UTC Time Macro

Time is a read-only variable that returns the current UTC time, scaled down by 10,000,000 / 2^32 so that it can fit into a Var0-Z Macro Variable with a 32-bit integer and 32-bit fraction. After scaling back up, the value is the number of seconds since 1 January 1601, with a resolution of 1 msec. This is unlikely to be of much use by itself, but it is intended for timing macro code execution or other events.

For example, to time the execution of the WaitSecs command (or any other macro, loop, or string of commands), use:

    T=Time
    WaitSecs=1.000
    T=(Time - T)<<32 / 10M
    Msg=T + " seconds" 

Although the Time macro has lower resolution (1 msec) than the high-resolution {\b Timer} macro (1 microsecond) it has the advantage that since it uses absolute time, it can be applied across system restarts to measure very long durations.

Alternatively, you may use Time?S to obtain seconds since the most recent UTC midnight, or Time?s for seconds since local midnight. As with Time, these values have 1 msec resolution.

Time?S and Time?s are usually more convenient for things like the HMS Timer / Stopwatch / Alarm macro mini-app, since they don't require the <<32 / 10M scaling operation.

However, note that they can't be used for timing an event that crosses midnight. (UTC midnight for Time?S or local midnight for Time?s.)

See also High-Resolution Timer Macro, Timer Macros, Macro Overview