Letters

From Chris Youett

I am afraid Andre John (Letters, 30 January) has the wrong end of the stick when he suggested that Computing was being sponsored by Microsoft at the expense of Apple.

The real problem is that ever since Steve Jobs was knifed, Apple hasn't had an effective marketing communications strategy. For all Bill Gates' sins, one thing he has got right is how to get his name into print.

During the last 20 years that I have been writing about the IT industry, I doubt very much whether I have received more than a dozen press releases from Apple. Then there's the fun of trying to get hold of people there - on one occasion it took me nearly 30 calls to get a query answered.

The same applies to a number of other big names, such as Control Data, Honeywell, Pick, the Mumps community and Datapoint.

I would be happy to spend some time on a professional basis helping Apple UK draw up an effective strategy - but I bet I won't even get a 'thanks, but no thanks' reply.

Chris Youett

Technology journalist

Coventry

Manchester has low-cost LSD

From Howard Sherrington

Emma Woollacott's Analysis feature 'East beats West' (Computing, 6 February) reports that India is the recipient of much work for the migration of legacy systems, and year 2000-compliance, because it is so much cheaper than the UK.

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that Legacy Software Downsizing (LSD) of Manchester has been able to reverse the trend.

We have signed a contract with Fujitsu ICIM of Bombay to migrate 40 VME sites to open systems. The contract is worth #4m to LSD and the UK over the next few years.

We have been able to achieve this because we have developed a toolset, Powerdrive, which automates the migration of legacy systems in a fast, cost-effective and risk-free process.

At the same time we are able to solve the year 2000 problem, thus offering a double benefit.

It is no longer necessary for UK companies to look to India for their cost savings.

Howard Sherrington

Managing director

Legacy Software Downsizing

Manchester

SNI could find itself in dock

From Paul Senior

I disagree with both your article 'SNI insists users must pay for millennium fix', and your leader 'Profits warning'(Computing, 6 February).

The legal position with regard to non-functioning computer software is the same as for anything else. If anyone wants to know why, we've written an article comprising a detailed legal argument St Albans and the Millennium Time Bomb (Computers and Law, January 1997).

In brief, it says the exact opposite of what Siemens Nixdorf asserts.

Anyone who contacts me is welcome to a copy.

For many years, software suppliers have been relatively immune to claims from their users, who were wary of suing when things didn't work. The legal position didn't appear simple. It was unclear whether software was 'goods', and there was a belief that a software licensing arrangement was the same as a contract of hire.

There was also an unreported case where a court had held that software by its very nature would contain bugs.

When suppliers have been sued, cases have often been settled to avoid the setting of precedent by the courts. One case which did set a precedent involved St Albans Council, which took on ICL.

This case resolved a number of issues: that software on disk is 'goods' and so has to be fit for purpose; that software should 'achieve the express purpose intended' - that software should be reasonably fit for achieving the intended purpose; that exclusion clauses can be struck aside by the courts if those clauses are 'unreasonable'.

The implications of this case when applied to year 2000 mean software suppliers face strict liability unless the court is persuaded that their supply contracts not only negate the above, but also that any such contract term is not unfair.

So Siemens Nixdorf, or anyone else, can make all the assertions they want. At the end of the day, anyone prepared to take them on is likely to have a strong case.

Paul Senior

Bermans Solicitors

Liverpool

seniorp@ibm.net

psenior@dircon.co.uk

Thank you for your comments. Unfortunately. Siemens Nixdorf's attitude seems to be all too common among the supplier community. If anyone else has had a run-in with their supplier over paying for year 2000 updates, we would love to hear from them.

Buying time for the millennium

From HG Gawlik

Computing has published several letters about the millennium crisis with ideas about what might be done.

However, none of these have offered a specific programming modification.

I therefore propose one of my own.

We can suppose that the year related to any data item is held as a 4-byte string, for example:

Y$=C$+D$+U$

where C$ comprises the century digits and is supplied by the system.

D$ and U$ are respectively the decade and unit year digits, and these are keyed in by the user.

In that case, the following command:

IF D$='0' THEN C$='20'

ELSE C$='19'

would not only make the transition to 2000 correctly, but would even allow the insertion of pre-millennium data after 1999.

In this simple form, the device would fail after 2009, but it would provide 10 years in which to devise better designed systems.

HG Gawlik,

FIMA, FBCS, C Math, C Eng.