I'm making a report that involves Tours lets say. I have one column populated by the tour_start_time datafield and another populated by tour_end_time. Then i have a column called Total Time. The Total Time column needs to tell me in hh:mm format what the difference between tour_start_time and tour_end_time is. So if tour_start_time returned 5:00 and tour_end_time returned 5:06 then Total Time should be 0:06. I can't seem to get this and the DateDiff stuff I've read all reference Parameters which isn't what I'm using. I need the data in a table. I tried this expression:
=DateDiff(minute,Fields!tour_start_time,Fields!tour_end_time)
But that didn't work and neither did any of the variants of that which I tried. I know im missing something as im new to this so sorry if it's a dumb question but i need someone that can explain it to me or at least give me another function to try.
Assuming your columns are actually DateTime data types, your DateDiff expression should look like this:
=DateDiff(DateInterval.Minute, Fields!tour_start_time.Value, Fields!tour_end_time.Value)
or
=DateDiff("n", Fields!tour_start_time.Value, Fields!tour_end_time.Value)
VB.NET DateDiff requires a DateInterval parameter; you can either specify the enumerator member (DateInterval.Minute) or its string representation (i.e. "n" for minute).
This will only return an integer value for the difference in minutes; it sounds like you need to then change this to a HH:mm string. Off the top of my head the easiest way to do this would be with some custom code in the report which takes this integer value as a parameter and construct the string based on this. Let me know if you need more information for this part.
Related
I must be missing something obvious, but it seems that I'm unable to find a way to get the TimeDate object from the value of a SugarBean field.
Let's say I get a specific Lead with this kind of call:
$lead = BeanFactory::retrieveBean('Leads', "18bfc69e-8cd4-11e7-ad08-000c29b1a36e");
then any call to this:
$lead->date_entered
will return a string value: "2017-08-29 16:05" (note the absence of seconds).
So then, for example, if I try to use such value to create a SugarTimeDate:
$TimeDate = new TimeDate();
$SugarTimeDate = $TimeDate->fromDb($lead->date_entered);
it will return false, since the value provided to fromDb() is not in the proper format (the seconds are missing).
When looking at the SQL table with Toad, I can see that the information is effectively stored in the database as a DateTime, with the value 08/29/2017 16:05:56. But the SugarBean object provides it as a text with a format that is incomplete.
So how can you get the effective SugarTimeDate, TimeDate or DateTime from a Field in a given SugarBean, ideally as an object?
I searched, and all the example I found was about creating a new date object from Now to set to a field in a SugarBean, but none to set a datetime field from an existing datetime field.
Any hint would be highly appreciated.
By playing around, and with some help from Patrick McQueen, it appears there 2 ways to get the effective date value of a field.
First solution I found was to do a SugarQuery with a select on the needed fields, which then returns the full date information, so "2017-08-29 16:05:56". A bit overkill, but it does the job.
The other solution brought up by Patrick is to use the fetcher_row array from the bean object, which will return the full date information also. So:
$lead->fetched_row['date_entered']
will returns also "2017-08-29 16:05:56".
So in any case an effective date is required ("round-trip" with a get then a set, or some sync requirement), the fetched_row[] is the solution, and the "direct" call to the field $bean->field is to be definitely avoided.
I wasn't 100% clear what you were trying to accomplish (see my comments), but I'm guessing that you want the fromUser() function instead, i.e.
$SugarTimeDate = $TimeDate->fromUser($lead->date_entered);
The reason why, is that Sugar prepares the data for the GUI (including formatting the date as per user preferences) at the point your code is being called. This includes stripping out the seconds. Doing the above fromUser() function will return a SugarDateTime object based on the current user's configured date format with a full date string as a "date" property. This, in turn, could be dealt with elsewhere by using this standard format.
I have been reading all about converting TEXT fields into date formats and ways to use Python to create date objects but my question remains.
My table has a dateTime column that is specified as TEXT, I would like to build a constraint that forces input to be in dateTime format, but as SQLite doesn't do dates (as I would like) I haven't worked out how to do it.
My current ideas: 1. Limit number of characters
2. Set separate attributes for day, month and year and constrain their domains
3. It is silly to do this on the database side just do it in the user interface
I would appreciate your opinions on these or other options.
Thanks :)
I've been trying to solve the same issue and the method I came up with was to use the date/time functions to parse the value and check that it hasn't changed. Essentially the following:
CREATE TABLE dts_test (
dts TEXT CHECK (dts IS datetime(dts))
);
If the default format is not what you want you can use the strftime or similar to design whatever format you want, but it must be something that the built-in date and time functions can parse.
I need to add a 'StartDate' parameter to a report in Reporting Services 2005, which should represent the current date, at midnight.
If I use Now() as expression, it will correctly use midnight in the calculations, but to the user, the time part will not be shown.
13/12/2011
which can be confusing because then the user doesn't really realise he or she can type in a time part.
How can I format this date to the following:
13/12/2011 00:00
while keeping the parameter as a DateTime datatype.?
Edit: I've checked the duplicate question and tried to apply it to my case, but run into the following phenomenom:
If I try:
=DateTime.Parse(Format(Now().Date().AddSeconds(1), "dd/MM/yyyy HH:mm:ss"))
Then the parameter shows "14/12/2011 00:00:01" which is confusing for the users, so I then tried the following:
=DateTime.Parse(Format(Now().Date().AddSeconds(1), "d/M/yyyy HH:mm"))
But then the parameter shows "14/12/2011" again! In other words, the time part is gone again!
Who invented this stuff? :P
Your formula with .Parse(Format(... causes redundant work that is messing things up. Try this:
=Now().Date().AddSeconds(.001)
Use Format. For example: Format(Parameters!SelectedDate.Value, "d/M/yyyy HH:mm")
Here is a list of DateTime identifiers for use with Format.
Edit:
I get it now, you want 00:00 to show up in the parameter input calendar in the report viewer. The time part won't show up when it's set to midnight. This is by design. If you're using 2005 or earlier, Jamie's solution won't work and you're stuck.
Long time reader etc,
I've a TFS report that I want to alter the sorting on by date. The problem is the sort only seems to consider the day element and the rest isn't considered. For example, the following is happening:
1/7/2011
1/7/2011
1/7/2011
2/12/2010
3/03/2011
3/03/2011
I've looked for a way to specify the datatype on the box in the table but to no avail. Any suggestions?
I've realised the field was being treated as text as the date in question isn't guaranteed to be there and replaced with an empty string if it wasn't.
Two steps have fixed the problem:
Added calculated field to dataset and wrapped an iif around to deal with missing dates as being way off in the future.
=CDate(IIf(IsDate(Fields!My_Date.Value), Fields!My_Date.Value, DateAdd(DateInterval.Year, 10,Now)))
This then forces the field to be treated as a date. I then added a sort on the group on this calculated field which isn't shown in the report and gives the impression that those items with a date get ordered and the rest are left to the other layers of sorting which is correct.
Is there a better way of doing this?
I find it a very efficient way!
I did it myself more complex
Group properties of the field you want to sort on
Sorting
expression:
=Datepart("yyyy",Fields!Datum.Value) & Datepart("m",Fields!Datum.Value) & Datepart("d",Fields!Datum.Value)
It will sort first on year, then on month, then on day
I have a table that contains three columns.
"UserId" type-nvarchar
"PostAuthorId" type-nvarchar
"Post" type-text
This table will contain "wall" posts like in facebook for each user's page. I am going to use a gridview on each user's page to display the posts. The issue is I want to display them with the latest(most current) post being first and the earliest post being last.
I have never used autoincrement before and I am not sure if that is the answer. If it is, I do not know how to use it. I thought about adding a date posted column and then ordering by date.
If I end up using the date column, I could also display the date on the post. Is there a way to convert the date to a readable format?
What is the best way of implementing this type of ordering?
If you use AutoIcrement the first record will start with 1 and each record will increment from there. (default setting)
If you want to sort them by newest first do an ORDER BY ID DESC
I would suggest making a column called wallPostID then setting that to AutoIncrement and also your Primary Key
Date Formating:
If you are displaying this data in a gridView
Go to Edit Columns on your grid view
CLick on the Date field under "Selected Fields" on the bottom left
Under "BoundField properties" on the right Go to Data -> DataFormatString
{0:d} will display as 1/1/2010
This site has more info in string formatting
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/fht0f5be.aspx
A datetime column would definitely work for something like this. Assuming you are using MS-SQL, you can also attach a default value to the column using a built-in function like GETDATE(). That way, you only have to input the data that matters and the database will take care of adding the datetime column.
For converting a datetime to a readable format try:
DateTime postDate;
string value = postDate.ToShortDateString();
You should always use an ID field that auto increments. Can also be used as your PK
I would suggest the DateTime field rather than the autoincrement simply because it will not only serve as an effective Sort field, it also preserves information that you may well want to display. If you want the most recent first you'll sort using the Date and a "DESC" modifier:
Select ... Order By [Date] DESC;
When you retrieve the data, you can retrieve it as a DateTime and modify it using C#. You can use "ToShortDateString()" as suggested by mdresser if you just wish to show the date or ToString("...") if you wish to show the time as well. You can also use SQL to convert it into a string before retrieving it:
convert(Varchar(10), #mydatetime, 101)
If you look in MSDN you'll see the various conversion codes (101 is the code used above) that can be used to translate the date in various ways.
UPDATE: You may want to use an autoincrementing field for your application for reasons other than your expressed need to sort wall entries. They are easy to use - just mark the field as an Identity if using SQL Server (other DBs are similar). As far as using them in your program, just think of the field as an Int field that you never have to set.
Now, why would you use a auto-incrementing field? Perhaps the most straightforward reason is so that they give you have an easy way to identify each record. For example, if you permit people to alter or delete their wall entries, the auto-incrementing field is ideal as it gives you a way to easily look up each record (each record will be assigned its own, unique value). You might put an "x" next to the record like StackOverflow does and make it a call back with the UID (auto-increment) value. Note that you should set up your primary key on the UID field if you'll be doing this.
Now, if you find them useful for this reason then you could also sort by the UID. I would still store the date so that you can provide Date and Time feedback as to when an entry was made on the wall but this would no longer be your indexed or sorted field.