabilities.

Q 13: Does Microsoft recommend that I test out my current computer by resetting the date to just minutes before the year 2000 to see what happens?
A 13: Microsoft recommends that you only do this on a test system (i.e., not on a production system). There may be a number of side effects that could cause problems even if your system rolls over correctly to the year 2000. For example, if you have any software (leased or demo) that has time limits, this test could trigger the software to expire and be permanently disabled. There could be other problems like dated security certificates becoming invalid, your calendar ignoring or removing important appointments, or email messages being filed incorrectly.

Q 14: I’ve heard that the BIOS included in some PCs doesn’t switch over to the year 2000 properly causing the operating system date to be reset to 1980. Can you comment on that?
A 14: Some PCs do have a problem that resets the system date to 1980 when the computer reaches the year 2000. This problem is created by flaws in the computer hardware and in low-level BIOS software provided by other vendors.

A brief definition for BIOS (Basic Input Output System): Software in a computer chip (also called firmware) used to manage the low-level input and output functions of personal computer hardware. The operating system is layered on top of the BIOS.

Here are ways to address this issue:

While the BIOS issue isn't a problem created by Microsoft, it is an example of one way we are trying to make this transition as smooth as possible by providing information and suggested solutions for our customers.

Q 15: I’ve heard that the MS-DOS "date" command returns the error message "Invalid date" when you type in "01-01-00" for January 1^st, 2000. Can you comment on that?
A 15: To set a date past the year 1999, use the full 4-digit format (e.g. 01-01-2000). The "date" command in MS-DOS uses the shorter 2-digit year format for dates between 1980 and 1999 but requires the 4-digit format when entering dates after 1999. This date command is available in the MS-DOS window in Windows 3.x and Windows 95 as well.

Q 16: What is expected to be Microsoft’s biggest problem when we do reach the year 2000?
A 16: The biggest issue may be getting end users to not "shoot the messenger." Many PCs are being used as windows into mainframe-based applications today. It is highly likely that not all mainframe programs will function properly when we reach the year 2000. But the end user will see the information coming from their PC and may believe it to be a Microsoft issue. We need to build awareness of this issue so people can quickly identify the real problems and take appropriate and cost effective steps to solve the problem. In addition, it is important for us to make our customers aware of the options our products provide to improve the reliability of data by displaying 4-digit dates.

Q 17: Can PC-based applications have problems when we reach the year 2000?
A 17: Yes. While Microsoft does provide the tools for others to build solutions, we do not provide the vertical applications (e.g. payroll, accounting, Medicare, social security, tax systems). Software developers can create their own software to collect, store, and manipulate dates. If they have not accounted for the year 2000, they may have problems. Microsoft strongly encourages software developers to use the date functions supplied by the operating system, software development tool, or database to avoid this problem. Microsoft also recommends that year 2000 testing be included in the software development process.

Q 18: What is Microsoft doing internally to be ready for the Year 2000?
A 18: Microsoft has an intranet Web site where overall education on this issue is provided along with a list of best practices organized for three target audiences: program managers, developers, and testers.

The difficulties outlined for developers include:

• There is no standard way in the industry to interpret 2-digit date short cuts.
• Rules for Leap Year: (1) Year Divisible by 4 is a leap year, but (2) year divisible by 100 is not a leap year, but (3) year divisible by 400 is a leap year. Software coded without rule (3) will be incorrect for the year 2000. Software with incorrect coding of rule (3) might make February 2000 have 27 days or even 30 days.
• Converting between a serialized date (e.g. number of days since 1980) and day of month or day of week requires application of Leap Year rule.

Suggestions for Microsoft’s developers throughout the design, code, and code review process (short list):

• Use system-provided date formats and routines, unless the platform is known to have problems.
• Are there special Year values (00 or 99) or Date Values (9/9/99) coded into your program?
• Ensure proper display of 2-digit years between 00 and 09, between 10 and 19, etc.
• Do you have code to compute day-of-week? In how many places? 2000 is a leap year.
• What are the limits to the date formats you use? Is your format signed? Are dates "positive" or "negative"? On what date does the top bit in your date format become set?
• Do you use any file formats with 2-digit date fields?
• Do you use the year as part of a hashing, indexing, or sorting key?
• Do you use Asserts to verify assumptions in your date / time calculations?
• Do you have code to translate between date formats? In how many places?
• Determine the special issues for your product (long list).

Suggestions for the testing process (short list):

Q 19: Is the year 2000 a leap year?
A 19: The year 2000 will be a leap year. Century years, such as 1900 and 2000, are leap years if they are evenly divisible by 400. The basic rules for calculating leap years, which Microsoft incorporates into its software development processes, are:

1) Years divisible by 4 are leap years, but

2) Years divisible by 100 are not leap years, but

3) Years divisible by 400 are leap years.

The need for leap years is due to the fact that the actual length of a year is 365.242 days, not 365 days, as is commonly stated. To account for this, an extra day is added as February 29^th on years that are evenly divisible by 4 (like 1992, for example). Since the year is slightly less than 365.25 days long, adding an extra day every four years results in about three extra days being added over a 400-year period. For this reason, one out of every four century years also needs to be a leap year.

Q 20: Why doesn’t Microsoft adopt the NIST or other standard date formats in all of its products?
A 20: Microsoft’s Windows-based operating systems do properly handle the U.S. NIST proposed standard date format "YYYYMMDD" as well the other international date standards. To set the NIST format as the default, from the Control Panel double click the Regional Settings icon, then select the Date tab and enter "YYYY/MM/DD" in the "Short date style:" field. Then all applications running on the system, like Exchange or Windows Explorer, will use the NIST format.