Everhart, Glenn From: thomasgd@omc.bt.co.uk Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 1998 6:27 AM To: Info-VAX@Mvb.Saic.Com Subject: Re: Houston Billboard Project (was: End of VMS on workstations) On Wed, 08 Jul 1998 10:16:54 GMT, thomasgd@omc.bt.co.uk (Greg Thomas) wrote in article <35a946ba.434581625@news.axion.bt.co.uk>: >On Wed, 08 Jul 1998 10:59:22 +0100, Nigel Arnot > wrote in article ><009C8DE7.ED8EF809.4@maxwell.ph.kcl.ac.uk>: > >... >> (anyone know of a good high-profile corporate NT disaster?) >... >There's been a fair bit in the UK press recently about one of the big >four banks (I forget which) which can no longer tell the difference >between cleared and un-cleared funds in an account. From 'The Times' on the 1st July, 1998, Business News at http://www.the-times.co.uk Microsoft flies in anti-bug team to aid NatWest BY RICHARD MILES, BANKING CORRESPONDENT MICROSOFT has flown in a team of top engineers from the US to tackle the worsening problems with NatWest's computer systems, that have caused widespread disruption for customers. Insiders said the bank had been forced again yesterday to shut down parts of the main retail banking system after testing revealed that the Microsoft software could not distinguish between cleared and uncleared funds. Much to the consternation of the NatWest board, there were also reports that customers' credit and debit cards were being captured by some of its 3,200 cash dispensers, where the problems of the system are most visible. Lord Alexander, chairman of NatWest, is said to be most concerned about the computer breakdown, as the system is the key plank in its retail banking expansion plans and the platform of additional customer services. It is understood that the system failures relate to a bug in Microsoft's Windows NT technology, although NatWest is reluctant to admit this. A source close to NatWest said Microsoft had dispatched a team of top engineers last weekend to assist in the work, even though the software company has programmers working full-time at the bank's offices. The source said the cash dispensers were just the tip of the iceberg: "The bugs are in the mainframe computer."