secretGeek.netTwo-Way Date-String Conversion (in .Net)
If you need to store and retrieve dates as string (in a CSV file, for example), here's one way to handle it (in VB.net).
(And if you know a better way -- please show me)
Const FORMAT As String = _
"yyyyMMddHHmmss" 'Example format
Dim s1 As String = "20040610140023"
Dim s2 As String
Dim d As Date
'Turn s1 into a date
d = Date.ParseExact _
(s1, FORMAT, _
System.Globalization.DateTimeFormatInfo.InvariantInfo)
'Turn the date back into a string
s2 = String.Format("{0:" & FORMAT & "}", d)
'Compare the starting and final strings
Debug.Assert(s1.Equals(s2), _
"The strings s1 and s2 should be equal")
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