Posted by Snef on 12/17/28 11:54

date() returns server time. gmdate returns GMT (UTC) time.

All the dates in my database are stored as GMT/UTC and I display the users local
time onscreen.

Marcus wrote:
> Marcus wrote:
>> Hello,
>>
>> I need a timezone to store timestamps in that is independent of
>> daylight saving. From everything I've read, it seems I want either
>> GMT or UTC. The only problem is I can't figure out from any
>> documentation I've read if there is any difference (practically
>> speaking, not scientifically and taking into account the earth's orbit
>> etc).
>>
>> I can set my server timezone to GMT, but if I want UTC I will have to
>> use putenv('TZ=UTC'). Could someone please confirm if they are in
>> fact the same or if one is better, and if I am correct in stating that
>> neither is affected by daylight saving? Lastly, if I set my server to
>> GMT (or UTC for that matter), am I also correct in saying that in that
>> case gmmktime() and gmdate() are the exact same as mktime() and
>> date()? Thank you very much in advance for your help.
>
> I should elaborate on my first point and ask additionally if a call to:
>
> mktime(12, 0, 0, 5, 10, 2007);
>
> for example, will always return the exact same timestamp in either GMT
> or UTC timezone and vice versa, i.e. 1 timestamp resulting in the exact
> same 12:00:00 readout via date() whether GMT or UTC. Thanks.

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