node-dateformat
A node.js package for Steven Levithan's excellent dateFormat() function.
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Quick Overview
The node-dateformat
library is a simple and lightweight date formatting utility for Node.js. It provides a convenient way to format dates and times in a variety of formats, making it a useful tool for developers working with dates in their Node.js applications.
Pros
- Simplicity: The library has a straightforward and easy-to-use API, making it accessible for developers of all skill levels.
- Flexibility: The library supports a wide range of date and time formats, allowing developers to customize the output to their specific needs.
- Lightweight: The library has a small footprint and does not introduce any additional dependencies, making it a good choice for projects with limited resources.
- Cross-platform: The library works consistently across different platforms and environments, ensuring reliable date formatting regardless of the deployment environment.
Cons
- Limited Functionality: While the library provides a good set of basic date formatting features, it may not offer the full range of functionality found in more comprehensive date/time libraries.
- Lack of Internationalization: The library primarily focuses on English-based date formats and may not provide robust support for localization or internationalization.
- Potential Compatibility Issues: As the library has not been actively maintained for several years, there may be potential compatibility issues with newer versions of Node.js or other dependencies.
- Lack of Active Development: The project has not seen significant updates or improvements in recent years, which may limit its ability to keep up with evolving date/time formatting requirements.
Code Examples
Here are a few examples of how to use the node-dateformat
library:
const dateFormat = require('dateformat');
// Format a date using a predefined format
const currentDate = new Date();
console.log(dateFormat(currentDate, 'yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:ss')); // Output: 2023-04-18 12:34:56
// Use custom format strings
console.log(dateFormat(currentDate, 'd mmmm, yyyy')); // Output: 18 April, 2023
// Localize the date format
console.log(dateFormat(currentDate, 'dddd, mmmm d, yyyy', 'de')); // Output: Dienstag, April 18, 2023
Getting Started
To use the node-dateformat
library in your Node.js project, follow these steps:
- Install the library using npm:
npm install dateformat
- Import the
dateformat
function in your JavaScript file:
const dateFormat = require('dateformat');
- Use the
dateFormat
function to format dates and times:
const currentDate = new Date();
const formattedDate = dateFormat(currentDate, 'yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:ss');
console.log(formattedDate); // Output: 2023-04-18 12:34:56
- Customize the date format using the available format specifiers:
const formattedDate = dateFormat(currentDate, 'd mmmm, yyyy');
console.log(formattedDate); // Output: 18 April, 2023
- Localize the date format by passing a language code as the third argument:
const formattedDate = dateFormat(currentDate, 'dddd, mmmm d, yyyy', 'de');
console.log(formattedDate); // Output: Dienstag, April 18, 2023
That's the basic usage of the node-dateformat
library. Refer to the project's documentation for more advanced usage and available format specifiers.
Competitor Comparisons
Parse, validate, manipulate, and display dates in javascript.
Pros of Moment.js
- Moment.js provides a comprehensive set of features for working with dates and times, including parsing, formatting, manipulation, and localization.
- The library has a large and active community, with a wide range of plugins and extensions available.
- Moment.js is highly customizable, allowing developers to configure the library to suit their specific needs.
Cons of Moment.js
- Moment.js has a relatively large file size, which can impact the performance of web applications, especially on mobile devices.
- The library has been criticized for its reliance on mutable state, which can make it more difficult to reason about and test.
- Moment.js is not actively maintained, and the project's maintainers have recommended using alternative libraries like Luxon or date-fns for new projects.
Code Comparison
Moment.js:
const moment = require('moment');
const now = moment();
console.log(now.format('MMMM Do YYYY, h:mm:ss a')); // Output: April 12th 2023, 3:30:00 PM
node-dateformat:
const dateFormat = require('dateformat');
const now = new Date();
console.log(dateFormat(now, 'mmmm dS, yyyy, h:MM:ss TT')); // Output: April 12th, 2023, 3:30:00 PM
Both libraries provide similar functionality for formatting dates and times, but the syntax and API differ slightly.
⏳ Modern JavaScript date utility library ⌛️
Pros of date-fns/date-fns
- Comprehensive Functionality: date-fns provides a wide range of date and time manipulation functions, covering a broad set of use cases.
- Modular Design: date-fns is designed in a modular way, allowing developers to import only the functions they need, reducing bundle size.
- Extensive Documentation: date-fns has excellent documentation, including detailed examples and usage guides.
Cons of date-fns/date-fns
- Larger Bundle Size: Despite its modular design, date-fns can still result in a larger bundle size compared to node-dateformat, especially if only a few functions are needed.
- Slower Performance: Some date-fns functions may be slower than their node-dateformat counterparts, particularly for simple date formatting tasks.
- Dependency on Lodash: date-fns relies on the Lodash library for some utility functions, which may be a concern for developers who want to minimize dependencies.
Code Comparison
node-dateformat:
const dateformat = require('dateformat');
const now = new Date();
console.log(dateformat(now, 'yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:ss'));
date-fns:
const { format } = require('date-fns');
const now = new Date();
console.log(format(now, 'yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss'));
⏰ Day.js 2kB immutable date-time library alternative to Moment.js with the same modern API
Pros of iamkun/dayjs
- Smaller Size: dayjs is significantly smaller in size compared to node-dateformat, making it a more lightweight option for projects with size constraints.
- Intuitive API: dayjs provides a more intuitive and user-friendly API, making it easier to work with date and time operations.
- Extensive Functionality: dayjs offers a wide range of functionality, including support for internationalization, time zones, and various date/time manipulation methods.
Cons of iamkun/dayjs
- Dependency on Moment.js: dayjs is designed to be a lightweight alternative to Moment.js, but it still relies on some Moment.js functionality, which may be a concern for some users.
- Limited Customization: dayjs has a more limited set of customization options compared to node-dateformat, which offers a more flexible and extensible approach to date formatting.
- Potential Performance Impact: while dayjs is generally faster than Moment.js, it may still have a slightly higher performance impact compared to node-dateformat, especially for simple date formatting tasks.
Code Comparison
node-dateformat:
const dateFormat = require('dateformat');
const now = new Date();
console.log(dateFormat(now, 'yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:ss'));
dayjs:
const dayjs = require('dayjs');
const now = dayjs();
console.log(now.format('YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm:ss'));
Both examples achieve the same result of formatting the current date and time, but the dayjs version has a more concise and intuitive API.
Lightweight and simple JS date formatting and parsing
Pros of Fecha
- Smaller Size: Fecha is a smaller library, weighing in at around 2KB gzipped, compared to node-dateformat's 5KB.
- Faster Performance: Fecha is generally faster than node-dateformat in date formatting operations.
- Simpler API: Fecha has a more straightforward API, with fewer options and a more focused feature set.
Cons of Fecha
- Limited Functionality: Fecha has a more limited set of features compared to node-dateformat, which offers a wider range of formatting options and locales.
- Fewer Locales: Fecha currently supports a smaller set of locales compared to node-dateformat.
- Newer Library: Fecha is a newer library, with a smaller community and potentially less mature development compared to the more established node-dateformat.
Code Comparison
node-dateformat:
const dateFormat = require('dateformat');
const now = new Date();
console.log(dateFormat(now, 'yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:ss'));
Fecha:
const fecha = require('fecha');
const now = new Date();
console.log(fecha.format(now, 'YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm:ss'));
The main difference in the code is the API used for formatting the date. node-dateformat uses a string-based format, while Fecha uses a more concise, character-based format.
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dateformat
A node.js package for Steven Levithan's excellent dateFormat() function.
Modifications
- Removed the
Date.prototype.format
method. Sorry folks, but extending native prototypes is for suckers. - Added a
module.exports = dateFormat;
statement at the bottom - Added the placeholder
N
to get the ISO 8601 numeric representation of the day of the week
Installation
$ npm install dateformat
$ dateformat --help
Usage
As taken from Steven's post, modified to match the Modifications listed above:
import dateFormat, { masks } from "dateformat";
const now = new Date();
// Basic usage
dateFormat(now, "dddd, mmmm dS, yyyy, h:MM:ss TT");
// Saturday, June 9th, 2007, 5:46:21 PM
// You can use one of several named masks
dateFormat(now, "isoDateTime");
// 2007-06-09T17:46:21
// ...Or add your own
masks.hammerTime = 'HH:MM! "Can\'t touch this!"';
dateFormat(now, "hammerTime");
// 17:46! Can't touch this!
// You can also provide the date as a string
dateFormat("Jun 9 2007", "fullDate");
// Saturday, June 9, 2007
// Note that if you don't include the mask argument,
// dateFormat.masks.default is used
dateFormat(now);
// Sat Jun 09 2007 17:46:21
// And if you don't include the date argument,
// the current date and time is used
dateFormat();
// Sat Jun 09 2007 17:46:22
// You can also skip the date argument (as long as your mask doesn't
// contain any numbers), in which case the current date/time is used
dateFormat("longTime");
// 5:46:22 PM EST
// And finally, you can convert local time to UTC time. Simply pass in
// true as an additional argument (no argument skipping allowed in this case):
dateFormat(now, "longTime", true);
// 10:46:21 PM UTC
// ...Or add the prefix "UTC:" or "GMT:" to your mask.
dateFormat(now, "UTC:h:MM:ss TT Z");
// 10:46:21 PM UTC
// You can also get the ISO 8601 week of the year:
dateFormat(now, "W");
// 42
// and also get the ISO 8601 numeric representation of the day of the week:
dateFormat(now, "N");
// 6
Mask options
Mask | Description |
---|---|
d | Day of the month as digits; no leading zero for single-digit days. |
dd | Day of the month as digits; leading zero for single-digit days. |
ddd | Day of the week as a three-letter abbreviation. |
DDD | "Ysd", "Tdy" or "Tmw" if date lies within these three days. Else fall back to ddd. |
dddd | Day of the week as its full name. |
DDDD | "Yesterday", "Today" or "Tomorrow" if date lies within these three days. Else fall back to dddd. |
m | Month as digits; no leading zero for single-digit months. |
mm | Month as digits; leading zero for single-digit months. |
mmm | Month as a three-letter abbreviation. |
mmmm | Month as its full name. |
yy | Year as last two digits; leading zero for years less than 10. |
yyyy | Year represented by four digits. |
h | Hours; no leading zero for single-digit hours (12-hour clock). |
hh | Hours; leading zero for single-digit hours (12-hour clock). |
H | Hours; no leading zero for single-digit hours (24-hour clock). |
HH | Hours; leading zero for single-digit hours (24-hour clock). |
M | Minutes; no leading zero for single-digit minutes. |
MM | Minutes; leading zero for single-digit minutes. |
N | ISO 8601 numeric representation of the day of the week. |
o | GMT/UTC timezone offset, e.g. -0500 or +0230. |
p | GMT/UTC timezone offset, e.g. -05:00 or +02:30. |
s | Seconds; no leading zero for single-digit seconds. |
ss | Seconds; leading zero for single-digit seconds. |
S | The date's ordinal suffix (st, nd, rd, or th). Works well with d . |
l | Milliseconds; gives 3 digits. |
L | Milliseconds; gives 2 digits. |
t | Lowercase, single-character time marker string: a or p. |
tt | Lowercase, two-character time marker string: am or pm. |
T | Uppercase, single-character time marker string: A or P. |
TT | Uppercase, two-character time marker string: AM or PM. |
W | ISO 8601 week number of the year, e.g. 4, 42 |
WW | ISO 8601 week number of the year, leading zero for single-digit, e.g. 04, 42 |
Z | US timezone abbreviation, e.g. EST or MDT. For non-US timezones, the GMT/UTC offset is returned, e.g. GMT-0500 |
'...' , "..." | Literal character sequence. Surrounding quotes are removed. |
UTC: | Must be the first four characters of the mask. Converts the date from local time to UTC/GMT/Zulu time before applying the mask. The "UTC:" prefix is removed. |
Named Formats
Name | Mask | Example |
---|---|---|
default | ddd mmm dd yyyy HH:MM:ss | Sat Jun 09 2007 17:46:21 |
shortDate | m/d/yy | 6/9/07 |
paddedShortDate | mm/dd/yyyy | 06/09/2007 |
mediumDate | mmm d, yyyy | Jun 9, 2007 |
longDate | mmmm d, yyyy | June 9, 2007 |
fullDate | dddd, mmmm d, yyyy | Saturday, June 9, 2007 |
shortTime | h:MM TT | 5:46 PM |
mediumTime | h:MM:ss TT | 5:46:21 PM |
longTime | h:MM:ss TT Z | 5:46:21 PM EST |
isoDate | yyyy-mm-dd | 2007-06-09 |
isoTime | HH:MM:ss | 17:46:21 |
isoDateTime | yyyy-mm-dd'T'HH:MM:sso | 2007-06-09T17:46:21+0700 |
isoUtcDateTime | UTC:yyyy-mm-dd'T'HH:MM:ss'Z' | 2007-06-09T22:46:21Z |
Localization
Day names, month names and the AM/PM indicators can be localized by passing an object with the necessary strings. For example:
import { i18n } from "dateformat";
i18n.dayNames = [
"Sun",
"Mon",
"Tue",
"Wed",
"Thu",
"Fri",
"Sat",
"Sunday",
"Monday",
"Tuesday",
"Wednesday",
"Thursday",
"Friday",
"Saturday",
];
i18n.monthNames = [
"Jan",
"Feb",
"Mar",
"Apr",
"May",
"Jun",
"Jul",
"Aug",
"Sep",
"Oct",
"Nov",
"Dec",
"January",
"February",
"March",
"April",
"May",
"June",
"July",
"August",
"September",
"October",
"November",
"December",
];
i18n.timeNames = ["a", "p", "am", "pm", "A", "P", "AM", "PM"];
Notice that only one language is supported at a time and all strings must be present in the new value.
Breaking change in 2.1.0
- 2.1.0 was published with a breaking change, for those using localized strings.
- 2.2.0 has been published without the change, to keep packages refering to ^2.0.0 to continue working. This is now branch v2_2.
- 3.0.* contains the localized AM/PM change.
License
(c) 2007-2009 Steven Levithan stevenlevithan.com, MIT license.
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