usinesses skip YZK show

Anna-Louise Pentland

Contributing Writer

IF the number of peo- ple who attended a recent Industry Canada-sponsored Y2K information session is any indication, the fed- eral government may be right to be worried about small business readiness.

Three people, representing two. businesses, attended the session at the Parkgate Community Centre, which

_ Was designed to accommodate 30 people. ~

Brian Anderson, director

of Industry for the Pacific . Region, said. an‘) Industry » Canada survey carried out this spring showed approximately 50% .to. 60% ‘of small and * medium-sized : businesses. felt . they. were Y2K ready, while “another 30% to 35% felt they “would be ready in time. ~

. There’s a loi of work that “has to be done in the final * quarter,” he said. “You have to believe that-if firms know what they want ‘to do, they will complete on those-acti' ties.” Ifa Company is’ not

K-ready, ’ Anderson. said:

‘ they. should be prepared to 2b

held liable for anything they can't deliver.

“Clients with contracts thar are nor fulfilled or for deliv of things will be expecting some settlement.”

Virginia Beltjens, a techni- cal advisor at the information session and a software desigin- er, said, “We're a little disap- pointed in the turnout. It’s gerting late. Anybady who fasn’t * started doing this by now is going to have trou- ble.”

This is particularly true if

you have custom-made soft- ware, Of Virginia’s 35 clients, all of whom have custom soft- ware, only five are Y2K ready,

"This is despite the fact that she

has sent out reminder letters to all of her clients.

One of the major messages from, the information session was that after you have made yourself Y2K ready, be sure to communicate that to your

‘customers and ask your sup-

pliers whether they are Y2K-

“ready as well.

Haseeb Ma, project coor- dinator, said there could be problems in either the com- puter software or hardware. For software, only programs

that use dates in their applica-

tion, such -as accounting soft- ware, will be affected.

«Many. programs offer

“patches” or mini-programs that have been designed to tix the particular problem with that software. “To find out about these, users should go to the Web page of their soft- ware supplier and look up their version.

A potentially larger and more costly problem could be if their hardware is not Y2K compliant. IF the BIOS (basie input output system) chip, the “heart” of the computer that runs continuously, can only handle two digits for the date, chances are the whole system will need to be replaced.

Some newer BIOS can be updated through software called flash BIOS, available through the manufacturer. The only way to tell is to make backups of everything and then set the date in the BIOS of the computer to change over to Jan. 1; 2000, and see what happens. The hardware may have to be replaced at that time.

The date sect by Revenue Canada to replace your hard- ware because of Y2K noncom- pliance and take advantage of a 100% business tax write-off in 1999 was midnight on Oct.

3i. For more information *

about dealing with ¥2K, visit shttp://strategis.ic.gc.ca/sos 2000> or <www.can2k.com>.

j he - Heals = Weekly housekeening, “P= Uy hour security monitoring ; ~ Professionally supervised activities... ©, Bus trans oration fors sneppitg & planned outings

f ea rote cay

By

COURTNEY: Lutz has been ‘trati ng g with Vancour

the age of four. The West Van teon fast month recelved her Solo Seal, the hi

it)

stan ard awarded by London's prestigious Royal. Academy: ‘of.Dancin THAD}

There aren't many bal- fet dancers in Canada who can ‘say their work,

I 7-year-old

Vancouver: is one of. three o

London's: ‘hont “Niemi “of Dancing (RAD) during cxami- nations, held-in Burnaby” last

“The achievement is the: cul mination of yeai Lutz, ‘who. started, dancing. age two‘ and ‘joined the,Goh Ballet Academy at age

“Having « my .:Solo Seal, opens a lot. of d

with, various ballet omipani “after Christmas, Her

-a “company “ in’. Paris Toronto » with the « National. Ballet of Canada

5 of taining for,

nies

“Ft