Y2K Resources on the Web

by Richard Drezen -- Library Journal, 7/1/1999

U.S. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT GATEWAY FOR YEAR 2000
http://www.itpolicy.gsa.gov/mks/yr2000/y2khome.htm
Date Visited: 6/14/99
Developer/Provider: U.S. General Services Administration's Office of Governmentwide Policy
First appearing online in 1996 and later mandated by Congress to operate through 2002, this gateway to all federal government Y2K information was originally intended to share information among federal agencies but was expanded to address the general public. Thus, though this is a comprehensive site, there is little "beginner-type" information on the main page, so users must drill down.

The Chief Information Officers Council Committee on Year 2000 link -- from both the center text and the left-side navigation bar -- connects to a wealth of federal, state, and local resources. However, federal agency preparedness can only be gleaned by linking to various congressional oversight committees' reports -- which already need updating. Users must click through several links to get to further agency information. At the top right of the links page, a well-organized and fairly comprehensive international directory offers links to various foreign governments-though not all information is in English. Also available here are international organizations and technical papers.

A Community Guide to Y2K links to all 50 states, some of which have elaborate, graphics-intensive sites (e.g., Alaska, New York); others offer minimal information (e.g., New Hampshire, New Jersey). Sections on Power, Water, Government Benefits, and more offer limited instructions on how to check on Y2K issues in specific communities.

The Y2K for Kids section -- again linked from text and navigation bar -- offers solid, well-explained, and jargon-free information for children and other young people.

The government toll free number apppears at the bottom of the main page (888-USA-4Y2K) in small type, though it is more prominent in the Community pages. Also somewhat obscured, at the bottom of the navigation bar, is a search engine.

Bottom Line: This overstuffed site -- the best resource for government information on Y2K -- will reward the experienced searcher. Still, novices may feel overwhelmed trying to find specific information.

CASSANDRA PROJECT
http://cassandraproject.org/home.html
Date Visited: 6/14/99
Developer/Provider: Cassandra Project
The Cassandra Project, a not-for-profit organization concerned with Y2K, offers a good welcome for novices: a well-organized homepage, no advertising, and easy-to-read graphics. Key navigational points are well marked, starting with the main page's Site Index. The solid Frequently-Asked-Questions (FAQ) section (under Y2K Bug Info) provides a good overview of the problem, advocating preparedness but not panic.

Under Community, the Community Resources section links to state and local groups monitoring the problem nationwide as well as in a few foreign countries. Under Preparedness, the "Individual Preparation for Y2K" article, by Project founder Paloma O'Riley, offers extensive if slightly alarmist advice on assessing the situation; among the components are how to treat water, get hard copies of medical records, keep batteries for a radio, and prepare for barter.

At the top of the site's consistent left-side menu bar is a search engine. On the homepage the menu bar also lists What's New; the latest entry on the date reviewed was from April 7 -- though specific sections of the site were updated more frequently.

Bottom Line: With a grass-roots approach, Cassandra provides good basic information, especially on personal preparedness, in a well-designed structure. It also has the best list of community-based resources of the sources reviewed here.

CNET Y2K.COM
http://www.cnet.com/Content/Reports/Special/Y2000
Date Visited: 6/15/99
Developer/Provider: CNET
This Y2K information portal features plenty of basic resources but suffers from a poorly designed homepage marred by advertising. Five main categories appear as links in the top center of the screen. Under News, one can easily find current Y2K news stories that have been written by CNET's own writers or taken from various wire services. By using the Advanced Search button at the page bottom, you can search a one-year news archive. To otherwise search the site, you must use the general CNET search engine at the top of the page.

The section for Y2K Utility Downloads links to more than 40 programs-some free, some fee-that check hardware or software for Y2K compliance. There are descriptions but no reviews, but the editors do indicate "choice" or "popular" types. The homepage also lists six such programs. The Y2K Utility Price Guide -- another link from the homepage -- includes only five programs.

Even though the Message Boards were in the process of being revamped, some of the older threads revealed simple query postings and very little "flaming" or "spamming." While the Y2K resources listed further down the homepage are broadly grouped but not annotated, the Web Sites link from the top of the page lists lightly annotated sites.

The Y2K Law Site link from the homepage, sponsored by a private law firm, does provide a well-written Y2K legal FAQ with good, clear answers on issues like liability.

Bottom Line: While it aims to be a general gateway to Y2K issues, this inconsistent site is best for news and searching for software to check Y2K compliance.

YEAR2000.COM
http://www.year2000.com/
Date Visited: 6/15/99
Developer/Provider: Year2000.com partnership/Tenagra Corp.
Computer consultant Peter de Jager, who predicted in 1993 that Y2K would become a worldwide problem, launched this gateway in 1995. Instead of the annoying frames homepage, choose the nonframes option from the central section.

Eight buttons link to separate sections, but for more important links you must scroll down the page. While the Late Breaking News button turns up an archive of press releases, the Year 2000 Archive, a link further down the page, produces an extensive, searchable archive of Y2K material authored by de Jager and others, which mostly affirms de Jager's "doomsday" outlook.

While no web site has a perfect list of links, this site's Useful Date-Related Links is perhaps the best. Although annotations are minimal, their grouping covers many areas not found elsewhere including technical, financial/economic, and millennium-related links.

The Year 2000 Promises Kept section highlights a fairly brief list of organizations and companies that have attempted to act responsiblyThe twice-monthly Year 2000 Announcement List, a link from the homepage, now has over 110,000 subscribers who get informed of new technical articles and new vendors at the site. However, the Vendors link includes companies that have paid to be listed. It costs $50 to join the shareware discussion list. Jobs 2000 offers listings of Y2K jobs as well as a resume index for job-seekers, but some of the job openings seemed rather old. The site bookstore features a good list of new book titles on the subject.

Bottom Line: This highly popular web site is somewhat alarmist and promotional but offers a good list of links as well as a free announcement list for those who wish to get updates on new articles and vendors.

Alternate Sites

• Federal Emergency Management Agency
  http://www.fema.gov/y2k
• National Association of Counties
  http://www.naco.org/programs/infotech/y2k/index.cfm
• Small Business Administration --Y2K Main Homepage
  http://www.sba.gov/y2k
• World Bank Year 2000 Initiative
  http://www.worldbank.org/y2k

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) site provides not only a good FAQ page but also a good Preparedness link for emergency, financial, and disaster plans. The Best Practices page focuses on selected state efforts. At the National Association of Counties, the County Y2K Programs link connects to profiles of a few counties. At the Small Business Administration (SBA) site, the Y2K Action Loan program as well as the comprehensive listing of Y2K Training Events may help small business owners. The World Bank site promotes Y2K efforts toward constituent members, especially developing countries. Though the list of international links is fewer than those at the federal gateway or Cassandra, the Y2K Information Pages link provides information in French and Spanish.

• CNN In-Depth: Looking at the Y2K Bug
  http://www.cnn.com/TECH/specials/y2k
• Y2K News Network
  http://y2knews.com

CNN's graphics-intensive special report offers not only news stories but a few unique features, such as a Y2K time line, a resource library containing an extensive but not well-annotated set of Y2K links, and an Agency Report Card, under Y2K Primer, which unfortunately hasn't been updated since February. The What Will Work? link provides brief reports on major services or industries, such as Airlines, Banking, Hospitals, or Utilities. Clicking on site features opens up several new browsers. The Y2K News Network, a heavily promotional site for the magazine of the same name, does contain links to numerous news items from other sources (under News Archives) and also a wide selection of videos for sale.

• The Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association
  http://www.cemacity.org/govt/CEMA2000.htm
• Information Technology Association of America Year 2000 Web Site
  http://www.itaa.org/year2000/index.htm
• Spokane Public Library Library Resources for Emergency Preparedness, Y2K, and the Millennium
  http://www.spokpl.lib.wa.us/subject/findingaids/Y2Khelp.html
• Washington D.C. Year 2000 Group
  http://www.wdcy2k.org

The Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association answers consumer questions about the home impact of Y2K. The site suggests which models might be at risk and links to manufacturer sites. While much at the Information Technology Association (computers, software, telecommunications, Internet, etc.) is geared to members, general users might benefit from the sections on legislation and dispute resolution, the latter of which includes a comprehensive litigation chart. The Spokane Public Library site, designed by the reference staff, links not only to local and national web sites (including a good site for testing your home PC) but also to books relevant to both the current problem and previous millennial fears. The Washington D.C. Year 2000 Group claims to be "the largest and most active (local) Y2K group in the world" and may serve as a model for other groups.

Richard Drezen (drezenr@washpost.com) is a research librarian at the Washington Post and reviews business books for LJ.