Daylight-saving changes: No Y2K, but there could be headaches

[sevil]

The United States has planned a change to its DST observance beginning in 2007. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 mandates that DST will start on the second Sunday in March and end on the first Sunday in November. In 2007, the start and stop dates will be March 11 and November 4, respectively. These dates are different from previous DST start and stop dates. In 2006, the dates were the first Sunday in April (April 2, 2006) and the last Sunday in October (October 29, 2006).

Some countries are still evaluating whether they will adopt the new rules for themselves. You should anticipate more changes in DST and time zone rules for countries that typically align with U.S. DST rules.

http://support.microsoft.com/gp/cp_dst

[sevil]

Time switch could cause snags

Check electronics for compliance to daylight-saving

Joyzelle Davis, Scripps Howard News Service
Tuesday, February 27, 2007




This year America will “spring forward” in March instead of April. That means three extra weeks of sunlit springtime evenings — and a little retooling of your electronics beforehand.

Unless you bought your VCR or Windows operating system recently, odds are that your devices or software are programmed for the time change to hit the first Sunday in April instead of the new March 11 date.

It’s a problem reminiscent of the Y2K bug, but this time no one expects planes will be falling from the sky. The worst case is your PC calendar and time display will be off by an hour, said Liam Lefkowicz, principal consultant of managed services at 3t Systems in Denver.

To avoid that hassle altogether, experts advise that you start checking your hardware and software now to see what needs to be fixed.

Lefkowicz, whose company provides information technology consultant services, said employees at most large and midsized companies that have their own IT departments likely won’t notice any problems when they show up at work on March 12. He’s more concerned about smaller companies that don’t have dedicated computer experts.

For them, it might be worth bringing in an IT consultant who can fix time-change problems, he said. While you’re tinkering with your PC, this would be a good time to review general security issues such as firewalls and virus protection.
“Just like daylight-saving starts a few weeks early, you can think of this as an opportunity to start your IT spring cleaning a few weeks early,” he said.

Time fixesHow to adjust your gadgets to the new time:

Daylight-saving time starts three weeks earlier than previous years. Unless you change them, many systems will remain programmed to start daylight-saving time on its old date in April, not the new one. Here are some common problems and how to fix them:

VCR
Fix: You will have to manually reset the time March 11 and do it again in April, when the VCR thinks daylight-saving time starts, and again in the fall.

Cable box or digital-video recorder
Fix: You don’t, your pay-TV provider does. The cable or satellite company should have already updated the time and sent the fix across its network before you notice.

Similarly, cell phones should display the correct date and time because they get that information from their service providers’ networks.

Computer clock
Fix: Check Microsoft’s Web site (microsoft.com/office/timezone.mspx) to see whether you have anything to worry about. No need to worry if your computer is running Windows Vista because your system will update itself. Some Windows XP owners use a Microsoft Internet service called Automatic Update that routinely downloads bug fixes and patches to their PCs, and they should have received a fix Feb. 12. Those who don’t use the service will have to get the patch from Microsoft’s Web site.
Apple says users of its Mac operating system, OS X, should have already received automatic updates.

Computer calendar
Fix: Microsoft advises calendar users to go online and download a small program known as “tzmove” — Time Zone Move — that can retrofit all previously booked appointments to the new daylight-saving rules. Other vendors offer similar tools for their systems. Of course, you never know if the people you’re set to meet for coffee on March 11 took the same step. That’s why Microsoft advises users of its calendar programs to “view any appointments ... as suspect until they communicate with all meeting invitees.”

BlackBerry
Fix: RIM has a patch on its Web site (blackberry.com/select/dst2007/) that will fix the problem. If your BlackBerry is work-issued, your employer might have already fixed it for you. Otherwise, a BlackBerry’s calendar could be off by an hour for the weeks between the new daylight-saving start date and the old one.

Change dates
Spring forward: 2 a.m. Sunday, March 11 (the second Sunday in March each year).

Fall back: 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 4 (the first Sunday in November, one week later than before).



http://www.redding.com/news/2007/feb...d-cause-snags/

[Gast24074]

Vielen Dank fuer die Info, werd ich mir merken.