Time & Date Formats

[Eater Sundae]

Because clocks were invented to measure daylight hours (more accurately - or rather, less accurately - they were invented to match sundials, which only worked during daylight hours and were split into twelve divisions. Then someone realised that it was easier to just make all of the hours the same length, which sundials do not do.)

Now that we measure time throughout all twenty-fours of day and night, it would be "a bit dumb" not to use a 24-hour clock, but old habits die hard.

 

 

 

 

 

Dates are not so easy to give a yes/no answer to; it's all a matter of convention. However:-

 

When I store files on a computer that I want to be able to search by date - for instance, photographs that are named by the dates they were taken and not by the date they were put on the computer - I name them as YYMMDD(name) .. because that means that the date order matches the alphanumeric order in which a computer stores them. Photos taken on the first of March this year are labelled 120301xxxx, and appear before the ones labelled 120302xxxx, and so on.

 

I suspect, as computers and their filing systems become ever more important, that the date format year/month/day will eventually become universal, but I wouldn't expect it to happen in anything less than a matter of decades.

 

I use the YYMMDD notation to store photos, as well. I visited China in the early 90s, and saw that they used it there. I don't know if they used it for everything, but I seemed to be used all the time by the companies I was dealing with. It seems much more logical that MMDDYY, which has no merit at all.

[PrimalJay]

What is the best way of doing the full date would it be 3 March 2012 or 3rd March 2012?

 

And should you ever use 1st or 2nd or 3rd or 4th March instead of just 1 2 3 4 March.

 

It is more literal and natural to say 1st or 3rd of something than to just say 1 or 3 of something.

 

Should a correct time look like this 1:30 PM or 1.30 PM, what is the difference between using an : or an . for a divider?

 

For short hand dates should you always the / as a divider or can you use - or _ ?

 

Also, sometimes people always use the leading 0 in front of the date, so instead of having it look like 1/2/12, they have it look like 01/02/12, which is best out of those?

[Jeffrey Shaw]

I prefer the format 30 March 2012. Sadly, The Times prefers "March 30 2012"- which is a rather illogical order, Cap'n.

I rarely use things like "1st."/"2nd."/3rd.", other than if it's to avoid confusion (e.g. "I'll order ten boxes: 2 for delivery on 1st., 5 on 2nd., and the other 3 on 4th.")

But I never ever use monstrosities such as "on the 1st April" or- even worse- "on the 1st proximo"!

[Jeffrey Shaw]

Next, I'm puzzled by the varying ways that websites require users to insert dates. Those based outside UK are even more idiosyncratic.

At least they usually do indicate how the site-owner wants the format- e.g. "Please enter date as DD/MM/YYYY" or "...as DDMMMYY" [latter seeking month in letters] or whatever.

[PrimalJay]

Yes I agree, there is another forum I use and that asks for the month and date formats too, what is the point of it, surely that sort of stuff should be done by default, it is like asking users if they want to enable daylight savings time, what an idiotic way of doing things, if people turn this off then nothing would work or sync up, talk about confusing and somewhat bewildering website developers.

[becca234591]

For the 24 hour clock you just minus 12 from the first number e.g 20:15 is 8:15pm on a 12 hour clock.

 

Some people really don't understand it, no matter how many times you try and explain it.

[Jeffrey Shaw]

But haven't we all (at least once) made an error by thinking that- say- 1900hrs. meant 9.00pm?

[splodgeyAl]

But haven't we all (at least once) made an error by thinking that- say- 1900hrs. meant 9.00pm?

Or thought that 13:50 is 10:10?

[Jeffrey Shaw]

See, we lack 20:20 vision (or should that be 8.20pm?)

[PrimalJay]

I would much rather things be done in AM and PM format, that way we know what is what very quickly, instead of doing maths to just figure stuff out, also, when people use the 24 hour clock they sometimes say 00:00 is 12 meaning 24 instead of just saying and using 24:00.