RE: 24-hour vs. 12-hour time, ambiguity, and abbreviations (was Re: Default date output format changed after an upgrade to buster)
Hi David,
> Where would you use it? Why not just drop 12-hour times?
> I don't think I've ever formatted a 12-hour time on a computer (unless you want to count the example quoted below).
>
Yup, pretty much when we "send" time info to some when it is not life foce-to-face using a 12-hour clock might cause problems. The other party cannot ask us which 10 -o'clock we mean. When I write 22:00 each knows it is 10 in the evening.
On the other hand, when we do talk to someone face-to-face we pretty much always use a 12-hour clock because most of the time we use the time as part of a conversation where an event is being discussed and we need to tell when that event is.
Having dinner at 6 is pretty much always at 18 and almost never at 06. ;-)
> Even accepting that 24:00 Thursday and 00:00 Friday express the same time could be risky unless you know and trust that the source is consistent. That's why people like insurance companies often use 23:59 and 00:01, because to them the exact day matters.
Yup, I have seen it go wrong with a band that thought it would be neat to have a concert starting at midnight and got it wrong on their tickets. :-(
Someone did not realize 0:00 is just one minute before 0:01 on any given day and 24:00 is just one minute after 23:59 on any given day.
Bonno
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