Material for Release No. IA-1769; File No. S7-20-98
Overview for Completing Form ADV-Y2K
Using Your Computer

As an alternative to manually completing Form ADV-Y2K, the SEC is providing an electronic version of the form, in PDF (Portable Document Format), that you can complete using your personal computer. To fill out the form on your computer, you must use two software programs, Adobe Acrobat Reader^TM and Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In^TM. These are available at no cost.

The following are instructions in question and answer form for filling out the form on your computer.

Q: What is the electronic version of Form ADV-Y2K?

A: The electronic version of Form ADV-Y2K is a PDF file that the Adobe programs recognize.

Q: I've never used Adobe Reader or the Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In before. What are they?

A: Adobe Reader and Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In are free programs available from a company named Adobe Systems Incorporated. Used together, these programs will let you download a blank Form ADV-Y2K and fill in your responses directly on your computer.

Q: Can I save the Form ADV-Y2K on my computer?

A: You can download the blank form to your computer, however, you cannot save the form with your responses. The Adobe Reader program does not have "Save" capability. Your responses are only available in your computer's memory as long as you have the form opened on your screen. You must print the completed form before exiting Adobe Reader. If you do not print the completed form, you will lose the responses entered into the form.

If you cannot finish completing the form in one session, you may want to print a blank form, determine what your answers will be, and then go back and enter all of your responses at a later date. Remember, you do not have the ability to save a partially completed form.

This version of the form is meant to be filled out electronically. Do not print out the blank form and then fill it out by hand. If you intend to fill out the form by hand, use the version of the form that was mailed to you by the SEC.

Q: You mentioned that this method uses the Adobe Reader program and Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In. Do I have to purchase them?

A: No. Both products are available free of charge. Follow the instructions below to download the programs into your personal computer and fill out the form.

Q: I already have the Adobe Acrobat Reader on my computer. Can I use that version?

A: Yes, as long as you have version 3.01 or higher. Versions lower than 3.01 will not work. You can download version 3.01 by following the instructions in step 1 below. If you already have version 3.01 or higher, start at step 2.

Q: OK. So what do I need to do to complete Form ADV-Y2K on my computer?

A: You need to follow the 5 steps listed below to download and install the two Adobe software programs, Adobe Acrobat Reader Version 3.01 and Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In Plug-In 3.5 Update. You then have to download the PDF version of the form.

You should print this instruction page before downloading and installing the software. There are several steps involved in downloading and installing each component. The amount of time it takes to download all components depends on a number of factors. To speed things up, you should close all other applications before beginning the download process.

Step 1: Downloading the Adobe Acrobat Reader program:

1) Click on the link below.

Adobe Acrobat Reader (Version 3.01)

2) Scroll through the instructions until you reach the boxes that ask you to choose the reader version, platform version, and language version from the pop-up lists.

3) Choose the options that are appropriate for you and your computer.

4) Click the "Download" button at the bottom of the page. This will take you to another Adobe page that has the version of the Reader program you requested.

5)Click on

    ar302.exe USA

(or whatever is the appropriate version for you).

6) Save the file to any directory on your computer and make a note of the file's location. In a later step, you will install this downloaded file on your computer.

7)Go back to this instruction page on the SEC web site.

Step 2: Downloading the Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In program:

1) Click on the link below.

Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In Plug-In 3.5 Update

2) This will take you to "Acrobat Forms Fill-in Plug-in 3.5 Update – English" web page

3) Scroll down and click on the link

    USA FTP://ftp.adobe.com/.../fillerus.exe

(or whatever is the appropriate version for you).

4) Save the file to any directory on your computer and make a note of the file's location. In a later step, you will install this downloaded file on your computer.

5) Go back to this instruction page on the SEC web site.

Step 3: Downloading the three PDF documents representing the Instructions, Part I, and Part II of Form ADV-Y2K:

1) Click on the link below to download the Instructions to Form ADV-Y2K:

Instructions to Form ADV-Y2K

2) Save the file to any directory on your computer and make a note of the file's location. If you do not see a window prompting you to save the file to disk, then click on the "File" pull-down menu and select the "Save As" option. Follow the instructions on your screen.

Note:  It is essential that you follow the instructions in this file when you fill out the form.

3) Click on the link below to download Part I of Form ADV-Y2K:

Part I of Form ADV-Y2K

4) Save the file to any directory on your computer and make a note of the file's location. If you do not see a window prompting you to save the file to disk, then click on the "File" pull-down menu and select the "Save As" option. Follow the instructions on your screen.

5) Click on the link below to download Part II of Form ADV-Y2K:

Part II of Form ADV-Y2K

6) Save the file to any directory on your computer and make a note of the file's location. If you do not see a window prompting you to save the file to disk, then click on the "File" pull-down menu and select the "Save As" option. Follow the instructions on your screen.

Step 4: Installing the Adobe Acrobat Reader program on your computer:

1) Locate the ar302.exe file previously downloaded to your computer.

2)Double-click on the file.

3)Follow the on-screen instructions for installing this program on your computer.

Step 5: Installing the Adobe Acrobat Forms Fill-In program on your computer:

1) Locate the fillerus.exe file previously downloaded to your computer.

2) Double-click on the file.

3)Follow the on-screen instructions for installing this program on your computer.

Q: OK. I think I have downloaded the programs and the forms. How do I begin completing the form on my computer?

A: 

1) Exit out of your browser.

2)Click on the Acrobat Reader icon to start the Adobe Acrobat program.

3)Open the file that contains Form ADV-Y2K and you can begin to fill in the form using your computer.

Q: How do I know if I installed the Adobe products correctly? What visual cues can I look for?

A: The form will look like a standard document, but the cursor will change from a "hand" shape to either an "I-beam" or "arrow" when you come to part of the document where information can be entered.

When you move the mouse over a text field (e.g., SEC File Number, Adviser Name, Address, Telephone Number), the cursor will change into an "I-beam" shape. When you move the mouse over an area of the form where you must click on a circle to give your answer the cursor will change into an "arrow" shape. You know you installed both Adobe components correctly when the cursor changes shape.

Q: How do I move through the various fields and pages of the Form ADV-Y2K?

A: To move from field to field, press the TAB key – to move back, press SHIFT-TAB. To move between pages, click on the up or down arrows on the right side of the screen.

Q: Can you walk me through how I would enter the first piece of information – the SEC file number?

A: Yes. Using the mouse, move the cursor over the SEC file number box. You will notice that the cursor will change from a "hand" to an "I-beam" cursor. Click anywhere in the field, and your cursor will appear in the first character position of the field. Type inside of the field just as you would if you were completing the form on a typewriter. Press the TAB key to move to the next field on the form.

Q: Can you walk me through how I would select an answer when I get to the type of question that has circles next to each answer?

A: Yes. Using the mouse, move the cursor over the first circle on the form (page 3 of 11) – move your cursor slowly. You will notice that the cursor will change from a "hand" to an "arrow" cursor. To fill in the circle, click on the left mouse button. Click again to de-select your answer. In some questions, you can click on more than one answer if more than one answer is relevant.

Q: How do I print the form?

A: You print the form by clicking on "File" then select "Print" from the pull-down menu. If there is not enough memory on your printer to handle printing the entire document at one time, you can print each page individually by utilizing the "File", "Print", "Current Page" options on the pull-down menu.