FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) -- It seemed like a Y2K fantasy glitch.
A journalist in Cologne checked his on-line banking account on New Year's Day and an unexplained deposit of $1.56 billion (3 billion marks) beamed out at him from his computer screen.The software problem caused a momentary stir, but it was one of only a few blips in an otherwise flawless German transition into the new millennium.
Among the minor problems: Post office workers couldn't use their electronic cafeteria cards in Frankfurt and automated teller machines were drained of printer paper after customers made a weekend dash to check on their account balances.
The nation's hospitals reported only 11 minor problems that posed no threat to patients, the Interior Ministry reported Monday.
Even the billion-dollar glitch in Cologne turned out to be small change. It was not a true Y2K breakdown but a date-reading software error, said Ulricke Kohl, spokeswoman for Stadt Sparkasse Cologne, who declined to identify the customer.
The error may affect any year's turnover -- not just 1999 to 2000, but 1998 to 1999 and so on. And it tripped up only customers who ignored bank warnings to upgrade their software.
"The problem showed up only on their computer screen. None of the actual account balances were ever altered," Kohl said.