In the shell you can specify the date format as follows:
date + FORMAT
For example typing:
$ Date +% m-% d-% y "
You get:
04-17-10
If you want the 4-digit year:
$ Date +% m-% d-% y "
You get:
04-17-2010
Step ahead for the current time just type:
$ Date + "% T"
You get:
19:55:04
For superior computing time based on 12 hours:
$ Date + "% r"
You get:
07:56:05 PM
To view the time in HH: MM:
$ Dates + "% H-% M"
You get:
07:56
Complete list of options to format the dates ask:
- %%
- a literal%
- % To
- Local's abbreviated weekday name (eg, Sun)
- % A
Local's full weekday name (eg, Sunday)
- % B
- Local's abbreviated month name (eg, Jan)
- % B
- Local's full month name (eg, January)
- % C
- Local's date and time (eg, Mon March 3 23:05:25 2005)
- % C
- century, like% Y, EXCEPT omit last two digits (eg, 21)
- % D
- Day of month (eg, 01)
- % D
dates; Same as% m /% d /% y
- % And
- day of month, space padded; Same as% _D
- % F
- Full dates; Same as% Y-% m-% d
- % G
- last two digits of year of ISO week number (see% G)
- % G
- Year of ISO week number (see% V); Normally useful only with% V
- % H
- Same as% b
- % H
hour (00 .. 23)
- % I
- hour (01 .. 12)
- % J
- Day of year (001 .. 366)
- % K
- hour (0 .. 23)
- % S
- hour (1 .. 12)
- % M
- month (01 .. 12)
- % M
minute (00 .. 59)
- % N
- a newline
- % N
- nanoseconds (000000000 .. 999999999)
- % P
- Either's local equivalent of AM or PM, blank if not known
- % P
- like% p, But lower case
- % R
- local's 12-hour clock time (eg, 11:11:04 PM)
- % R
24-hour hour and minute; Same as% H:% M
- % S
- Since seconds 01/01/1970 00:00:00 UTC
- % S
- second (00 .. 60)
- % T
- Tabbed
- % T
- time; Same as% H:% M:% S
- % U
- Day of Week (1 .. 7), 1 is Monday
- % U
Week number of year, with Sunday as first day of week (00 .. 53)
- % V
- ISO week number, with Monday as first day of week (01 .. 53)
- % W
- Day of week (0 .. 6), 0 is Sunday
- % W
- Week number of year, with Monday as first day of week (00 .. 53)
- % X
- Local's date representation (eg, 12/31/1999)
- % X
- Local's time representation (eg, 23:13:48)
- % Y
last two digits of year (00 .. 99)
- % Y
- year
- % Z
- + Hhmm numeric timezone (eg, -0400)
- % Z
- + Hh: mm numeric timezone (eg, -04: 00)
- %:: Z
- + Hh: mm: ss numeric time zone (eg, -04: 00:00)
- %::: Z
- numeric time zone with: Necessary to precision (eg, -04, +05:30)
- % Z
- alphabetic time zone abbreviation (eg, EDT)