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Doomsday is coming...

Doomsday is coming... your telephone stops working, television conks out, bank account statement goes berserk and your computer? Well, it is dead.

Welcome to the first day of the 21st century. The y2k syndrome has wrecked havoc on every computer and computer networks all across the planet.

Can doomsday scenarios such as these can get more frightening? Yes they most certainly can. For instance, nuclear plants, which are essentially managed by computers, can suffer multiple meltdowns while aeroplanes might drop like flies from the sky. Both catastrophes, needless to say, can kill thousands, perhaps even millions.

And even though software experts from across the planet have already come up with several simple and not-too-expensive solutions for the y2k problem, the initial panic gave science fiction writers enough food for thought and probably for a few bestsellers as well.

But now, it seems science fiction writers were not the only ones inspired by the y2k conundrum. It has spawned a new breed of

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