Configure the @stringToDateTime function

This function converts a string (usually from another document property) to a date/time value

Use this procedure to configure the @stringToDateTime function. This function converts a string to a date and time in the format specified. The string could be an extracted variable or another document property. This function inserts the configured date/time into a date/time document property.

  1. Right-click in the appropriate document property and click Insert Function > @stringToDateTime. This opens the @StringToDateTime dialog box.
  2. In the FieldSource box, specify how you want to retrieve the date/time that will be inserted in the document property. You can do this using one of the following methods:
    MethodDescription
    FieldSource Right-click in the box, click Insert Document Property, and select the document property from the list.
    Output Variable Right-click in the box, click Insert Variables, and select the output variable from the list. You can also enter the output variable directly in the box. The variable must be surrounded with curly braces {}. The output variables are from an Advanced Document Modification rule or an extraction variable from an extract rule (line mode or page mode) or burst rule (line mode or page mode).
  3. In the Format box, enter the format the date/time string will use when it is inserted into the document property.
    See Format grids for descriptions of the available formats.
  4. In the Culture box, specify the culture name of the data in the document.
    The default is the current culture of the computer where the Output Manager Console is running. When culture is not specified, the culture independent CultureInfo.InvariantCulture is used.
  5. Click OK.
The function is inserted into the document property using one of the following formats:
  • @stringToDateTime(FieldSource,Format)
  • @stringToDateTime(FieldSource,Format,Culture)
  • @stringToDateTime({OutputVariable},Format)
  • @stringToDateTime({OutputVariable},Format,Culture)