Invalid time result

[Clunes]

For some reason the script below does not return a valid time. I am simply wanting to add 30min to a char variable and then return it to same char variable with its new time. It alwys returns a time greater than 1hr. Can any see what I am doing wrong?

dim etr as c = "30mins"
dim mytime as n
dim mytime1 as y
dim mytime2 as n
if at("m",etr1,1) > 0 then

mytime = 30*60
else
mytime = val(etr1)*60*60

end if
mytime1 = now()
mytime2 = toseconds(convert_type(mytime1,"C"))
mytime2 = mytime2 + mytime
etr1 = totime(mytime2,11,2)

[Clunes]

Re: Invalid time result

OK - I changed the now() for a5_timestamp() and it works fine. Somehow the toseconds() result is different with now(). Not sure why..

[Stan Mathews]

Re: Invalid time result

now() returns a complete date-time value, you could use time("0h:0m AM",now()) to get the equivalent of a5_timestamp().

[Clunes]

Re: Invalid time result

True Stan - but as I converted that to a shot time and then the toseconds() converts that, I would have thought it would be the same result.

[CALocklin]

Re: Invalid time result

That bugged me so I had to figure it out.

The toseconds() function is the issue. It requires a format (per the Help file) of "h:m:s am/pm", or "h:m:s", or "h:m" but the calculation is giving it a format of "h:m:s d am/pm" where "d" is apparently decimal seconds. (I thought it was milliseconds but it's never greater than 99 so I guess it's decimal seconds.) Apparently the function wasn't made to deal with that and it's adding the decimal seconds as additional seconds. (This has been a pet peeve of mine for years - the "incompatibility" of many of the time functions. It seems like whenever I try to do time conversions in A5 it gets to be a real mess requiring all kinds of "contortions" - a.k.a. work-arounds for bugs that aren't really bugs just incompatibilities that will never be solved. I think this is definitely one that could be solved - just fix the toseconds() function so it can handle the "h:m:s d am/pm" format instead of making developers spend hours trying to figure out why it won't work so they can create a work-around.)

You could solve it for times prior to 1 pm with this:

mytime2 = toseconds( left( convert_type( mytime1, "C" ), 8 ) )

but solving it past 1 pm requires either converting the am/pm format to a 24 hour format first or eliminating the decimal seconds. I used the stuff() command to eliminate the decimal seconds because it was much easier:

mytime1 = now()
converted_time = stuff( convert_type( mytime1, "C" ), 10, 3, "" )
mytime2 = toseconds( converted_time )
mytime2 = mytime2 + mytime
etr1 = totime( mytime2, 11, 2 )

But note that the 2 for "decimals" in the totime() function only applies to decimal seconds (see the help file) and your format only specifies hours and minutes so there will be no decimals returned.

Note: This is why I'm creating an A5_Function_Notes help file of my own. It will include comments about things like this.

[Clunes]

Re: Invalid time result

Wow - thanks Cal. I think your A5_Function_Notes file is a great idea.

[Tim Kiebert]

Re: Invalid time result

Building on (or subtracting from) Stan's suggestion of using the time() function.

The default usage of time() is based on the current time which is the same as returned by now() and the default format returned is just what toseconds() is looking for ("h:m:s" or "0h:0m:0s"), so .....

mytime2 = toseconds(time())

I do agree with Cal that the time and date functions can be anoyingly tricky to get the right combinations.

In this case however it seems like the long way around to take the time value supplied by now() and convert it by assigning it to a short time variable which then needs to be converted to a character which then needs to be massaged into the correct format for toseconds.

In this case the default usage of time() did the same job as now(), basically returning the current time. If you are 'stuck' with using a short time value(say it is a field in a table) then I would recomend using the time() function with the second parameter, time("0h:0m:0s",shorttimevalue). The help says the second parameter needs to be a T type but that was written before the Y type came into being. A shorttime value works there also.

[Clunes]

Re: Invalid time result

Thanks Tim - just in time!

[Tim Kiebert]

Re: Invalid time result

Your welcome.

Wait, was that a joke. Are you making fun of me?

[Clunes]

Re: Invalid time result

Never entered my mind Tim. Eat some concrete and harden up mate!

[Tim Kiebert]

Re: Invalid time result