TODAY Function

Returns the current data and time. This function is based on the local time zone.

Category: Date and Time
Returned data type: Character
Note: The returned value is a date that represents the current date and time value.

Syntax

today(<>)

Details

The today function returns the current date and time value. For example, at 4:00 pm on February 12, 2010, the function would return the value "02/12/10 4:00:00 PM". Although it is represented as a character string, the actual value is a date value.

Before using this function, you must first declare a date variable to contain the date/time value.

Example

The following statements illustrate the today function:

// declare the date variable to contain the date and time

date currentdate

// Use the TODAY function to populate the date variable with the current date and time

currentdate = TODAY()