Europe switches to the Euro
On the first of January 2002 the national currencies of
most European Union member countries will becom the Euro. On that date
new euro banknotes and coins will be introduced, while the existing banknotes
and coins of national currencies will remain in circulation until the
end of February 2002.
Not everyone in Western Europe is joining in. The participating
countries are Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland,
Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain and Portugal. Also included are
Vatican City, the principalities of Andorra and Monaco, the republic of
San Marino, and several island territories, such as the Azores (Portugal);
Canary Islands (Spain); and France's Guadeloupe and Martinique islands
in the Caribbean. Denmark, Sweden and Great Britain, did not introduce
the euro.
This is what the Euro coins look like:

The number (or "tails") sides of the Euro coins
are the same in every country, the same applies to the colour and the
metals used. The "head" side is designed by each country in
its own style:

The front of the coins show national symbols, such as
the Celtic harp for Ireland or Queen Beatrix for the Netherlands. All
coins, whatever the national face, will be accepted in all euro area countries.
The notes are exactly the same throughout the euro area, using idealized
images of windows and gateways on one side (to represent the opening of
minds) and bridges on the other (to represent bringing of people together).

The new universal currency for Western Europe will make
life much easier for tourists, who no longer have to wonder if 2500 Spanish
potatoes or 500 Greek draculas is a lot for a cup of coffee. Americans
will find it very easy to convert currencies, because the euro is very
close in value to the dollar – about 1.1 euros to the dollar, i.e.
the dollar is currently about 10% more valuable than the euro. Even the
mathematically challenged should have no more problems making financial
decisions.
These are the conversion rates from the European currencies:
 |
=
|
Belgium
|
40.3399
BEF |
|
Italy
|
1936.27
ITL |
Germany
|
1.95583
DEM |
|
Luxembourg
|
40.3399
LUF |
Greece
|
340.750
GRD |
|
Netherlands
|
2.20371
NLG |
Spain
|
166.386
ESP |
|
Austria
|
13.7603
ATS |
France
|
6.55957
FRF |
|
Portugal
|
200.482
PTE |
Ireland
|
0.787564
IEP |
|
Finland
|
5.94573
FIM |
USA |
91 cents |
|
1 US$ = Euro 1.1
|
For ChessBase products the prices in euros have become
simpler:
-
Fritz and other chess programs cost Euro 50.08,
they will soon be all rounded down ot Euro 49.99 (as is already the
case with Shredder). For Americans this means that the programs cost
around $45.
-
The ChessBase 8.0 Starter Package costs Euro
153.34, which is approximately $138.
-
Mega Database 2002 is Euro 154.90, Big Database
2002 is Euro 49.90 or almost exactly $45.
-
Trainings CDs are almost all Euro 25.51 or
$23.