The Y2k38 bug was detected a few months ago, but there was no actual testing done to prove that this will affect our current computers. Now this bug can actually start to cause some damage. To test this we can try using any chatting client either AOL Messenger , MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Trillian, or Gaim will do. As for my testing this bug affected all of these applications (windows). To test these for yourself do the following: First double click on the time in the bottom right-hand corner. Change the date to something after January 19, 2038 (2039 is fine!). Now start up any of the chatting clients mentioned above. Try sending a message to someone else (or to yourself if it supports it). As soon as you do this, the entire program should crash within a few seconds and will display some sort of error message. It will then bring up a message asking to send an error report or debug.