NOW ()

Description:

This function returns the serial number of the current date and time.

Syntax: NOW ( )

Remarks

• This function takes no argument.
• By default, January 1, 1900 is serial number 1, and January 1, 2008 is serial number 39448 because it is 39,448 days after January 1, 1900.
• Numbers to the right of the decimal point in the serial number represent the time; numbers to the left represent the date. For example, the serial number .5 represents the time 12:00 noon.
• The NOW function changes only when the slice is re-calculated at a different date or time. It is not updated continuously.

Example

The NOW function can be used in any database where you want to return the serial number that corresponds with the current date and time on your system, in this case it is possible to access this value with the help of this function. This function displays the value of the current date and time as a number corresponding to the serial date which in turn is counted forward from 1^stJanuary, 1900 (this is the base date for "NOW" and other related functions too.)

=NOW ( )

- The current system date and time are converted to a Serial Number and this serial number is returned to as a result for this function. For example, if today's date and time is 07/22/2002, 2pm, then the function would return a value = 37459.58.

 

Let us take the example of the HR database in PowerOLAP which needs to access information that gives the information for the serial date and its value in numbers for the current date and time.  In this case we can write a formula in the appropriate cube in PowerOLAP to write the value returned by the "NOW" function to the appropriate member in any dimension belonging to any cube.



The formula above writes values into the "Staff Date Lookup" cube to the "Staff Date Lookup" dimension into the "NOW" member by calculating the current date and time value that is the current system date and time with the help of the "NOW" function which returns the desired result as a "Serial Number".The NOW function does not takes any parameter, and captures the current system date and time, and by counting forward from 1^stJanuary, 1900, it derives a serial date which is the value returned by the function, and wherein the numbers to the left of the decimal point represent the "date" element while the number to the right of the decimal point represents the "time" element.