>> the worldwide computer network called the internet has inspired more movies than any big deal technological fad since, oh, the cb radio boom of the 1970s. the internet itself, however, is definitely exploding. >> it hit, and within like two years it's become so powerful. >> we're sitting on the most perfect beach in the world and all we can think about is -- >> where can i hook up my modem? >> in 1999, we are culturally, socially, financially quite dependent on the internet. >> in washington today a special senate committee is preparing to release a fairly alarming report on the y2k millennium computer problem. they call it one of the most serious and potentially devastating events the nation has ever encountered. >> the brains of most computers, the chips that do the thinking have tiny built-in clocks. many registered the year with only the last two digits assuming the first two are always 19. >> the problem was not the