[time-nuts] Re: HP Z3801A project update

[Keelan Lightfoot]

>
> You can also fix your software to add 1024 weeks until the date is past a
> magic constant.  If your tools support it, you can get that date as the
> build
> date from when you compiled your software.
>

Then there's US patent 5,923,618: "Leap-second cure for 1999 GPS rollover
problem"

The author of the 1999 patent identified that the frequency of leap seconds
was quite consistent, and that the current "week number epoch" could be
calculated from the number of UTC leap seconds:

GPS Weeks = 84.55874 + 70.53509 * GPS Leap Seconds

Of course what he couldn't predict was the 7 years without leap seconds
that occurred between 1999 and 2006, and our current 4+ year leap second
"dry spell", which puts the formula 12 years behind schedule.

A great example of "it seemed like a good idea at the time!" Historically
interesting, nevertheless.

- Keelan