I just found out about this meeting yesterday and it is this Saturday. Several utility reps will be there and I want to pull out the big guns. If I had enough time I could probably find it myself, but since I'm so pressed for time AND since my hard drive crashed 3 weeks ago taking all of my research and bookmarks with it....yikes!

There was a lengthy and detailed questionaire for Electric Utilities out in cyberspace about 3-4 months ago. It was not the one by Gary North. It was better. Does anyone remember this and where it is located? OR if any of you have a better suggestion for really nitty gritty questions (I don't understand most of the technical aspects/concerns regarding utilities, but I can sure ask the questions without flinching). Thanks in advance for your help.

-- (mass@delusions.com), November 12, 1998

Answers

Does the power company happen to be Alliant? Either way, see my post from earlier today "Power: Alliant...". Print out the info on their web site and read it. Compare what Alliant is saying to what your electric company. Alliant serves approx 1.2 million customers in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

-- Arnie Rimmer (arnie_rimmer@usa.net), November 12, 1998.

Thanks for the input, but what I really want are some hard hitting questions, technically sophisticated enough to command attention and make any panelist squirm if they are trying to white wash the situation. Hopefully I will not have to resort to that.

-- (mass@delusions.com), November 12, 1998.

My questions are:

When do you expect to confirm that your control and other embedded systems are Y2K compliant?

Have your employees got new software that is Y2K compliant? (If not) Why not? Have you employees got new machines? (If not) Why not? Have your employees been trained in using their new systems? (If not) Why not? When do you expect to answer 'yes' to these questions? What is the Y2K status of your suppliers and clients?

These questions give scope for mitigation/remediation explanations but also put people on record as to what they are doing at the points that matter.

Hope this helps..

-- Bob Barbour (r.barbour@waikato.ac.nz), November 12, 1998.

to rebuild your bookmarks quickly, go to ed yourdon's resources section, and get those. he has the westergaard site, roleigh martin site, also rick cowles site, i believe. i bet your link can be found on one of those three sites if GN doesn't have it.

-- Jocelyne Slough (jonslough@tln.net), November 13, 1998.

Try this, or something similar,

Every utility, every company, every government agency worldwide that has begun Y2K testing has found serious, mission critical failures that would have shut down or crippled their operations or finances.

Any system not covered adequately by testing 1999 will be tested in January and February 2000 on live customers.

What is your test schedule? Who will do your testing? What will be covered? Who certifies your testing? When will it complete? What are your stand-by and contingency plans?

If they answer those, don't let them off the hook financially:

What is your Y2K budget? How much have you spent to date? Is it enough, and have you asked for more?

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 13, 1998.

And don't let the utility people try the old "We can do it manually!" con game, either. If they try it, ask them if they could do it for two weeks, and prove it. (And without relying on telecommunications.)

-- Jack (jsprat@eld.net), November 13, 1998.

If none of the above works invite them to your house New Years Eve! Watch their expressions. Dixie

-- Dixie Hughes (peppye@bellsouth.net), November 14, 1998.