Centennial 2000 Pro Lite Edition Includes Links to Vendor Web Sites for Up-to-Date Y2K Application Compliance Information.

BURLINGAME, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 4, 1999--

Comprehensive, Wizard-Based Y2K Solution for Standalone PCs Addresses

Every Component of the PC: Hardware, OS, Applications, Spreadsheets

and Databases

Centennial International today introduced a new version of one of the most comprehensive Y2K products available for standalone PCs.

Centennial 2000 Pro(TM) Lite Edition Version 2.2 addresses every component of the PC: the hardware, operating system, applications, spreadsheets and database files. The new version provides links to vendor web sites for up-to-date information on application-software compliance. Designed for home and small-business use, the easy-to-use Wizard-based product is based on Centennial 2000(TM) Pro Enterprise Edition, the award-winning program for networked PCs.

"I was impressed by how easy the program was to use," said Srilatha Gollapalli, a beta tester at Richard Sampson Associates in Pleasanton, California. "The product stepped me through the whole process. It identified and corrected a non-compliant BIOS in a fairly new computer. Also, we maintain very large databases and the program identified several non-compliant dates in them. Overall, the Centennial product seems comprehensive and easy to use," she added.

Capabilities & Differentiators

The Pro Lite Edition tests the PC hardware; corrects a non-compliant BIOS; checks and corrects the Windows short-date-format setting; provides links to vendor's compliance Web sites; checks spreadsheet and database files; and helps the user correct those files. Users can easily print detailed reports or export the information for use in another program.

The product features a proprietary data scanner that is faster and easier to use than competitive offerings. Centennial's solution is one of the few Y2K products that both checks and corrects the Windows short-date format setting.

Also, unlike much of the competition, Centennial 2000 Pro Lite uses a device driver to fix the BIOS. This approach is much safer than using a Terminate Stay Resident (TSR) fix because a device driver loads as part of the operating system, before applications load and access the system date. A TSR loads later, allowing applications to potentially access the system date before the date is corrected. This increases the risk that the applications will be using the wrong data information.

Procedure

The user can run any combination of the hardware, applications-software and data-file tests at any time. If the BIOS fails the test, the user can apply the Centennial 2000 Software Update to correct the problem. If the Windows short-date format is using a two-digit year, it can be automatically expanded to four digits.

After the program inventories the application software, users can click on a link from the Centennial 2000 Product Inventory screen. If they have an Internet connection, they will go directly to the web site of the software vendor to view the latest Y2K-compliance information.

"This online link is needed because compliance information is dynamic," explained Suzanne Sliter, general manager of Centennial International. "Many vendors change their compliance statements as their Y2K activities progress. Relying on an internal database, as some competitive products do, is risky because the information can easily be out of date," she added.

Centennial 2000 Pro Lite Edition walks the user step-by-step through database and spreadsheet files where most date-sensitive PC data resides. The program highlights non-compliant date cells and fields. The user determines whether the date should be changed and, if so, converts the date format. The Pro Lite Edition supports the analysis of major leading spreadsheets and databases, including Microsoft(R) Excel, Lotus 1-2-3 and Microsoft Access(R), as well as comma-separated-value (csv) formats.

Centennial Product Family

Centennial 2000 Pro Lite is based on Centennial 2000 Pro Enterprise Edition, the first product that allows network managers to centrally manage, test and monitor compliance activities for data files on networked PCs. This comprehensive Year 2000 product allows users to test PC hardware; fix non-compliant BIOSs; scan databases and spreadsheets for non-compliant dates; inventory software applications and monitor the hardware on an ongoing basis.

The first Y2K products developed specifically for networked PCs, the Centennial 2000 Enterprise Editions allow the network manager to centrally manage Y2K compliance activities. The products dramatically simplify and automate the Year 2000 process, and require no user interaction for hardware and applications compliance activities. Centennial 2000 Enterprise Editions support everything from small LANs to large WANs. Network managers can use the products to check networked PCs, stand-alone computers, PCs at remote sites and even mobile computers.

Pricing & Availability

Centennial 2000 Pro Lite is available now for Windows 95, 98 and NT computers through Centennial resellers for the list price of U.S. $39.99. A five-user license is $169.

Centennial develops and markets software for organizations to measure and troubleshoot hardware and software problems associated with the turn of the century. With offices in the UK and the U.S., Centennial's products include the Centennial 2000 Enterprise Editions for corporate PCs and Centennial 2000 Lite Editions for home and small businesses. Centennial 2000 Pro received the SC Magazine Best Buy in January 1999.

Centennial products are available through authorized Centennial resellers worldwide. For further information, contact Centennial in the United States at 650/373-2090, [e-mail], or visit the company's Web site at www.centennial.co.uk.

Note to Editors: Centennial 2000 Pro and Centennial 2000 are trademarks of Centennial Ltd. Microsoft and Microsoft Access are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. All other products and company names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.