02/08/85  date_time_interval, dti

Syntax as a command:  dti {time_string1} time_string2 {-control_args}


Syntax as an active function:
   [dti {time_string1} time_string2 {-control_args}]


Function: returns the difference between two date values, relative to
the first, in offset terms: "0 yr 0 mo -2 da -6 hr 0 min -4.64 sec".
You are able to specify that the result be only in terms of certain
units.


Arguments:
time_string1
   is the beginning of the interval.  If not specified, the current
   time is used (see "Notes").
time_string2
   is the end of the interval.  If the end is earlier than the
   beginning, all numbers are preceeded by a minus sign (see "Notes").


Control arguments:
-brief, -bf
   specifies that the units displayed are in the abbreviated form
   (Default).
-fractional_digits {N}, -fd {N}
   specifies the maximum number of fractional digits to be included on
   the smallest unit.  The value being formatted is rounded to the
   number of digits specified.  All trailing zeros are removed and then
   the decimal point if it is last.  N can't exceed 20.  If you supply
   no N, the maximum is used.  (Default: 2)
-zero_units, -zu
   specifies that all units are output even if their value is zero
   (e.g., "2 da 0 hr 0 min 4.2 sec".


-language STR, -lang STR
   STR specifies the language in which the result is to be expressed.
   This can be in any of the languages known to the date/time system.
   If STR is "system_lang", the system default is used.  If you choose
   no -language or it is present with STR being "", the per-process
   default is used.  Use the display_time_info command to obtain a list
   of acceptable language values.
-long, -lg
   specifies that the units displayed are in the singular/plural form.
-no_zero_units, -nzu
   specifies that any unit that has a value of zero are not included in
   the output; however if all units are zero, the smallest is shown
   with the value of "0".  Example: "2 da 4.2 sec".  (Default)


-units STRs
   specifies that the result is to be expressed in terms of a given set
   of units.  All arguments following -units on the command line are
   taken as the set of units to use; therefore make -units, if given,
   the last control argument.  You can enter the units in any language
   available on the site and in any order.  All units, however, must be
   in the same language.  These are the units that you can specify:
   year, month, week, day, hour, minute, second, and microsecond.  The
   output appears in that order.


Notes: When you specify no units, this set is used--years, months,
days, hours, minutes, seconds.  A default result could look like this:
"-2 da -6 hr -4.05 sec"; but if the arguments given were: -fd -units
hr min, the same interval could be: -54 hr -0.0676252166666666666 min.
Note that there is a truncation in the first instance to two decimal
places with the corresponding loss of accuracy.

See time_strings.gi for a description of valid time_string values.


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Historical Background

This edition of the Multics software materials and documentation is provided and donated
to Massachusetts Institute of Technology by Group BULL including BULL HN Information Systems Inc. 
as a contribution to computer science knowledge.  
This donation is made also to give evidence of the common contributions of Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
Bell Laboratories, General Electric, Honeywell Information Systems Inc., Honeywell BULL Inc., Groupe BULL
and BULL HN Information Systems Inc. to the development of this operating system. 
Multics development was initiated by Massachusetts Institute of Technology Project MAC (1963-1970),
renamed the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence in the mid 1970s, under the leadership
of Professor Fernando Jose Corbato. Users consider that Multics provided the best software architecture 
for managing computer hardware properly and for executing programs. Many subsequent operating systems 
incorporated Multics principles.
Multics was distributed in 1975 to 2000 by Group Bull in Europe , and in the U.S. by Bull HN Information Systems Inc., 
as successor in interest by change in name only to Honeywell Bull Inc. and Honeywell Information Systems Inc. .

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Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute these programs and their documentation for any purpose and without
fee is hereby granted,provided that the below copyright notice and historical background appear in all copies
and that both the copyright notice and historical background and this permission notice appear in supporting
documentation, and that the names of MIT, HIS, BULL or BULL HN not be used in advertising or publicity pertaining
to distribution of the programs without specific prior written permission.
    Copyright 1972 by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Honeywell Information Systems Inc.
    Copyright 2006 by BULL HN Information Systems Inc.
    Copyright 2006 by Bull SAS
    All Rights Reserved