detecting user's timezone

[newbie]

Hi,

I wonder if it's possible to detect a user (the browser's) timezone
when he/she access my php file? I saw ppl suggesting using javascript
to collect that information. But I wonder if it's possible to do it
without the headache of javascript.
Thanks,
<?php
// (1) here I somehow get his/her timezone
// (2) here fill his/her login timestamp into database----
apparently, this timestamp should be converted to a unified time
zone.
?>

[Rami Elomaa]

Jerry Stuckle kirjoitti:

Rami Elomaa wrote:

>ZeldorBlat kirjoitti:

> If you're converting the time to a "unified time zone" why do you care
what timezone they're in? Why would you be recording the time from
the client in your database?

Not record, just show. Naturally it makes sense to record a global
time timestamp, like GMT, but people still like to see a time
displayed in their local timezone, so the OP wants to know how to get
it and then convert GMT to local time, just for _displaying_ it to
user. It's common localization practise. Wikipedia for one does this.

I've got two analog clocks on the walls, a watch on my wrist, and a
digital clock on my toolbar. What makes you think I need your site to
tell me what time it is?

As for Wikipedia - I don't see any clock on the pages when I view them.

You can include a clock if you want - but it looks stupid.

Oh good grief... Not a clock, TIME! Like for example: an auction that
ends on 12:00 am GMT time. I want to see it converted into my local,
Finland timezone, which would be 10:00am.

--
Ra*********@gma il.com

"Wikipedia on vähän niinq internetin raamattu, kukaan ei pohjimmiltaan
usko siihen ja kukaan ei tiedä mikä pitää paikkansa." -- z00ze

[Jerry Stuckle]

Rami Elomaa wrote:

Jerry Stuckle kirjoitti:

>Rami Elomaa wrote:

>>ZeldorBlat kirjoitti:
If you're converting the time to a "unified time zone" why do you
care
what timezone they're in? Why would you be recording the time from
the client in your database?

Not record, just show. Naturally it makes sense to record a global
time timestamp, like GMT, but people still like to see a time
displayed in their local timezone, so the OP wants to know how to get
it and then convert GMT to local time, just for _displaying_ it to
user. It's common localization practise. Wikipedia for one does this.

I've got two analog clocks on the walls, a watch on my wrist, and a
digital clock on my toolbar. What makes you think I need your site to
tell me what time it is?

As for Wikipedia - I don't see any clock on the pages when I view them.

You can include a clock if you want - but it looks stupid.

Oh good grief... Not a clock, TIME! Like for example: an auction that
ends on 12:00 am GMT time. I want to see it converted into my local,
Finland timezone, which would be 10:00am.

That's not what we're talking about here, Rami.

And I want to see how many hours and minutes before it ends.

--
=============== ===
Remove the "x" from my email address
Jerry Stuckle
JDS Computer Training Corp.
js*******@attgl obal.net
=============== ===

[Kevin Wells]

In message <11************ **********@z28g 2000prd.googleg roups.com>
newbie <mi******@yahoo .comwrote:

>Hi,

I wonder if it's possible to detect a user (the browser's) timezone
when he/she access my php file? I saw ppl suggesting using javascript
to collect that information. But I wonder if it's possible to do it
without the headache of javascript.

Would it not be possible to do this from their IP address?

--
Kev Wells http://kevsoft.topcities.com
http://kevsoft.co.uk/
ICQ 238580561
Useless Fact 04 The number of islands around mainland Britain is 6289.

[Lars Eighner]

In our last episode,
<16************ **@talktalk.net >,
the lovely and talented Kevin Wells
broadcast on comp.lang.php:

In message <11************ **********@z28g 2000prd.googleg roups.com>
newbie <mi******@yahoo .comwrote:

>>Hi,

I wonder if it's possible to detect a user (the browser's) timezone
when he/she access my php file? I saw ppl suggesting using javascript
to collect that information. But I wonder if it's possible to do it
without the headache of javascript.

Would it not be possible to do this from their IP address?

You could probably beat outright guessing in that way, but there is no
reliable relationship between IP and geography, no necessary relationship
between the IP making the request and the user's actual IP at any given
moment, and again no necessary relationship between the user's actual IP at
any moment and geography.

You might get it right most of the time, but you will get it wrong a
significant part of the time, and in some cases you'll get it wrong in an
absurd way --- such as claiming the page was last updated some time in the
future.

--
Lars Eighner <http://larseighner.com/ <http://myspace.com/larseighner>
Countdown: 561 days to go.
Friends of Lizbeth: help replace failed a/c at Austin's no-kill shelter
<https://secure.groundsp ring.org/dn/index.php?aid=1 2349>

[houghi]

Lars Eighner wrote:

>Would it not be possible to do this from their IP address?

You could probably beat outright guessing in that way, but there is no
reliable relationship between IP and geography, no necessary relationship
between the IP making the request and the user's actual IP at any given
moment, and again no necessary relationship between the user's actual IP at
any moment and geography.

Guessing is a bit wrong. I would say guestimating.

You might get it right most of the time, but you will get it wrong a
significant part of the time, and in some cases you'll get it wrong in an
absurd way --- such as claiming the page was last updated some time in the
future.

Most of the times would be good enough for most of the sites. You can do
a first guestimate and then have a cookie so that people can change it
and have the correct time whenever they come back.

The accuracy would also depend on what you intend to do with it.

houghi
--
_______________ _________ Open your eyes, open your mind
| proud like a god don't pretend to be blind
| trapped in yourself, break out instead
http://openSUSE.org | beat the machine that works in your head

[Jerry Stuckle]

Kevin Wells wrote:

In message <11************ **********@z28g 2000prd.googleg roups.com>
newbie <mi******@yahoo .comwrote:

>Hi,

I wonder if it's possible to detect a user (the browser's) timezone
when he/she access my php file? I saw ppl suggesting using javascript
to collect that information. But I wonder if it's possible to do it
without the headache of javascript.

Would it not be possible to do this from their IP address?

Well, for instance, a lot of larger companies have a few proxies for
their users, and those proxies may or may not be in the same country -
much less the same time zone.

The same is true for some ISP's - like AOL.

--
=============== ===
Remove the "x" from my email address
Jerry Stuckle
JDS Computer Training Corp.
js*******@attgl obal.net
=============== ===

[Rami Elomaa]

Jerry Stuckle kirjoitti:

Rami Elomaa wrote:

>Jerry Stuckle kirjoitti:

>>Rami Elomaa wrote:
ZeldorBlat kirjoitti:
If you're converting the time to a "unified time zone" why do you
care
what timezone they're in? Why would you be recording the time from
the client in your database?

Not record, just show. Naturally it makes sense to record a global
time timestamp, like GMT, but people still like to see a time
displayed in their local timezone, so the OP wants to know how to
get it and then convert GMT to local time, just for _displaying_ it
to user. It's common localization practise. Wikipedia for one does
this.
I've got two analog clocks on the walls, a watch on my wrist, and a
digital clock on my toolbar. What makes you think I need your site
to tell me what time it is?

As for Wikipedia - I don't see any clock on the pages when I view them.

You can include a clock if you want - but it looks stupid.

Oh good grief... Not a clock, TIME! Like for example: an auction that
ends on 12:00 am GMT time. I want to see it converted into my local,
Finland timezone, which would be 10:00am.

That's not what we're talking about here, Rami.

No, that's why I said it was an example. That was just an example of a
possible situation where a user might want to see a timestamp converted
to their local time.

And I want to see how many hours and minutes before it ends.

So it was not very good example. It was the first thing that I could
think of.

The original case was to let the user see when they last time logged in.
And the point of it all was how to aquire local timezone to display the
timestamp (which is stored in the database, perhaps as GMT) converted
into users local timezone. And this is what _I've_ been talking about
the whole time, believe it or not.

Please bare with me. If I don't make sense sometimes (or most of the
time) it's just because English isn't my native language. I do my best
to express myself but sometimes I obviously fail.

--
Ra*********@gma il.com

"Wikipedia on vähän niinq internetin raamattu, kukaan ei pohjimmiltaan
usko siihen ja kukaan ei tiedä mikä pitää paikkansa." -- z00ze

[Jerry Stuckle]

Rami Elomaa wrote:

Jerry Stuckle kirjoitti:

>Rami Elomaa wrote:

>>Jerry Stuckle kirjoitti:
Rami Elomaa wrote:
ZeldorBla t kirjoitti:
If you're converting the time to a "unified time zone" why do
you care
>what timezone they're in? Why would you be recording the time from
>the client in your database?
>
Not record, just show. Naturally it makes sense to record a global
time timestamp, like GMT, but people still like to see a time
displayed in their local timezone, so the OP wants to know how to
get it and then convert GMT to local time, just for _displaying_ it
to user. It's common localization practise. Wikipedia for one does
this.
>

I've got two analog clocks on the walls, a watch on my wrist, and a
digital clock on my toolbar. What makes you think I need your site
to tell me what time it is?

As for Wikipedia - I don't see any clock on the pages when I view them.

You can include a clock if you want - but it looks stupid.
Oh good grief... Not a clock, TIME! Like for example: an auction that
ends on 12:00 am GMT time. I want to see it converted into my local,
Finland timezone, which would be 10:00am.

That's not what we're talking about here, Rami.

No, that's why I said it was an example. That was just an example of a
possible situation where a user might want to see a timestamp converted
to their local time.

>And I want to see how many hours and minutes before it ends.

So it was not very good example. It was the first thing that I could
think of.

The original case was to let the user see when they last time logged in.
And the point of it all was how to aquire local timezone to display the
timestamp (which is stored in the database, perhaps as GMT) converted
into users local timezone. And this is what _I've_ been talking about
the whole time, believe it or not.

Please bare with me. If I don't make sense sometimes (or most of the
time) it's just because English isn't my native language. I do my best
to express myself but sometimes I obviously fail.

Rami,

You're English is actually quite good, IMHO. And one can always argue
there are "reasons" for displaying certain information, like when the
user logged in. But that wasn't the question here.

And if you want to know what timezone they're in, just ask them and
store it in their profile. No problem and no JS needed.

--
=============== ===
Remove the "x" from my email address
Jerry Stuckle
JDS Computer Training Corp.
js*******@attgl obal.net
=============== ===

[Satyakaran]

On Jul 8, 3:34 am, Rami Elomaa <rami.elo...@gm ail.comwrote:

ZeldorBlat kirjoitti:

If you're converting the time to a "unified time zone" why do you care

what timezone they're in? Why would you be recording the time from
the client in your database?

Not record, just show. Naturally it makes sense to record a global time
timestamp, like GMT, but people still like to see a time displayed in
their local timezone, so the OP wants to know how to get it and then
convert GMT to local time, just for _displaying_ it to user. It's common
localization practise. Wikipedia for one does this.

--
Rami.Elo...@gma il.com

"Wikipedia on vähän niinq internetin raamattu, kukaan ei pohjimmiltaan
usko siihen ja kukaan ei tiedä mikä pitää paikkansa." -- z00ze

Yes I also came to this conclusion after a client told me that he want
their site ready for 3-4 zone with differnt setting.

http://satya61229.blogspot.com