DST Change & IT

[AdamSnow]

With the change of Daylight Savings Time on the horizon - or already approved at this point (not sure) What do you foresee happening with IT?

Say USA decides to do this change - but Canada does not. Or even if they both do - with Windows changing automatically and a lot of programs doing this as well, do you think a patch will be created in time - and most importantly... Will IT Departments have time to implement such a patch to all their systems?

In my situation - we have a lot of employees that use laptops in trucks and are rarely plugged into our network... These employees are all across Canada, and the software they use is very time sensitive with monitoring of Natural Gas flows and such.

Personally - I see a big problem getting a patch like this out to remote clients in time for the November switchover to the new DST...

Also - Since Windows 2000 and below are no longer supported by Microsoft - will these operating systems be supplied with a patch, or since they are end of life are users of such operating systems going to be forced to upgrade or deal with time management themselves?

 

[Maverick]

Maybe we can convince the media that there is going to be a massive DST bug and all their current systems will have to be revamped to support it.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

 

[CVSiN]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

hero 1 adam 0

 

[zerocool1]

Originally posted by: CVSiN

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

hero 1 adam 0

actually no, they are talking about making DST 2 months longer(ending one month later, starting one month earlier). I think its gonna be a PITA to fix on phones that don't sync and everything else that changes like VCRs and clocks.

 

[imported_Phil]

Originally posted by: CVSiN

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

hero 1 adam 0

Exceeeept....

AdamSnow mentioned that they have laptops that aren't plugged into the network much at all, so the logon scripts wouldn't be running, and the laptop would have the wrong time.

 

[nakedfrog]

I wonder how many embedded systems we have that will be affected by this, and what the cost to replace them will be?

 

[KC5AV]

Automated patch and update management is your friend.

 

[ViRGE]

Originally posted by: Maverick
Maybe we can convince the media that there is going to be a massive DST bug and all their current systems will have to be revamped to support it.

Let the good times roll! Viva Y2K.

 

[tami]

it would probably force the users using windows 9x and NT and versions prior to upgrade or to buy a new computer. i think that's important anyway.

for computer resellers, this is a great thing, since business is likely to boom due to the fact that many see that they'll need a new computer. it will be more work for programmers who need to implement this change into their software, however, but they may get rewarded by extra pay.

all in all, it's not a bad thing, imo.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
I wonder how many embedded systems we have that will be affected by this, and what the cost to replace them will be?

THAT is the real question. And, while it sounds scary, I doubt there are many things with daylight savings time built into them which can't have the feature turned off.....afterall, if you sell it to people internationally or in Arizona it needs to have a switch for the feature.

 

[Maverick]

Originally posted by: ViRGE

Originally posted by: Maverick
Maybe we can convince the media that there is going to be a massive DST bug and all their current systems will have to be revamped to support it.

Let the good times roll! Viva Y2K.

Yeah thats just what we need to kick start the economy :thumbsup:

 

[david46675]

Originally posted by: Maverick

Originally posted by: ViRGE

Originally posted by: Maverick
Maybe we can convince the media that there is going to be a massive DST bug and all their current systems will have to be revamped to support it.

Let the good times roll! Viva Y2K.

Yeah thats just what we need to kick start the economy :thumbsup:

agreed, there's gotta be a way to make money off this!

 

[AdamSnow]

Originally posted by: KC5AV
Automated patch and update management is your friend.

Well yes, this works perfect in a 1 office environment...

Read my post... We have about 1/3 of all of our machines on the road - out in the field with natural gas operators and corrosion experts... They dont run a login script each time they boot their laptops.

I'm sure that we're not the only company that has field techs that arent in an office setting most of the time.

RAS/VPN is an option to do get these updates - and yes these clients have this... BUT they dont do this often enough that we still need to send out 25,000 CD's a year out to our technicians to update the software they use every day... let alone a time fix for their Windows

 

[AdamSnow]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

Actually no. I am part of IT for a very large Natural Gas company... The clients using these computers are engineers, corrosion experts and field technicians... They dont care - or want to know how to make their Windows not automatically update the time for them...

Perhaps you would like a contact position to call 25,000 field operators and walk each one of them through changing this setting and reminding them to change it to the correct time every March and November...

Hero -1 Adam 1

haha

 

[nakedfrog]

I still hate the idea and am vehemently against it. I am willing to die for my cause!


Um, okay, not THIS cause.

 

[Chadder007]

I think they should change it by 30 minutes and leave it the freak alone! ....instead of flip flopping an hour.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: AdamSnow

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

Actually no. I am part of IT for a very large Natural Gas company... The clients using these computers are engineers, corrosion experts and field technicians... They dont care - or want to know how to make their Windows not automatically update the time for them...

Perhaps you would like a contact position to call 25,000 field operators and walk each one of them through changing this setting and reminding them to change it to the correct time every March and November...

Hero -1 Adam 1

haha

Ah, so that's the change. I thought this was doing away with it...I missed the link yesterday. :sheepish grin;

Seriously though, that info is stored in the registry. You can use WRK to modify it and you can export the registry key and import it into another computer with a basic double click.

Sorry to say this won't be a crisis.

 

[AdamSnow]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor

Originally posted by: AdamSnow

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
I have workstations getting the time from the server anyway. It's part of some logon scripts.

Also, you can tell windows not to automatically adjust for daylight savings time. Dbl click the clock and choose the time zone tab and uncheck the box. Think you could roll that out in time?

Actually no. I am part of IT for a very large Natural Gas company... The clients using these computers are engineers, corrosion experts and field technicians... They dont care - or want to know how to make their Windows not automatically update the time for them...

Perhaps you would like a contact position to call 25,000 field operators and walk each one of them through changing this setting and reminding them to change it to the correct time every March and November...

Hero -1 Adam 1

haha

Ah, so that's the change. I thought this was doing away with it...I missed the link yesterday. :sheepish grin;

Seriously though, that info is stored in the registry. You can use WRK to modify it and you can export the registry key and import it into another computer with a basic double click.

Sorry to say this won't be a crisis.

No - it wont be a crisis... but it may mean more entry level jobs in the IT sector for a while...

Even with the solution you provided - you arent giving a solution to the (in my case only... There are hundreds of companies the same as this) 10,000 employees that are spread all across Canada, not on a network, and are computer illiterate...

It's going to take man power... Traveling to sites, developing SMS packages to push the patch, etc...