In a desperate attempt to draw attention to the Year 2000 problem lurking in distributed systems, Farmington Hills, Michigan-based Compuware Corp, better known for its mainframe application testing offerings, has had another shot at launching its QA Center suite which also includes distributed systems testing. Compuware acquired Direct Technology Inc and DRD Promark Inc last year (CI 3,050) and integrated their client server tools into QA Center. Now, it says it is concerned that no-one is as worried as it is about the problem of Year 2000 on distributed systems. Its fears are backed up by Meta Group analyst Rob Schafer who told ComputerWire that people have been concentrating on mainframe Year 2000 work at the expense of distributed systems. Most of the problem is in the data center but you can still have massive failure if distributed systems don’t work. If the screen on your desk can’t recognize the four digit date fields of Year 2000, you’re in trouble, he said. Compuware says the relaunch draws attention to an area it has always targeted. The release reiterates what we have been saying. We’ve always told people about the problem, it’s just that now they are listening, said Ian Meakin, the company’s product marketing manager. The reason why distributed computing could cause more red faces than mainframeS is that it involves the front end said Schafer. When the dust settles in five years, most of the Year 2000 problem caused will by distributed systems because people waited too long he says.
