Re: HELP! YEAR 2000 BUG: How will it affect you?

"James V. Reagan" <jreagan@odi.com> wrote: >From what I've heard, it isn't. I forget the exact algorithm, but >either every century year, or every fourth century year, skips >the leap year. Either way, the year 2000 will not be a leap year. The year 2000 will indeed have a Feb 29. From a reference cd I have: (for those who have access to a unix machine, check out the program called 'cal') By 1582 the accumulated error was estimated to amount to 10 days. In that year Pope Gregory XIII decreed that the day following Oct. 4, 1582, should be called Oct. 15, thus dropping 10 days and initiating what became known as the Gregorian calendar. However, with common years 365 days and a 366-day leap year every fourth year, the error in the length of the year would have recurred at the rate of a little more than 3 days every 400 years. Therefore, 3 of every 4 centesimal years (years ending in 00) were made common years, not leap years. Thus, 1600 was a leap year; 1700, 1800, and 1900 were not, but 2000 will be. Leap years are those years divisible by 4, except centesimal years, which are common unless divisible by 400. The World Almanac' and Book of Facts 1996 is licensed from Funk & Wagnalls Corporation. Copyright ' 1995 by Funk & Wagnalls Corporation. All rights reserved. The World Almanac and The World Almanac and Book of Facts are registered trademarks of Funk & Wagnalls Corporation. Andrew -- Andrew Bennett abennett@hyperreal.com, abennett@cruzio.com http://taz.hyperreal.com/~abennett/