How do I set a timestamp =now() to only be in a specific time zone

AppSheet AppSheet Q&A
1

I am using a form and its inputted all around the world by different users but the main issue is the time stamp feature. Everything is organized and sorted by the time stamp so I need to have the time stamp be in one time zone only. Is there anyway to do this?

2

Hi @appteam6
Would UTC work for you?

3

I need PST. Is that possible?

4

Maybe you could convert UTC to PST. I am not sure what would be best in this situation.

5

Something like UTCNOW()-“007:00:00”

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6

My suggestion: consider converting all local times to UTC when storing (using an action), then converting UTC to local time for display (using a virtual column). The USERTZOFFSET() function returns the number of minutes the user’s local time is offset from UTC (though I don’t know if it includes a sign).

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7

When did USERTZOFFSET() come about?

8

Not sure. Maybe a couple of months ago?

9

I referred to this thread in the following “Tips & Tricks” post:

[Handling multiple time zones](https://community.appsheet.com/t/handling-multiple-time-zones/16720) Tips & Tricks ?

The column type “ChangeTimeStamp” records the date and time a change occurred to another column according to the time zone of the device being used. In many situations this is probably just fine, but what if you need to know the sequence in which events actually occurred? A single user who flies to a different time zone may appear to be doing A after B, when A actually came first. Or, a similar problem will occur when there are multiple users in different time zones. I have learned from expre…

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