13th August 1999

So is your Desktop prepared for Y2k? There are hundreds of variables at play, but here's a tweak you should definitely apply. Double-click the 'Regional Settings' icon in your Control Panel, then select the 'Date' tab. Look at the 'Short Date Sample' field. You should see something akin to 'M/d/yy' -- this is the Windows 9x/NT default string. The problem: 'yy' will roll over to '00' (not '2000') when January 1st rolls around. To solve this problem, enter two additional lowercase 'y's to the end of the field -- or select a string that has 'yyyy' in it. Click 'Apply' when you're finished. It may keep your applications from going haywire in a few months.