Modifying Dates

Dates appear in the format defined on your system. To modify a date, either by selecting the field or when prompted in an Edit Data dialog box:

  1. Enter the new date in the format used by your library, e.g., 06-15-2002 or 15-06-2002 for June 15, 2002. You do not need to enter the hyphens or the first two digits of the year. Alternatively, you can enter one of the following shortcut keys as long as the cursor is in the date field.
Shortcut Keys for Entering Dates
t (Today) Enters today's date
b (Blank) Enters "  -  -    ," which represents a blank date
c (Calendar) Opens the Select Date calendar. Note that you can also double-click inside the date field to open the calendar. (See Entering a Date Using the Calendar.)

    To enter a year that is not in the current century, use Backspace to delete the first two digits of the year, and then enter the complete four-digit year.

  1. If you enter the date in an Edit Data dialog box, choose OK to save the change or Cancel to close the dialog box without modifying the date. Otherwise, press Tab to move to the next field in the record.
Updating the CAT DATE Fixed-length Field

You can update the CAT DATE fixed-length field to the current date by choosing Edit | Update Cat Date.

Entering a Date Using the Calendar

Double-click the date to open the Select Date calendar. The calendar indicates your current activity (e.g., if you are changing the date an item is due, the calendar is named Change Due Date).

Days Closed

When you use the Select Date calendar to choose a date for a single item, the system dims the days that the library is closed. You cannot select a dimmed date. However, if you use the Select Date calendar to choose a date for multiple items that belong to different locations, the system does not dim any days. Instead, it warns you that it cannot display the day(s) that the selected libraries are closed.

To select a date in any Select Date calendar:

  1. To select a year, use the << and >> buttons. The shortcut keys are Shift+Page Up or Shift+Page Down, respectively.
  2. To select the month, use the < and > buttons. The shortcut keys are Page Up or Page Down, respectively.
  3. To select a day, double-click the day, or press Tab to move to the day, press Space to select it, and then choose OK.

To close the calendar without modifying the date, choose Cancel or press Esc.