What is the date in Vancouver?

[drgarytraub]

I need to be able to determine what the date is in Vancouver, no matter where the user happens to be. For example, if it is 1 AM in south Florida on Dec 22, then it is actually Dec 21 in Vancouver at that same time, because there is a 3 hour time zone difference. I need to be able to determine the present date in Vancouver, whether the user is in Florida, Japan, Australia, or whatever.

Any ideas?

[Steve Wood]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Here is an API that returns the time based on lat/long. Or you can call my wife's cousin up in Vancouver whenever you need the time.

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Well, I know where your wife's cousin lives, but where is the API (you forgot to include the API :))

[Steve Wood]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Ah, Google "world time http api", several come to the top.

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Steve,

Thanks. The thing is I need to be able to use the date in an Xbasic script. Do you know how I could go about doing that?

[marvinbase]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Just use the xbasic GMT functions. Vancouver is -8:00 from GMT.

The only tricky part is Daylight Savings Time- for Canada, it starts the second Sunday in March and ends the first Sunday in November.

The code below should work, but I haven't tested fully. It can be easily converted to a function that could calculate any time zone.

'calculate daylight savings- starts 2nd Sunday of March and ends 1st Sunday of November
dim tGMTDateTime as t
dim tVancouverTime as t
dim dDSTStartDate as d
dim dDSTEndDate as d
dim nHoursDifference as n

nHoursDifference = -8 'change this for a different time zone
tGMTDateTime = a5_t_from_rfcdate(a5_rfc850date(now()))
dDSTStartDate = nth_dow("Sunday",3,year(tGMTDateTime),2)
dDSTEndDate = nth_dow("Sunday",11,year(tGMTDateTime),1)

if convert_type(tGMTDateTime,"D") >= dDSTStartDate .and. convert_type(tGMTDateTime,"D") < dDSTEndDate then
    'daylight savings time- add an hour
    tVancouverTime = tGMTDateTime + ((nHoursDifference + 1) * 3600) 'add seconds- X hours * 60 minutes * 60 seconds
else
    tVancouverTime = tGMTDateTime + (nHoursDifference * 3600) 'add seconds- X hours * 60 minutes * 60 seconds
end if

[Steve Wood]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Here is how you would use the API found at: http://worldtimeengine.com/api/geo

Using their example, just stick this in your browser address and it will return some XML to the screen that includes the local time: http://worldtimeengine.com/api/9d894...3.8671/151.207

Now do the same, but using http_post to get that same information but in a variable. Extract what you want from the string to get the local time.

Here is some xbasic test code, you would leave out the lines with the question marks in your final:

url = "http://worldtimeengine.com/api/9d89405104e16732fa00caa1e8e6cdfd/-33.8671/151.207"

cc = http_post(url).body

?cc

localtime = extract_string(cc,"<local>","</local>")

?"<br><br>"

?localtime

So insert the lat/long for Vancouver and you have that local time.

[MikeC]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Here is another very basic script to do this. All depends upon how much info is given really...from the interactive window

dim time_diff as Y
dim t1 as Y
dim t2 as Y

t1=gmt("h:m")
t2=time("h:m")

x=(t1-t2) 'number of seconds difference between current location and GMT
y=14400 'number of seconds difference between Vancouver and GMT.
?t2-(x-y)
= 08:53:00 00 am

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Jeff,

I tried the code in the interactive window and get the error:

'calculate daylight savings- starts 2nd Sunday of March and ends 1st Sunday of November
dim tGMTDateTime as t
dim tVancouverTime as t
dim dDSTStartDate as d
dim dDSTEndDate as d
dim nHoursDifference as n

nHoursDifference = -8 'change this for a different time zone
tGMTDateTime = a5_t_from_rfcdate(a5_rfc850date(now()))
dDSTStartDate = nth_dow("Sunday",3,year(tGMTDateTime),2)
dDSTEndDate = nth_dow("Sunday",11,year(tGMTDateTime),1)

if convert_type(tGMTDateTime,"D") >= dDSTStartDate .and. convert_type(tGMTDateTime,"D") < dDSTEndDate then
'daylight savings time- add an hour
tVancouverTime = tGMTDateTime + ((nHoursDifference + 1) * 3600) 'add seconds- X hours * 60 minutes * 60 seconds
else
tVancouverTime = tGMTDateTime + (nHoursDifference * 3600) 'add seconds- X hours * 60 minutes * 60 seconds
end if
ERROR: Mismatched end of loop or if-block

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Mike,

I can't get your code to work either.

I am not familiar with a variable type of y - what is that?

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Steve,

I got your code to work, but it gives me the time in New South Wales, Australia.

I guess I have to put in the values for latitude and longitude?

[marvinbase]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

On interactive, you have to press enter after every line to get it to run- you can't just copy and paste the code block and then hit enter.

Better yet, just open a new script, paste the whole code block into it, add a msgbox at the end to pop up the result, and run it.

msgbox(convert_type(tVancouverTime,"C"))

Also, variable types

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

Jeff,

Where do you live? I need to know where to send the case of beer to.

Thanks!! That did the trick!!!!

[Steve Wood]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

So you expect each user of your web application to know and enter their offset from GMT?

[drgarytraub]

Re: What is the date in Vancouver?

The user's location is not relevant for my purposes. I just always need to know the exact date in Vancouver, no matter where the user is.

So if it is 2 am on dec 22 in Miami, I need to now that it is dec 21 in Vancouver.