Now

Description

Obtains the current time based on the system time of the client machine.

Syntax

Now ( )

Returns

Time. Returns the current time based on the system time of the client machine.

Usage

Use Now to compare a time to the system time or to display the system time on the screen. The timer interval specified for the DataWindow object determines the frequency at which the value of Now is updated. For example, if the timer interval is one second, it is updated every second. The default timer interval is one minute (60,000 milliseconds).

Examples

Example 1

This expression returns the current system time:

Now()

Example 2

This expression sets the column value to 8:00 when the current system time is before 8:00 and to the current time if it is after 8:00:

If(Now() < 08:00:00, '08:00:00', String(Now()))

The displayed time refreshes every time the specified time interval period elapses.

Example 3

If a static value of time is required (for example, the time when a report has been executed or the retrieve has started), you can use a static text field that you modify as follows:

//Set the time when the report was executed in 
//the text field t_now

dw1.Modify("t_now.text='"+ String(Now(),"hh:mm")+"'")

//execute the report

dw1.retrieve() 

See also