Here are two ways to do it in Java:
/*
* Add the TimeZone info to the end of the date:
*/
String dateString = "2012-11-13 14:00:00:000";
SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-M-d H:m:s:S Z");
Date theDate = sdf.parse(dateString + " UTC");
/*
* Use SimpleDateFormat.setTimeZone()
*/
String dateString = "2012-11-13 14:00:00:000";
SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-M-d H:m:s:S");
sdf.setTimeZone(TimeZone.getTimeZone("UTC"));
Date theDate = sdf.parse(dateString);
Note that Date.parse() is deprecated (so I did not recommend it).
Answer from jahroy on Stack OverflowHere are two ways to do it in Java:
/*
* Add the TimeZone info to the end of the date:
*/
String dateString = "2012-11-13 14:00:00:000";
SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-M-d H:m:s:S Z");
Date theDate = sdf.parse(dateString + " UTC");
/*
* Use SimpleDateFormat.setTimeZone()
*/
String dateString = "2012-11-13 14:00:00:000";
SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-M-d H:m:s:S");
sdf.setTimeZone(TimeZone.getTimeZone("UTC"));
Date theDate = sdf.parse(dateString);
Note that Date.parse() is deprecated (so I did not recommend it).
I used Calendar to avoid timezone conversion. Although I did not use new Date(), the result is the same.
String dateString = "2012-11-13 14:00:00:000";
Calendar calendar = Calendar.getInstance();
SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-M-d H:m:s:S");
calendar.setTime(sdf.parse(dateString));
sdf.setTimeZone(TimeZone.getTimeZone("UTC"));
Date date = calendar.getTime();
Assuming you are referring to the part of Florida following EST, you can set the timezone for SimpleDateFormat and set your TimeZone to EST.
SimpleDateFormat format = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss");
format.setTimeZone(TimeZone.getTimeZone("America/New_York"));
Date date = format.parse("2014-01-30 07:48:25");
Your parsed date now can be utilized by your default TimeZone of the system (or set it to your liking as we did in the first place).
TimeZone.setDefault(TimeZone.getTimeZone("UTC"));
System.out.println(date);
The output I get for your date offset to UTC:
Thu Jan 30 12:48:25 UTC 2014
You can provide a "source timezone" to an instance of SimpleDateFormat and the to-be-parsed date string is then converted to your local/default timezone.
TimeZone timeZone = TimeZone.getTimeZone("America/New_York")
SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss")
sdf.setTimeZone(getTimeZone(source));
Be careful when providing the time zone name. TimeZone will silently fail over to GMT if you pass in a string it does not understand as a timezone.
Do you absolutely have to use java.util.Date? I would thoroughly recommend that you use Joda Time or the java.time package from Java 8 instead. In particular, while Date and Calendar always represent a particular instant in time, with no such concept as "just a date", Joda Time does have a type representing this (LocalDate). Your code will be much clearer if you're able to use types which represent what you're actually trying to do.
There are many, many other reasons to use Joda Time or java.time instead of the built-in java.util types - they're generally far better APIs. You can always convert to/from a java.util.Date at the boundaries of your own code if you need to, e.g. for database interaction.
Here is what I used to get today's date with time set to 00:00:00:
DateFormat formatter = new SimpleDateFormat("dd/MM/yyyy");
Date today = new Date();
Date todayWithZeroTime = formatter.parse(formatter.format(today));
You are using a LocalDateTime, which does not contain a timezone - see API:
A date-time without a time-zone in the ISO-8601 calendar system, such as 2007-12-03T10:15:30.
You want to use a ZonedDateTime instead.
LocalDateTime is a date-time without a time-zone:
https://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/api/java/time/LocalDateTime.html
A Timestamp doesn't have a timezone. When you display the timestamp as a String, it displays a time and mentions the timezone, because else you couldn't know what time it represents. And it chooses to use the default timezone (yours), because that's the one you're the most familiar with.
Saying, it's 12:00:00 doesn't mean anything. Saying it's 12:00:00 in your timezone means something. But the timestamp only contains an instant in time. You may display this instant in time in any time zone you want using a DateFormat.
Note: Timestamp.valueOf("2010-10-23 12:05:16"); means "create a timestamp with the given time in the default timezone".
tl;dr
… can I create a java.sql.timestamp without timezone …
No, you cannot. Wrong class. Use java.time.LocalDateTime instead.
Details
A java.sql.Timestamp is the wrong class to use. It represents a moment in UTC with a resolution of nanoseconds.
If you want a date with time-of-day irrespective of time zone or offset-from-UTC (so, not a moment), use another class that is fit-for-purpose.
By the way… The java.sql.Timestamp is a terrible old class badly designed, and was supplanted years ago by the class java.time.Instant (always in UTC) or alternatively java.time.OffsetDateTime if set to an offset of UTC.
LocalDateTime
The proper class for a date with time-of-day without any concept of time zone or offset-from-UTC is LocalDateTime.
As noted above, this means this class is not a moment, not a point on the timeline, and should not be used to track actual points of time when an event happened in some place.
TIMESTAMP WITHOUT TIME ZONE
In a SQL-standard compliant database such as Postgres, use a column of data type TIMESTAMP WITHOUT TIME ZONE (not the WITH type).
LocalDateTime ldt = myResultSet.getObject( … , LocalDateTime.class ) ;
And…
myPreparedStatement.setObject( … , ldt ) ;
About java.time
The java.time framework is built into Java 8 and later. These classes supplant the troublesome old legacy date-time classes such as java.util.Date, Calendar, & SimpleDateFormat.
The Joda-Time project, now in maintenance mode, advises migration to the java.time classes.
To learn more, see the Oracle Tutorial. And search Stack Overflow for many examples and explanations. Specification is JSR 310.
You may exchange java.time objects directly with your database. Use a JDBC driver compliant with JDBC 4.2 or later. No need for strings, no need for java.sql.* classes.
Where to obtain the java.time classes?
- Java SE 8, Java SE 9, Java SE 10, Java SE 11, and later - Part of the standard Java API with a bundled implementation.
- Java 9 adds some minor features and fixes.
- Java SE 6 and Java SE 7
- Most of the java.time functionality is back-ported to Java 6 & 7 in ThreeTen-Backport.
- Android
- Later versions of Android bundle implementations of the java.time classes.
- For earlier Android (<26), the ThreeTenABP project adapts ThreeTen-Backport (mentioned above). See How to use ThreeTenABP….
The ThreeTen-Extra project extends java.time with additional classes. This project is a proving ground for possible future additions to java.time. You may find some useful classes here such as Interval, YearWeek, YearQuarter, and more.
This Question and the Answers are now outmoded. They use old date-time classes outmoded by the java.time framework built into Java 8 and later. The old classes are poorly designed, confusing, and troublesome; Avoid them.
Avoid 3-4 Letter Zone Codes
Avoid the 3-4 letter codes such as BST. They are neither standardized nor unique. They do not actually represent time zones. And they add even more confusion to the problem of Daylight Saving Time (DST).
Instead, use proper time zones. Most are continent/region format such as Europe/London.
Avoid setting default time zone
Calling java.util.TimeZone.setDefault should be done only in the most extreme cases. This call affects all code running in all threads of all apps within the JVM immediately during runtime.
Instead, in all your date-time code, specify the desired/expected time zone. If omitted, Java falls back by implicitly relying on the JVM’s current default time zone. As noted above this default can change at any moment during runtime! Instead, specify explicitly. If you specify your desired/expected time zone as a passed argument routinely then the current default time zone is moot, irrelevant.
java.time
The java.time framework is built into Java 8 and later. See Tutorial. Defined by JSR 310. Inspired by the highly successful Joda-Time library.
Instant
An Instant is a moment on the timeline in UTC.
The following example shows how the java.time classes can parse/generate strings by default if in standard ISO 8601 format, with no need to specify a parsing pattern. Use DateTimeFormatter class to specify other non-standard patterns.
Instant instant = Instant.parse( "2011-12-27T09:00:00Z" );
ZonedDateTime
Apply a time zone as needed, producing a ZonedDateTime.
ZoneId zoneId = ZoneId.of( "America/Montreal" );
ZonedDateTime zdt = instant.atZone( zoneId );
Generating Strings
You can produce textual representations of the ZonedDateTime object using a DateTimeFormatter. You can specify custom patterns. Or, as I recommend, let java.time localize for you.
DateTimeFormatter formatter = DateTimeFormatter.ofLocalizedDateTime( FormatStyle.MEDIUM );
Best to specify the desired/expected Locale for the same reason as time zone… the JVM’s current default can be changed at any moment by any code in any thread of any app running within the JVM. The Locale determines (a) the human language used for names of day & month, and (b) the cultural norms such as commas versus periods and the order of the parts such as month or day or year coming first.
formatter = formatter.withLocale( Locale.CANADA_FRENCH );
String output = zdt.format( formatter );
About java.time
The java.time framework is built into Java 8 and later. These classes supplant the troublesome old legacy date-time classes such as java.util.Date, Calendar, & SimpleDateFormat.
The Joda-Time project, now in maintenance mode, advises migration to the java.time classes.
To learn more, see the Oracle Tutorial. And search Stack Overflow for many examples and explanations. Specification is JSR 310.
You may exchange java.time objects directly with your database. Use a JDBC driver compliant with JDBC 4.2 or later. No need for strings, no need for java.sql.* classes.
Where to obtain the java.time classes?
- Java SE 8, Java SE 9, Java SE 10, Java SE 11, and later - Part of the standard Java API with a bundled implementation.
- Java 9 adds some minor features and fixes.
- Java SE 6 and Java SE 7
- Most of the java.time functionality is back-ported to Java 6 & 7 in ThreeTen-Backport.
- Android
- Later versions of Android bundle implementations of the java.time classes.
- For earlier Android (<26), the ThreeTenABP project adapts ThreeTen-Backport (mentioned above). See How to use ThreeTenABP….
The ThreeTen-Extra project extends java.time with additional classes. This project is a proving ground for possible future additions to java.time. You may find some useful classes here such as Interval, YearWeek, YearQuarter, and more.
I think that you are using the correct pattern for your requirements, however the JDK doesn't know the name of your timezone, so it switches over to using a GMT offset value instead.
When I format a date using your pattern, I get "GMT" for the timezone part.
What does TimeZone.getDefault().getDisplayName() give you? For me, I get "Greenwich Mean Time".
Found out that you can clear the Timezone by using code below:
Calendar cal = Calendar.getInstance();
cal.clear(Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET);
Calendars and Dates mean nothing without a TimeZone.
Calendars and dates cannot exist without a timezone.
You can't ignore completely any timezone.
You can create a Calendar for Greenwich Mean Time (offset zero) like this:
TimeZone zone = TimeZone.getTimeZone("Etc/GMT");
Calendar cal = Calendar.getInstance(zone);
This represents a Date/Calendar that is only meaningful in the GMT timezone.
It sounds like you want a timestamp, which represents an instant in time.
Adding a bit more info and examples to the correct answers (accepted answer and other one).
UPDATE Added section at end on java.time classes. These supplant Joda-Time.
Purpose of LocalDateTime
You may be confused about the purpose of LocalDateTime.
If trying to represent a date-time value using "wall clock time" as seen by someone in a locality looking at their own clock and calendar, then adjust the time zone of the DateTime object to suit the desired locality.
LocalDateTime is not meant for a particular locality but for the general idea of date+time. For example, "This year's Christmas starts at midnight on December 25, 2014". Conceptually, that is a LocalDateTime, intended to mean different moments in Paris than Montréal and Auckland.
Adjusting Time Zone
Use the DateTimeZone class in Joda-Time to adjust to a desired time zone. Joda-Time uses immutable objects. So rather than change the time zone ("mutate"), we instantiate a new DateTime object based on the old but with the desired difference (some other time zone).
Use proper time zone names. Generally a continent/cityOrRegion.
DateTimeZone zoneParis = DateTimeZone.forID( "Europe/Paris" );
DateTimeZone zoneMontréal = DateTimeZone.forID( "America/Montreal" );
DateTimeZone zoneAuckland = DateTimeZone.forID( "Pacific/Auckland" );
Parse string, assign a time zone, adjust to other time zones.
DateTime dateTimeParis = new DateTime( "2015-07-09T05:10:00+02:00" , zoneParis );
DateTime dateTimeMontréal = dateTimeParis.withZone( zoneMontréal );
DateTime dateTimeAuckland = dateTimeParis.withZone( zoneAuckland );
Dump to console.
System.out.println( "dateTimeParis: " + dateTimeParis );
System.out.println( "dateTimeMontréal: " + dateTimeMontréal );
System.out.println( "dateTimeAuckland: " + dateTimeAuckland );
When run.
dateTimeParis: 2015-07-09T05:10:00.000+02:00
dateTimeMontréal: 2015-07-08T23:10:00.000-04:00
dateTimeAuckland: 2015-07-09T15:10:00.000+12:00
Localize Using Formatted Strings
Joda-Time can translate to a particular locale’s language and customary style when creating a string representation of your date-time object.
DateTimeFormatter formatterMontréal = DateTimeFormat.forStyle( "FF" ).withZone( zoneMontréal ).withLocale( Locale.CANADA_FRENCH );
String outputMontréal = formatterMontréal.print( dateTimeParis );
System.out.println( "outputMontréal: " + outputMontréal );
When run:
outputMontréal: mercredi 8 juillet 2015 23 h 10 EDT
java.time
The Joda-Time project, now in maintenance mode, advises migration to the java.time classes. The Joda-Time framework inspired java.time, so concepts are quite similar.
ZoneId and ZoneOffset are the two classes to represent a time zone and offset-from-UTC respectively. An offset is merely a number of hours and minutes and seconds. A time zone is an offset plus a set of rules for handling anomalies such as Daylight Saving Time (DST).
ZoneId zoneParis = ZoneId.of( "Europe/Paris" );
ZoneId zoneMontreal = ZoneId.of( "America/Montreal" );
ZoneId zoneAuckland = ZoneId.of( "Pacific/Auckland" );
The primary date-time classes in java.time are:
Instant– A moment on the timeline in UTC with a resolution of nanoseconds (up to nine (9) digits of a decimal fraction).OffsetDateTime– AnInstantplus aZoneOffset.ZonedDateTime– AnInstantplus aZoneId.
The java.time classes use ISO 8601 standard formats by default when parsing/generating strings representing date-time values. So no need to specify a formatting pattern with such inputs.
This input here indicates an offset-from-UTC but not a full time zone. So we parse as an OffsetDateTime rather than a ZonedDateTime.
OffsetDateTime odt = OffsetDateTime.parse( "2015-07-09T05:10:00+02:00" );
As the basic building-block of java.time, always in UTC by definition, you may want to extract an Instant.
Instant instant = odt.toInstant(); // `Instant` is always in UTC by definition.
You can adjust into a time zone.
ZonedDateTime zdtParis = odt.atZoneSameInstant( zoneParis );
ZonedDateTime zdtMontreal = odt.atZoneSameInstant( zoneMontreal );
ZonedDateTime zdtAuckland = zdtMontreal.withZoneSameInstant( zoneAuckland );
Localize via the DateTimeFormatter class.
DateTimeFormatter f = DateTimeformatter.ofLocalizedDateTime( FormatStyle.FULL ).withLocale( Locale.CANADA_FRENCH );
String output = zdtMontreal.format( f );
See live code in IdeOne.com.
odt: 2015-07-09T05:10+02:00
instant: 2015-07-09T03:10:00Z
zdtParis: 2015-07-09T05:10+02:00[Europe/Paris]
zdtMontreal: 2015-07-08T23:10-04:00[America/Montreal]
zdtAuckland: 2015-07-09T15:10+12:00[Pacific/Auckland]
output: mercredi 8 juillet 2015 23 h 10 EDT
About java.time
The java.time framework is built into Java 8 and later. These classes supplant the troublesome old legacy date-time classes such as java.util.Date, Calendar, & SimpleDateFormat.
The Joda-Time project, now in maintenance mode, advises migration to the java.time classes.
To learn more, see the Oracle Tutorial. And search Stack Overflow for many examples and explanations. Specification is JSR 310.
Where to obtain the java.time classes?
- Java SE 8 and SE 9 and later
- Built-in.
- Part of the standard Java API with a bundled implementation.
- Java 9 adds some minor features and fixes.
- Java SE 6 and SE 7
- Much of the java.time functionality is back-ported to Java 6 & 7 in ThreeTen-Backport.
- Android
- The ThreeTenABP project adapts ThreeTen-Backport (mentioned above) for Android specifically.
- See How to use….
The ThreeTen-Extra project extends java.time with additional classes. This project is a proving ground for possible future additions to java.time. You may find some useful classes here such as Interval, YearWeek, YearQuarter, and more.
What @Nazgul said is right, but in case all you want to achieve is a "wall-time" in UTC zone you can do something like that:
DateTime dateTimePlus2 = DateTime.parse("2015-07-09T05:10:00+02:00");
System.out.println(dateTimePlus2);
DateTime dateTimeUTC = dateTimePlus2.withZone(DateTimeZone.UTC);
System.out.println(dateTimeUTC);
LocalDateTime localDateTimeUTC = dateTimeUTC.toLocalDateTime();
System.out.println(localDateTimeUTC);
Result:
2015-07-09T05:10:00.000+02:00
2015-07-09T03:10:00.000Z ("Z" == Zulu tz == UTC)
2015-07-09T03:10:00.000
As you can see, the time is not "07:10" as you expected, because UTC+2 zone is two hours ahead of UTC. Converting to UTC subtracts 2 hours.
How about some pedantic detail.
java.util.Date is timezone-independent. Says so right in the javadoc.
You want something with respect to a particular timezone? That's java.util.Calendar.
The tricky part? When you print this stuff (with java.text.DateFormat or a subclass), that involves a Calendar (which involves a timezone). See DateFormat.setTimeZone().
It sure looks (haven't checked the implementation) like java.util.Date.toString() goes through a DateFormat. So even our (mostly) timezone-independent class gets messed up w/ timezones.
Want to get that timezone stuff out of our pure zoneless Date objects? There's Date.toGMTString(). Or you can create your own SimpleDateFormatter and use setTimeZone() to control which zone is used yourself.
why is that?
Because something like "Oct 4th 2009, 14:20" is meaningless without knowing the timezone it refers to - which you can most likely see right now, because that's my time as I write this, and it probably differs by several hours from your time even though it's the same moment in time.
Computer timestamps are usually measured in UTC (basically the timezone of Greenwich, England), and the time zone has to be taken into account when formatting them into something human readable.