Clock / Time Zone Alert

[bcooney]

We have users syncing using laptops all over different timezones. However, there is the possibility that the laptop's time/zone are not set to automatically update and either can be set incorrectly. Moreover, we cannot rely on any internet access. So, a user may travel from Rome to Moscow and never realize that the laptop's clock/zone is wrong. 

We're looking for ideas to at least alert the user that they might have incorrect clock settings.

Ideas welcome.

[comment]

1 hour ago, bcooney said:

alert the user that they might have incorrect clock settings.

Based on what? If I have traveled from Rome to Moscow, and I am not connected to the internet, how can the computer detect it's no longer in Rome?

[bcooney]

I know, comment. I realize we cannot say "your clock is incorrect" but we can say, "Please confirm that the local time is hh:mm and that your offset is +/- n"  and if we want to get fancy, actually show the cities for that offset.

[comment]

3 minutes ago, bcooney said:

but we can say, "Please confirm that the local time is hh:mm

Again, based on what? The computer thinks it's still in Rome - so what would prompt it to alert the local time in Moscow of all places?

[bcooney]

No trigger. We always show this on file open. 

[comment]

Then I don't understand your question. Of course you can show a custom dialog saying something like =

"Your computer's local time is " & Get ( CurrentTime )

and if you like, you can also calculate the offset by comparing it to Get ( CurrentTimeUTCMilliseconds ). The problem here is that users get used to the alert and will dismiss it as a matter of course without thinking.

I'd be careful with the cities, because every city has it's own daylight saving time schedule, and you would have to keep an up-to-date Olson database of your own. 

 

 

Edited September 12, 2017 by comment

[bcooney]

"The problem here is that users get used to the alert and will dismiss it as a matter of course without thinking."

Yep.

Cities - yes, I agree. Most Europeans clients seem very comfortable with offsets.

Just trying to think of some way that we can get the user to check their clock/time zone. Esp. if they grab a laptop from a previous event and don't bother to check the time.

Maybe it's as simple as {{CurrentDate}} {{CurrentTime}} on the Main Menu.

Systems work so much better when there are no users.

[comment]

15 minutes ago, bcooney said:

Systems work so much better when there are no users.

Ain't that the holy truth.

But why do you need to depend on the user? You said this has to do with "users syncing using laptops all over different timezones". I don't know much about syncing, but shouldn't it be based on UTC alone? And if not, what difference does it make if I sync my computer from Rome using Rome time, or do exactly the same thing (sync my computer using Rome time) from Moscow?

 

[bcooney]

Well, users often form a local LAN and work off a host. We'd want all users on that LAN to have accurate clocks.