[ntp:questions] Re: Z3801 Leapsecond bug - Sep 30?

shoppa at trailing-edge.com shoppa at trailing-edge.com
Thu Sep 1 12:48:00 UTC 2005


Martin -
  I do not believe that this leap second bug is the same as the
256-week "bug" that has occured before.

  I believe that this bug comes about because the firmware writers
"knew" that leap seconds come on March 31, June 30, September 30, or
December 31.  So they assumed a leapsecond announcement in August must
mean that the leapsecond occures on September 30.  I have not actually
disassembled the Oncore or Z3801A firmware so I don't know this for a
fact, but it's a better match to my observations that the 256-week bug
which also afflicts some of the involved firmware :-).

You are welcome to correct me if I'm misunderstanding how the 256-week
rollover contributes to this problem.  It certainly could be a factor
but I don't see it as necessary.

What happened to Oncores/Z3801A's in 1998 with a similar
announcement-more-than-3-months-in-advance via GPS?

Tim.




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