The Defense Department's largest Y2K testing effort to date went off with only minor glitches Tuesday.
Only three problems were discovered in DoD's logistics information systems during a test involving more than 40 military computers, according to an Associated Press report. The systems tested control the ordering and delivery of military supplies from weapons to household goods.
In one instance, a computer did not recognize the year 2000. In the other two cases, the year '99 advanced to 100, instead of to '00. Pentagon officials said such problems are easily fixed. No other errors have been reported yet, but official analyses of the test results are still coming in, a Pentagon spokesman said.
DoD had to be creative in order to test its complex web of supply systems. Because it could not shut down those systems to complete the week-long testing, experts instead built a model of the network. Dates on the duplicate network were then rolled forward into the year 2000. The entire process involved more than 1,000 people and included five Navy ships.
A recent Office of Management and Budget report placed DoD behind other federal agencies in Y2K testing, but the Pentagon now points to Tuesday's test as an example of its millennium readiness. OMB estimates that DoD will spend at least $3.5 billion on Y2K repairs, more than any other federal agency.
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