Y2K  LINKS

Information for Education and Preparation.

It makes no sense to "re-invent the wheel." Let's use the resources that already exist.
The links listed are only a fraction of what is available on the Internet, with new ones coming all the time. They are the ones that we have found to be the most helpful and reliable.
They are arranged by color-coded category (Awareness, Preparation, and Community Action) and then alphabetically. Just click on the address link to go to the appropriate section. (Some of the ones we check daily or are our favorites are in bold.)

If you know a link you think we should include, please e-mail it to smmac@us2000.org. (Please put "Y2K Links" in the subject line of your message.)

AWARENESS:

CBN News Y2K  Insights  http://www.cbn.org/y2k/index.asp  Daily Y2K updates from the various news sources   

DC Y2K Weather Reports.  http://www.kiyoinc.com/current.html Cory Hamasaki is a mainframe computer programmer with 29 years of hands-on experience. He writes a periodic analysis of various Y2K remediation efforts. As he says in his own words, "Caution, these are not for the faint of heart." Like Dr. North (see below), he sees the problem as systemic and one that will have a significant, perhaps even catastrophic impact.

Electric Utilities and the Year 2000. http://www.euy2k.com  Rick Cowles is one of the leading experts on the year 2000 problem, specializing in the impact of Y2K on the electric utility industry and embedded chips. He is an active Y2K consultant and author. If you have any
questions about the risk Y2K poses to electricity, this website is the place to start.

Gary North's Y2K Links and Forums. http://www.garynorth.com   Some write Dr. North off as a "doomsayer," but almost everyone interested in Y2K reads him. He sifts through all the Y2K news on the internet and provides links to the most important articles so you don't have to. He also provides his analysis of each article.

General Accounting Office Year 2000 Computing Crisis. http://www.gao.gov/y2kr.htm  The GAO is the U.S. federal government's "watchdog" agency. As such it is charged with auditing other agencies expenditures and, in the case of Y2K, their progress. This is one agency you can generally count on to call a spade a spade. They have repeatedly cut through the "spin control" and called various agencies on the carpet. Whenever you hear that a certain agency is making good progress, check it out with the GAO.

House Subcommittee on Government, Management, Information, and Technology. http://www.house.gov/reform/gmit/y2k     This is the Y2K site maintained by the U.S. House of Representatives. It contains committee testimony and the ever-popular Federal Government Y2K Report Card.
Congressman Stephen Horn (R-Calif.) chairs the committee and generally pulls no punches. He is one of the two most visible law-makers sounding the alarm. (The other one is Senator Bob Bennett [R-Utah].)

Michael Hyatt  http://www.michaelhyatt.com   Author of   The Millennium Bug, this site is an excellent resource for a variety of Y2K information.

President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion.   http://www.y2k.gov This is the Clinton Administration's official Y2K site. (John Koskinen is the President's Y2K Czar, appointed in Feb., 1998.) It contains a list of actions and initiatives taken by the Administration as it relates to Y2K.  Unfortunately, one of the least comprehensive Y2K sites on the web.

Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem. http://www.senate.gov/~y2k   This is the site maintained by the U.S. Senate. Like the House Subcommittee, it contains committee testimony, press releases, and survey results. It is organized by industry segment, which is how the hearings have been grouped. This committee is chaired by Senator Bob Bennett (R-Utah) who has referred to himself as "the Paul Revere of Y2K." The committee's vice-chairman is Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), who has been very vocal on Y2K issues as well.

Westergaard 2000. http://www.y2ktimebomb.com  One of the best Y2K sites on the net, it offers a wide range of Y2K editorial opinion. One of the primary features is the daily editorials by various Y2K experts and pundits.  A good analysis of news, trends, and site reviews. You may subscribe to the Year 2000 Daily E-mail Alert (free), which will provide you a summary of current news and editorials.

Y2K Cinderella Project: http://parsifal.membrane.com/y2k/cinder.html Dedicated to the Fairy Tale Ending...   "An investigation and information exchange of zero-cost, minimal-impact computing solutions to address the Year 2000 problem".

Y2K News. http://www.y2knews.com    This site is similar to Peter de Jager's Y2K Press Clippings (see below); however, the articles are filtered for significance and have a little more descriptive information—usually a sentence or two. The owners of this site, Wilson publications, also publish a bi-weekly year 2000 magazine called Y2K News Magazine. This is one of the best sources of reliable, objective Y2K information available anywhere.

Y2K Press Clippings. http://www.year2000.com/y2karticles.html    One of the most difficult challenges of staying abreast of Y2K News is simply tracking down all the articles that are available on the web. This page, maintained by Y2K author Peter de Jager, is like a traditional newspaper "clipping service." Each day links to most  articles (worldwide) on Y2K are posted on the site along with their headlines. An alternative which posts only the more important ones with a one-paragraph summary, see Y2K in the News on Michael Hyatt's site or Y2K News (see above) where I do exactly that.

Y2K Today. http://www.y2ktoday.com/modules/home/default.asp    Several U.S. companies banded together to create "a single, reliable source of information" about Y2K. The site is maintained by James Adams, former CEO of United Press International (UPI). He is also a world-recognized authority on national security issues. He is currently the CEO of Infrastructure Defense. The site contains late-breaking news, a news archive, expert opinion, chat rooms, and discussion boards. The news is also sorted by industry category.

ZDY2K.  http://www.zdnet.com/zdy2k  This is the year 2000 information site maintained by Ziff Davis, the company that publishes PC magazine and PC Weekly. Offers Y2K news, commentary, site reviews, and downloads of various Y2K utilities. Also has one an interesting countdown clock. Unfortunately, this site seems to be dedicated to reporting only the good news concerning Y2K.

PREPARATION:

Captain Dave's Survival Center http://www.survival-center.com/home1.htm    This site contains a wealth of preparedness resources. Although not totally Y2K-related, there is much Y2K information and preparedness products available. Written from a survivalist's point of view.

Cheaper Than Dirt!  http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/goa.htm Billing itself as "America's Leading Sports Discounter," this site has everything from ammunition to camping gear, from Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) preparedness books and videos. You can order a hard copy catalog or visit the On-line Store and place your order over the Internet.

Energy and Fuel  http://y2k2000.org/fuel&.htm LINKS to all that fit in this category.

FEMA Preparedness http://www.fema.gov/pte/prep.htm    This is the official site of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. There is a good deal of general preparedness information available here. Although it is not specifically oriented toward Y2K, it is still very helpful. The FEMA site does have a year 2000 section http://www.fema.gov/y2k  but it is primarily dedicated to explaining why you can't count on them if there are Y2K-related disruptions. It could be summarized in one sentence: "You're on your own." But check out the helpful sections regarding preparation for disasters like winter storms http://www.fema.gov/library/wntsft.htm   http://www.fema.gov/library/stormsf.htm   floods http://www.fema.gov/library/floodf.htm   or hurricanes http://www.fema.gov/library/hurricaf.htm.

Jade Mountain  http://www.jademountain.com/y2k/y2k.htm   This company is a leading supplier to homesteaders and others who want to live more self-reliantly. It has Y2K-specific information and supplies. Products are grouped by category and oriented to those making individual or family contingency plans.

The Money Changer http://www.the-moneychanger.com   If you are going to buy silver and gold, you need to educate yourself first. This site has numerous well-written articles on the subject. Franklin Sanders, the proprietor, is a precious metals dealer.

Montana Marketplace  http://www.mtmarketplace.com   Another emergency preparedness company offering a wide range of survival information and supplies. The site is not Y2K-exclusive, but they are actively marketing to Y2K-oriented citizens. The site sells several unique items.  

Noah's Ark  http://www.millennium-ark.net/News_Files/Hollys.html    A favorite preparedness site. Be forewarned: if you visit you may spend several hours browsing through article after article before you look up. If you can't find it on this site, you don't need it. Seriously, it is well worth spending
a day reading through the material presented here.

Personal Y2K Supplies  http://www.y2klinks.net/Y2Ksupplies.htm   This is a comprehensive list of all the supplies you need to buy for Y2K. It is the most complete list I have found anywhere on the web. The page is part of Ted Derryberry's Y2K website, which is excellent.

Preparing for the Year 2000 Crash  http://www.prepare4y2k.com/   This site is maintained by Dr. Scott Olmsted, a programmer who has gained some national notoriety for an article that appeared in the August 1998 issue of Wired magazine about him and two other programmers who moved to the country to prepare for Y2K.

Small Business Survival Kit  http://www.y2khelp.org/Y2K-ready.htm  An economical tool package, designed to be used by non-technical business people. It guides a team of employees to effectively address the impact of the Year 2000 on a small business and develop a practical business plan to deal with the challenge.  

Survival  & Energy Info http://www.cairns.net.au/~sharefin/Markets/Alternative.htm  This is "the mother of all preparedness LINKS." This is a comprehensive listing, by category, of scores of preparedness SITES. If you can't find it here, it doesn't exist!

Survival Supplies http://y2k2000.org/technica.htm  LINKS page full of everything you ever wanted to find.      Food & Water Links: http://y2k2000.org/food&.htm                                                     Land & Shelter Links: http://y2k2000.org/land&.htm

Survival Library  http://forums.cosmoaccess.net/forum/survival/prep/survival.htm   "How-to" Survival Library filled with specific how-to, do-it-yourself information..  A one-stop resource for Survival Plans, Projects and Info.

Survival Tips http://www.21stCenturyRadio.com/y2k.html  12 page checklist to help you totally prepare for short, mid, and long term emergencies. Categories: Food, Water, Power, Heating, Cooking, Lighting, Personal Health, Hygiene & Sanitation, Basic Supplies and Tools, Financial and Documents, Communications/Entertainment, Transportation, Safety/Security, Pets, and Emergency Evacuation.   See their Rule of 3 and 4.

Test 2000  http://www.rightime.com/   Setting the date forward on your personal computer and letting it roll over to the next century is NOT recommended. A few systems will lock up or cause unexpected results. A much safer method for testing your system is to download a simple program that will check your PC hardware for year 2000 compliance. This program is FREE!

US Government   http://www.y2k.gov   The President's Council on Y2K Conversion.     http://www.sba.gov  Small Business Admin and links to other government sites.  "Community Conversations" project http://www.y2k.gov/community/

Y2K for Women  http://www.y2kwomen.com/  This is the site maintained by Karen Anderson and is designed to explain Y2K to women who have no, or very limited, computer knowledge, how it impacts women personally, what women can do. One of the best features of the site is the "Ask Karen" section. You can even sign up for Karen's free e-zine.

Y2K Supplies http://www.y2ksupplies.com/  A site dedicated to Y2K preparedness supplies. Not very extensive, it is worth checking out.

COMMUNITY ACTION:

The Cassandra Project http://cassandraproject.org   In ancient Greek mythology, it was Cassandra's curse to always speak the truth and never be believed. The Cassandra Project is a grassroots, nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting contingency planning and community preparedness in response to the Y2K threat.

Center for Y2K and Society http://www.y2kcenter.org The Center for Y2K and Society works with nonprofit organizations and foundations to respond to the serious societal impacts resulting from the Y2K computer problem.

COALITION 2000 http://www.coalition2000.org The Network For Year 2000 Community Preparedness profiles the efforts of a growing number of member organizations and other initiatives to provide the most trustworthy and credible information on Y2K-related issues. Members of Coalition 2000 are working together as a collaborative network to help communities prepare for the Year 2000 by providing and sharing credible information and tools. *Also check out their video. SMMAC is a contributing member of Coalition 2000.

Joseph Project 2000  http://www.josephproject2000.org/  A website dedicated to helping Christians respond to Y2K from a balanced and informed perspective. The organization is also dedicated to assisting churches in preparing for the crisis and reaching out to those in their community. The site is maintained by Shaunti Feldhahn, author of Y2K: The Millennium Bug—A Balanced Christian Response (Multnomah, 1998).

Lowell, Massachusetts Y2K Committee http://lowellonline.org/bna/y2k/  This is an example of what one community is doing. This is a good example of what can be done.

Napa Valley, California http://www.y2knapa.com/   This is another example of what one group of citizens is doing.

National Bulletin Board for Y2K  http://www.IT2000.com/ One of the earliest Y2K websites and a comprehensive source of information relating to the Year 2000 computer glitch. As we approach January 1, 2000, they are shifting their focus to Community Preparedness and facilitating preparedness among local groups. NBB will facilitate formation of local groups and exchange of information so that one group can learn from the other.

Northern Virginia Committee  http://www.novay2k.org  Another local committee with good ideas and information.

Rogue Valley Y2K Task Force http://www.rv-y2k.org/   Medford, Oregon is host to one of the most active Y2K community initiatives in the country. The organization is dedicated "to informing and education individuals and communities about Y2K, alerting people to action and advocating personal responsibility." Another good site to visit to avoid re-inventing the wheel.

Y2K Community  http://www.y2kcommunity.org  Community Organizing Techniques and Tools. Resources for building communities for Y2K and a sustainable future.

Year 2000 Contingency Planning for Municipal Government http://www.angelfire.com/mn/inforest/capersj989.html   This is a "white paper" written by Y2K guru, Capers Jones. It is a good model for any organization working on contingency plans.

Year 2000 Site for Catholics  http://www.catholic2000.com  Sponsored by Catholic City, Catholic2000.com provides information, links for research, and interactive forums for discussion.