Computer Repair Experts Assess the Daylight-Saving Time Snafu
Did you do a double take yesterday when you glanced at your screen and thought it was an hour earlier later than it actually was?
That was the case for more than a few people as they booted up their home or business computers Sunday or Monday morning.
As daylight-saving time usually ends the last week of October, dropping the time back an hour at 2 a.m. on the last Sunday of the month, many were thrown off as electronic devices with digital clocks are programmed to automatically switch the time then - and have been for some time.
The problem arose, Broward County computer services note, because of the fact that this year, daylight-saving time was extended by four weeks after Congress moved the dates in an energy conservation effort.
The energy saving effort now ends the first weekend of November, which is this coming Sunday instead of last weekend. But many computers in South Florida and beyond were programmed prior to the new law being enacted.
This caused many digital clocks to prematurely switch.
But don’t fret, Fort Lauderdale computer repair experts say. Programmers have been working for months on patches to repair this problem.
Some computers — including most with Windows Vista — were prepared for it and automatically adjusted accordingly, causing no troubles.
Moreover, recently updated applications besides Windows Vista also should have the correct daylight-saving time software.
However, Microsoft systems older than Windows XP cannot be updated and must be manually fixed each time daylight-saving time begins or ends.
Patches available for download on Microsoft's Web site are available for people who have XP but still face the clock issue. Many Apple users have reported similar clock issues due to this very same rare occurrence.
Still confused? There's no need to call in a Fort Lauderdale computer repair company here. Here's all you have to do...
To fix manually on a PC running Windows, simply double click the clock in the lower right corner and adjust the time.
To take it to the next level and disable the automatic daylight-saving time adjustment for good, just click start, settings, control panel, date-time icon, time zone tab and uncheck the box at the bottom.
