In message <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, Rob Seaman writes:
>Continue compiling a coherent, complete and self-consistent set of >requirements and we can get around to testing the various options. The most important requirement is obviously that the proposed change, can possibly be made to happen. Using the most lenient standard of review we can, we assume that a "scientifically perfect" solution is found. By "scienfically perfect" we obviously do not assume that "we will stabilize the Earths rotation", but a solution that works inside the bounds of our geophysical knowledge and models of the physical reality. Likewise, the solution is not a technological magicians trick, such as "perfect atomic clocks surgically connected to our brains right after birth" or "all devices must be on the internet" etc. In other words, we assume a solution that, through one or more time scales, caters to the various needs of humanity, along with such rules and observational frameworks that will be required for the conversion between these time scales. We totally disregard small details such as naming, chosen tolerances, and thresholds, assuming that the best possible choices have been in all such matters. Under this hypothetical scenario, please flesh out this sequence of events: A. Rob Seaman announces the scientifically perfect NewTime to the world. [ Please fill in what happens here ] H. Scientists, all over, generally applaud this as sensible. (With the usual small, but loud, fraction of emeriti who grumble on general principles of age, and are revered but not necessarily listened to, for the very same reason.) [ Please fill in what happens here ] N. NewTime becomes the legal basis of civil timekeeping in all of USA & EU. [please insert realistic year this could happen] [ Please fill in what happens here ] Z. NewTime is implemented on 99% of all USA & EU based IT systems which react according to what time it is. [please insert realistic year this could happen] Having done that, please address the probability that the entire plan will be derailed by: ?. Computer consultants estimate the cost of implementation of NewTime in legacy systems to $BIGNUM, and offer the alternative of just dropping leapseconds from UTC as a virtually no-cost change. This event which can be assumed to happen right after A and certainly long before N. Poul-Henning -- Poul-Henning Kamp | UNIX since Zilog Zeus 3.20 [EMAIL PROTECTED] | TCP/IP since RFC 956 FreeBSD committer | BSD since 4.3-tahoe Never attribute to malice what can adequately be explained by incompetence. _______________________________________________ LEAPSECS mailing list LEAPSECS@leapsecond.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/leapsecs