Almost 3 years after the fact now, was the Y2K phenomenon a net positive or negative for the IT industry?

[glenn1]

Almost 3 years after the fact now, so perhaps it's a bit easier to look at it with an unbiased eye. Not working in the IT field myself, i tend to think that the Y2K affair was a monumental disaster for the IT industry, almost a Waterloo for it in fact. For years, technology spending was channeled from core capability spending into one tiny niche area of interest.

And for their efforts, the IT industry will be living with CEO's and customers who for years will be exceptionally gun-shy about dedicating new resources to technology products and services, since so much got spent on Y2K projects. Banks and financial institutions in particular (whom i believe are the single biggest consumer for the IT industry, at 20% or more of aggregate spending) have been hugely undercapitalizing basic core IT projects for years, and seem to have no interest at all in raising their CAPEX spending on IT.

So i return to my original question. Was Y2K a plus or minus for the technology industry as a whole?

 

[OutHouse]

Industry? a few people made a huge amount of money with the scare factor.

at my company it was a non-event. even the 386 machines that manufactures said wouldnt work W2K, did infact work.

 

[PeeluckyDuckee]

I'd come to think it did benefit a great many programmers??

 

[HappyPuppy]

Anybody with any computer savvy at all knew that Y2K was all bullshit and hype.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: HappyPuppy
Anybody with any computer savvy at all knew that Y2K was all bullshit and hype.

It's causing much of the slump the IT industry has been going through over the past three years. Especially home computer sellers. Everyone upgraded because of the scare, and haven't needed a new computer since.

And I agree with HappyPuppy. 99% of the Y2K thing was bullsh!t. I was preaching this for over two years before it, and had a good six months going back and shoving it in people's faces afterwards. The most disturbing thing was their actual DISAPPOINTMENT over the world not collapsing.

 

[glenn1]

It's causing much of the slump the IT industry has been going through over the past three years. Especially home computer sellers. Everyone upgraded because of the scare, and haven't needed a new computer since.

I'm inclined to agree, which is why i asked the question.

 

[IGBT]

The Y2K morons are now the earth cooling/warming morons..haven't you figured that out yet??

 

[Windogg]

Notice the same schmucks (Gartner Group, Intelliquest, etc..) that hyped Y2K as the thing that could cause armageddon were also the same people that sold reports and services to "fix" the situation?

To say it was a disaster would be an understatement.

Windogg

 

[FelixDeCat]

So much promise. So little delivered.

 

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat
So much promise. So little delivered.

I'm not sure. Office Space, don't forget was based upon Peter, a lazy and under-appreciated COBOL programmer who updated bank software for the Y2K switch.

 

[ProviaFan]

Originally posted by: IGBT
The Y2K morons are now the earth cooling/warming morons..haven't you figured that out yet??

You're behind the times, dude; now they've moved on from being earth cooling / warming morons to being the-sun-will-explode-in-6-years morons.