Summarize some common functions for PHP timestamp conversion

The timestamp conversion function in PHP is a very important tool because PHP is a very useful programming language that is widely used in web development. Because of this, many developers need to use timestamp conversion functions to convert Unix timestamps into more friendly date formats. In this article, we will discuss how to use timestamp conversion function in PHP.

1. What is a timestamp?

The timestamp is the number of seconds from Unix time (00:00:00 UTC at midnight on January 1, 1970) to the present. The timestamp function in PHP usually returns this number, allowing us to do calculations and format it to display the date and time. Timestamps are very useful to programmers because they provide a way to coordinate time on computers around the world using the same time format.

2. Commonly used timestamp functions

In PHP, there are many timestamp functions available. The following are some commonly used timestamp functions:

1. time() function: The time() function returns the current timestamp, which is the distance (in seconds) from the current time to the Unix timestamp.
2. date() function: The date() function is used to format a timestamp into a readable date and time. It can accept mandatory (input format) and optional (time zone) parameters.
3. strtotime() function: The strtotime() function is used to parse a date string into Unix timestamp format.

3. Timestamp conversion example

The following is a timestamp conversion example, in which the timestamp is converted to date format:

<?php
$time_stamp = time();
//使用time()函数获取当前时间戳

$date = date(&#39;Y-m-d H:i:s&#39;, $time_stamp);
//将时间戳格式化为日期格式（yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss）

echo $date;
//输出：当前的日期和时间
?>

The following is an example of using the strtotime() function to convert a date string into a timestamp:

<?php
$date_string = &#39;2021-08-10 16:00:00&#39;;
//定义日期字符串

$time_stamp = strtotime($date_string);
//使用strtotime()函数将字符串转换为Unix时间戳

echo $time_stamp;
//输出：Unix时间戳
?>

4. Summary

In PHP, timestamp conversion function is an essential tool. Almost all web development requires manipulation of time formats. By using the above three commonly used timestamp functions, we can easily convert timestamp to readable date format and date string to timestamp. These functions can greatly save developers' time and energy and are one of the indispensable tools in PHP programming.

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