Display Options for Date/Time Fields

Date/Time fields store dates and time values. Date/Time fields can display the date only, date and time, time only, or Elapsed Time.

The following information applies to Date/Time fields:

Date/Time values are stored in the DBMS native date data type.
Values for Date/Time fields set to record time only or elapsed time are stored as integers. Assuming a default value of "Now", the value stored in the database is equal to the number of seconds that have passed since 12:00:00 a.m. in the submitter's or modifier's time zone.
The system interprets Unix time in Date/Time fields that are not set as elapsed time fields. For example, if users enter 09092008 into a Date field, the date is saved as 04/16/1970. The date entered was interpreted as Unix time, which is seconds since Jan. 1, 1970.

The following display options are defined in SBM Composer:

Default Value — Indicates the prefilled value for this field.
Date and Time (mm/dd/yyyy hh:mm:ss) — Used to display date and time values.
Date Only (mm/dd/yyyy) — Used to display date values only.
Time of Day (hh:mm:ss) — Used to display time values only.
Elapsed Time ([days] hh:mm:ss) — Stores a value representing an elapsed time in hours, minutes, and, optionally, seconds. Users can provide an elapsed time in the format specified on the form (d hh:mm:ss, d hh:mm, hh:mm:ss, or hh:mm) or type an integer to represent the number of hours that should appear in the field. The following settings apply to elapsed time:
- Stopwatch — Allows users to record elapsed time. The stopwatch starts recording time when users open a form. They can edit the elapsed time by typing a new value in the field when the stopwatch is paused. You can also place a number in the default value as the starting time of the stopwatch. For example, type 0:10:00 in the default value to start the stopwatch at the 10-minute mark. Leave this value empty to start the stopwatch at 0.
  Note: The timer does not record elapsed time if the field is moved to the Hidden Fields section. The stopwatch only records time when a form is open, so hiding the Stopwatch field in a state does not affect elapsed time. You must hide the Stopwatch field in the specific transition if you do not want it to record time. If the Stopwatch field is read-only or is placed in a field section the user does not have privileges or preferences to view, the timer still records elapsed time while the form is open. If the user cancels the transition or resets the form, the elapsed time is not saved.
- Calculate Days — Calculates the number of days from the provided value and displays the value using the format d hh:mm:ss. For example, if a user enters an integer such as 50 in the field, it is interpreted as hours, calculated into days, and the value appears as 2 2:00:00, if you choose to display seconds. Users can also manually type the number of days using the d hh:mm:ss format. This property is useful for fields such as Time to Fix. Note that the elapsed days do not appear on forms until at least one full day has elapsed.
- Show Seconds — Displays the elapsed time values in 00:00:00 format. If cleared, elapsed time values display in 00:00 format. Note that seconds are stored in the database, but are only displayed if the Show Seconds check box is selected.