Hi Jonathan,

On 20-Oct-99, Jonathan de Boyne Pollard wrote to Steve McCrystal:


 SM>> I remember seeing in here recently a set of rules for determining
 SM>> if a given year is a leap year.  We had a discussion about it at
 SM>> work yesterday, and there was considerable disagreement (not
 SM>> surprising!) I came home and looked for the text (I was SURE I
 SM>> had saved it) but the topic has scrolled out of my Fido message
 SM>> base, and IF I saved it I surely can't find it.

 JdBP> Julian Calendar ---------------

 JdBP> (Created at the order of Gaius Julius Caesar and adopted around
 JdBP> 8BCE.)

Actually adopted in 46 BC, but leap years were implemented incorrectly
(the priests responsible put one every 3 years, not every 4) until 9
BC, when the error was spotted. There were then no leap years until
8 AD, when the every 4 years rule was implemented correctly.

 JdBP> A year is a leap year if evenly divisible by 4.

 JdBP> All '00 years, including 1900 and 2000, are leap years under
 JdBP> this system.

 JdBP> isjulianleap: procedure parse arg y return (y // 4) == 0

George

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