Date and time answers

Use Date & Time to record when something happened or is planned. You need Guide edit access to configure the method. The person playing the Guide chooses the value using their device's date or time controls.

Configure the method

1. Open the Field's Answer methods. Choose Add answer method → Date & Time, or select an existing method.
2. Under Capture, select Date & Time, Date only, or Time only.
3. Review Include in reports, the Report wording, and any after-submit action.
4. Set the Field's Response requirement, choose Save block, and test the selected capture mode in Preview.

The method has no author control for a fixed time zone, earliest date, or latest date. Explain the expected date or time in the Field prompt. For method button wording, use chooser settings.

Enter, change, or clear an answer

1. Select the method if a chooser appears.
2. Check Time zone below the input. An unanswered method initially shows the current local date or time; that display alone does not save an answer.
3. Choose the intended value, or select Now to refresh it from the device clock.
4. Select Save answer. Wait for acceptance and resolve any error before continuing.

Now fills the control; it does not save. Time is captured to the minute. Changing a value requires another save. To remove the answer, empty the input and select Save answer.

An unchanged saved answer has a disabled Save answer button. With Return to response methods, saving returns to the chooser; Done with response lets you leave an unchanged saved response. A save may also run the authored action. See response behavior.

Understand dates and time zones

Reports preserve the entered local value, captured time zone, UTC offset, and UTC timestamp. The captured Report value keeps its original time-zone context when viewed elsewhere.

Date only represents midnight in the device's local time zone. Time only uses the date associated with the input when it opens; when editing a saved answer, it retains that answer's date. Now refreshes that date as well as the time.

Reopening the input converts the saved instant to the current device's time zone. Its displayed time, or even its date, can therefore differ from the original Report value. Check the displayed zone and value before saving an edit on another device.

For Guide-to-Form mapping, Date & Time maps to a text field.

Fix common problems

• Invalid date or time: Complete the control. Impossible dates and local times skipped when clocks move forward are rejected; choose a valid time.
• Unexpected time zone: Check the device's time-zone setting and the zone beneath the input before saving.
• Save failed: The selected value remains available. Check the connection and choose Retry save.
• Missing Report answer: Check that the value was saved and the method's Include in reports setting was on. Preview practice answers stay out of the Reports inbox.