Mayans sick and tired of stupid 2012 predictions

[Thunder]

http://wcbstv.com/watercooler/doomsday.scenario.2012.2.1241174.html

I'll tell you what is gonna happen in 2012. All sorts of storms, an earthquake or two, maybe even a terrorist act!!

How do I know? It happens every year.

Folks need to stop scaring themselves...unless they got nothing better to do.

[defaultdotxbe]

im gonna have a big party on dec 20th

just in case :)

[Safe-Keeper]

I can understand them.
Not that we'll get to 2012, I mean, our calendar ends on December 31st, so obviously the world must end then, too.

[MattusMaximus]

Saw a similar article on Yahoo News...

Linky (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091011/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_mexico_apocalypse2012)

Best part of the article:
"If I went to some Mayan-speaking communities and asked people what is going to happen in 2012, they wouldn't have any idea," said Jose Huchim, a Yucatan Mayan archaeologist. "That the world is going to end? They wouldn't believe you. We have real concerns these days, like rain."

Nice pith :D

[dudalb]

The Mayans ain't the only ones.
And it just going to get worse.
You can't turn on the TV without seeing another ad for the upcoming "2012" disaster film. God, I hate ROland Emmerich. He is giving Uwe Boll real competiiton for the title of "Worst German Director". The film looks like a real pile of bleep, and that is promotes the 2012 nonsense only makes it worse.

[LightinDarkness]

The same doom mongers who made truckloads of cash out of spreading needless fear in 2000 are ALL back to do the same on 2012. When December 2012 passes and absolutely nothing happens, all of the doomers and woos will completely ignore that they've worked themselves up into a fear spreading frenzy for the past several years and then appoint a new date of utter doom.

Its sickening how much people are willing to believe anything that promises them doom.

[Jontg]

What would the next date be? I mean, I can remember people forecasting doom in 2012 in the mid-90s--what other significant dates are left? 3000?

[MattusMaximus]

What would the next date be? I mean, I can remember people forecasting doom in 2012 in the mid-90s--what other significant dates are left? 3000?

Don't worry, there will be plenty of other dates the doom-mongers will come up with, so there will be much debunking to come in the future. Just take a look at Randi's list of failed doomsday predictions (http://www.randi.org/encyclopedia/appendix3.html) (it only goes up until July 1999).

[LightinDarkness]

What would the next date be? I mean, I can remember people forecasting doom in 2012 in the mid-90s--what other significant dates are left? 3000?

I have thought about this somewhat and have come to the conclusion that we don't know what the next Day of Utter and Total Doom will be, because the next "big" even the fear mongers are scaring the conspiracy sheeple over is 2029. Thats the year when a fairly sizable comet will be near the earth, and we all know comets/asteroids/space flavored doom really gets the fear mongers excited.
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/asteroid_update_041227.html

So I would say 2029, but I note that this is far to much in the future for the doom mongers to make money from. They make the most money in the years leading up to the event through woo books, survival supplies, new age conferences, etc. They are going to have to come up with a intermediary doom date in order to keep the conspiracy sheep terrified.

[MattusMaximus]

2029 is too far in the future from 2012. The woo-mongers will come up with something else before 2020, methinks. Gotta keep that cash flowing!

[Blue Mountain]

If you're working with computers, you have good reason to be leery of 2038. On January 19 of that year, computers running 32-bit versions of Unix will see their clocks reset to 1900. The reason is technical in nature; see Wikipedia's article on the year 2038 problem (http://en.wikipedia.org/Year_2038_problem) if you're interested.

[rjh01]

The same doom mongers who made truckloads of cash out of spreading needless fear in 2000 are ALL back to do the same on 2012. When December 2012 passes and absolutely nothing happens, all of the doomers and woos will completely ignore that they've worked themselves up into a fear spreading frenzy for the past several years and then appoint a new date of utter doom.

Its sickening how much people are willing to believe anything that promises them doom.

I wonder could we do something about this next year? Like spread a rumour that the world HAS ended and this is the after life?

[MG1962]

What would the next date be? I mean, I can remember people forecasting doom in 2012 in the mid-90s--what other significant dates are left? 3000?

2033 will be a natural candidate...2000 years neat since Christ got chucked on the cross and all

And I am sure there will be multiple planet X encounters in between to keep us interested

[Peter i]

Don't worry, there will be plenty of other dates the doom-mongers will come up with, so there will be much debunking to come in the future. Just take a look at Randi's list of failed doomsday predictions (http://www.randi.org/encyclopedia/appendix3.html) (it only goes up until July 1999).

Alma Geddons (http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Oracle/9941/index.html) list is also very nice (and quite entertaining in an apocalyptic sort of way)

[Jungle Jim]

If you're working with computers, you have good reason to be leery of 2038. On January 19 of that year, computers running 32-bit versions of Unix will see their clocks reset to 1900. The reason is technical in nature; see Wikipedia's article on the year 2038 problem (http://en.wikipedia.org/Year_2038_problem) if you're interested.

Will anyone still be using 32-bit versions of Unix in 2038? That is, won't we all be using new computers by then? I've gone through three computers in the last ten years.

[defaultdotxbe]

Will anyone still be using 32-bit versions of Unix in 2038? That is, won't we all be using new computers by then? I've gone through three computers in the last ten years.
the main problem is with embedded systems that are difficult, expensive, or even impossible to replace (like in power plants) that still keep 32-bit time, not your home PC

of course the same was said about the Y2K bug, so who knows

[Blue Mountain]

the main problem is with embedded systems that are difficult, expensive, or even impossible to replace (like in power plants) that still keep 32-bit time, not your home PC

of course the same was said about the W2K bug, so who knows
Methinks you're referring to the Y2K problem. As far as I know Windows 2000 wasn't used in very many embedded systems. :)

[defaultdotxbe]

Methinks you're referring to the Y2K problem. As far as I know Windows 2000 wasn't used in very many embedded systems. :)
thats what They® want you to think...

[rjh01]

I worked on the Y2K problem. Just about every programmer worked on the problem for months (or years). About the only programmer who did not was working to ensure that the current system did not self destruct.

That is why the world did not end on 1 January 2000. Plus they grounded every plane in the sky overnight.

[arthwollipot]

Alma Geddons (http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Oracle/9941/index.html) list is also very nice (and quite entertaining in an apocalyptic sort of way)Personally I use Armageddon Online (http://www.armageddononline.org/failed_armageddon.php). But I'm pretty sure most of them have all the same fail.

[Blue Mountain]

I worked on the Y2K problem. Just about every programmer worked on the problem for months (or years). About the only programmer who did not was working to ensure that the current system did not self destruct.
As did I. The company I worked for had a major system that had been in place since the early 1980s. The plan was to replace it with another system that was already in development in another part of the company. Unfortunately, it became clear in mid 1998 that the new system would not be ready in time. The product was being developed for the American market, but the Canadian market in which it was expected to operate was very different due to different regulatory approaches. So we had a fairly limited time in which to get the old 1980s system Y2K ready. We're talking about a system that ran on computers with 256K of RAM and and average of 30 megabytes of disk (the big ones had 64 megs!). I think wristwatches have more memory these days :)

That is why the world did not end on 1 January 2000. Plus they grounded every plane in the sky overnight.
Having said all that, I must invoke the old correlation is not causation. There were some countries (notably Eastern Bloc) that didn't put nearly the effort into Y2K that North America and Western Europe did. And they didn't go dark on January 1, 2000.

[Debaser]

Having said all that, I must invoke the old correlation is not causation. There were some countries (notably Eastern Bloc) that didn't put nearly the effort into Y2K that North America and Western Europe did. And they didn't go dark on January 1, 2000.

No, but they did suddenly discover a staggering number of one-year-olds were receiving old-age pensions. ;)

[Captain.Sassy]

Eh, this talk of 2012 gives me an idea- we should start spreading rumours about a new apocalypse date. Get teh nutsos all worked up about it and then show them the OP like 'lol'.

[Blue Mountain]

Eh, this talk of 2012 gives me an idea- we should start spreading rumours about a new apocalypse date. Get teh nutsos all worked up about it and then show them the OP like 'lol'.
First we need to decide on a date and a plausible explanation (I like using astronomical events for this), then determine the nature of the apocalypse. After that, we should register a domain and set up a website (a phpbb forum would probably be a good thing to have), then start spreading the word. On the day after the apocalypse fails to appear, we put up a big page that says basically "PWNED!"

[Checkmite]

I wonder could we do something about this next year? Like spread a rumour that the world HAS ended and this is the after life?

If you're a Seventh-Day Adventist, you believe the End of the World was October 22, 1844. Or, rather, the great event that is "The End Of The World" started on that date and is currently ongoing.

[Lynx2174]

If you're a Seventh-Day Adventist, you believe the End of the World was October 22, 1844. Or, rather, the great event that is "The End Of The World" started on that date and is currently ongoing.

That's not too far off, in a way.

You could say the end of the universe started perhaps 13.7 billion years ago, at it's formation, and is currently ongoing, until such time as maximum entropy is reached and the only things of any interest that happen are due to quantum fluctuation.

[CptColumbo]

I can understand them.
Not that we'll get to 2012, I mean, our calendar ends on December 31st, so obviously the world must end then, too.
That's what I always mention to people who worry about these predictions. My calenders ends on December 31st every year and we're still here.

Maybe the Mayans thought that making calenders for the next thousond years were unnecessary when they made the original since it was good for a thousand years and they had plenty of time to make another.

IIRC there was an alignment of planets when I was a kid in the early 80's.

[Nosi]

What would the next date be? I mean, I can remember people forecasting doom in 2012 in the mid-90s--what other significant dates are left? 3000?

Newton predicted 2060. There was a program on it on the History channel where he predicted the end of the world on that date. (I've got a thread around here about it too)

[Nosi]

Will anyone still be using 32-bit versions of Unix in 2038? That is, won't we all be using new computers by then? I've gone through three computers in the last ten years.

I would think that someone from the Unix or Linux communities (maybe they would have merged by then, who in space knows) would have coughed up a script to fix that mess....? For the old hobby machine that can be patched over...?

[Nosi]

That's what I always mention to people who worry about these predictions. My calenders ends on December 31st every year and we're still here.

Maybe the Mayans thought that making calenders for the next thousond years were unnecessary when they made the original since it was good for a thousand years and they had plenty of time to make another.

IIRC there was an alignment of planets when I was a kid in the early 80's.

That 80's planetary alignment didn't happen ALONGSIDE a black hole alignment.

[grmcdorman]

I would think that someone from the Unix or Linux communities (maybe they would have merged by then, who in space knows) would have coughed up a script to fix that mess....? For the old hobby machine that can be patched over...?The problem is more insidious than that. Any application that uses times - in binary form - will break. So basically, all applications affected will need to be replaced with new versions. This is probably more than half the programs in /usr/bin. Plus any random programs you've collected from elsewhere. Plus all the problems mentioned in the Wikipedia page (dates stored in directories, databases, random application data files ...).

Just fixing the kernel (which is where the time is kept) isn't good enough.

I'm not sure, either, that 64-bit *nixes use a 64-bit value for time. If they don't, then the problem is there too. I would hope that they corrected that, though.

[Blue Mountain]

The problem is more insidious than that. Any application that uses times - in binary form - will break. So basically, all applications affected will need to be replaced with new versions. This is probably more than half the programs in /usr/bin. Plus any random programs you've collected from elsewhere. Plus all the problems mentioned in the Wikipedia page (dates stored in directories, databases, random application data files ...).

Just fixing the kernel (which is where the time is kept) isn't good enough.

I'm not sure, either, that 64-bit *nixes use a 64-bit value for time. If they don't, then the problem is there too. I would hope that they corrected that, though.
Linux defines time_t as a signed long integer. If you're compiling Linux on a 64-bit system and the compiler uses 64 bits for a long int, then every program will get a 64-bit time_t. 63 of these are used for the value because the most significant bit is used for the sign.

On my 64-bit Linux systems I can get dates well beyond 2038. In theory it can store dates up to the year 292,271,024,945 or thereabouts.

And, yes, all the programs in /usr/bin (and /bin, /sbin, and /usr/sbin) have been compiled with the 64 bit compiler.

There may be issues with certain data structures on-disk. If you have an old program that's simply storing time_t in a record, it will store 2 bytes. Recompile that program with a 64-bit compiler, and now it expects that field to be 4 bytes wide. You either have to re-work the program to store and read only two byes, or migrate the file to expand all the time_t fields to four.

I'm not sure how archiving programs such as tar, zip, and cpio, which store various time fields associated with the files, handle unpacking an archive that has been created on a system that uses a different time_t size.

[Nosi]

Someone is just going to have to cook up a way to tell these Unix systems that there's a new way to tell time in town, or slip a new script in. We do have a few years to work on the problem. Surely the powers that be, be it government or private, will see that the problem is worth the money to fix, as they did the 2000 bug. Cynical mode on - there is money to be made/lost in this bug.

[Klimax]

Someone is just going to have to cook up a way to tell these Unix systems that there's a new way to tell time in town, or slip a new script in. We do have a few years to work on the problem. Surely the powers that be, be it government or private, will see that the problem is worth the money to fix, as they did the 2000 bug. Cynical mode on - there is money to be made/lost in this bug.

However it assumes devices with old UNIX are still in use and that UNIX at all is still used.(Can be extinct) :D

[BobHaulk]

it's ok about 2012 folks my 9/11 conspiracy friend who just happens to like alex jones and david icke assures me the coming end of the world/shift in time or whatever it is will be in 2016 thereby giving jones and icke another four years to sell books and dvd's about the coming whatever.
I must admit i was gutted when the end of the world didn't come in 2000.

[CptColumbo]

IIRC there was an alignment of planets when I was a kid in the early 80's.
Found it:
March 10, 1982.

All the planets were on the same side of the sun, but not in perfect alignment.

[defaultdotxbe]

Found it:
March 10, 1982.

All the planets were on the same side of the sun, but not in perfect alignment.
hmm, thats 9 months (almost to the day, only 1 off) before i was born

do i get special cosmic powers now?

[GreNME]

However it assumes devices with old UNIX are still in use and that UNIX at all is still used.(Can be extinct) :D

Doubtful. The damned operating system is 50 years old already, and what with the new-fangled-*nixes showing up like Linux and the BSD OS variants, there's a pretty strong historical case to be made that assuming the existence of UNIX isn't a bad idea.

[Klimax]

Doubtful. The damned operating system is 50 years old already, and what with the new-fangled-*nixes showing up like Linux and the BSD OS variants, there's a pretty strong historical case to be made that assuming the existence of UNIX isn't a bad idea.

But how many versions between?