# Timestamp keeps on slippin' slippin' slippin'.. **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [December 17, 2004, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382 "2004-12-17T18:02:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/1 "2004-12-17T18:02:46Z")
Looks like the previously discussed timelag is manifesting once again. The post timestamps are a couple minutes off from “actual time”. ---
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2004, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/2 "2004-12-18T05:02:15Z")
> [@CandidGamera](#): > > Looks like the previously discussed timelag is manifesting once again. The post timestamps are a couple minutes off from “actual time”. testing… ---
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2004, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/3 "2004-12-18T05:13:24Z")
About 8 minutes. And boy is the Board slow. Get the hamster some more meth! ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2004, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/4 "2004-12-18T06:17:14Z")
The technical staff has indicated to me that slippage will happen . . . and they’re not going to do anything about it. your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/5 "2004-12-19T01:14:45Z")
Not even the occasional reboot for correction? What happens when it loops itself? Walls bleeding in the 53rd precinct! Cats and dogs, living together, total hysteria! ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/6 "2004-12-19T02:23:51Z")
Question: How critical is it the the time stamp be exaxtly coordinated to UTC, GMT, etc. as long as posts are in chronological order and the discrepancy is less than an hour or so. 🙂 Most difference less than 15 minutes to my notice. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/7 "2004-12-19T06:21:47Z")
I did say something to Jerry the Tech God about synching up with one of the accepted time signals. He replied . . . well, for a man with as much knowledge as he has, he must be aware that his suggestion is anatomically impossible. At the very least. For those of you who are eternally bugged by not being exactly on time, I don’t know what to tell you except you’re going to have to get over it. your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![drewbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drewbert/32/15890_2.png) [@drewbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewbert)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/8 "2005-03-17T03:12:03Z")
Just give it a few more weeks and we can all shift our time zone setting to the east by one. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/9 "2005-03-17T03:13:23Z")
> [@drewbert](#): > > Just give it a few more weeks and we can all shift our time zone setting to the east by one. Or west. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/10 "2005-03-17T03:20:02Z")
Test Number One ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/11 "2005-03-17T03:22:30Z")
Test Number Two - slow by 19 minutes. A simple freeware tool such as [WebTime](http://www.gregorybraun.com/WebTime.html) will fix this if a Windoze machine. There are similar tools for other platforms, including built-in tools to ping an atomic clock and adjust the time automatically. ---
**Author:** ![drewbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drewbert/32/15890_2.png) [@drewbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewbert)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/12 "2005-03-17T03:34:45Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > Or west. You’re right of course. I actually sat there and thought about it and still got it wrong! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![drewbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drewbert/32/15890_2.png) [@drewbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewbert)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/13 "2005-03-17T03:36:17Z")
Oh, and apologies for the old-thread bump. I didn’t notice _that_, either. Arrgh. ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/14 "2005-03-17T11:48:47Z")
Even without some sort of software to synch the clock to some standard, it’s just a ten-second fiddle to correct the time on the server. If the server is running some flavor of Windows, it’s no more difficult than setting the time on your PC - it’s some variant of “Start, Control Panel, Date/Time, plug in the right number, click OK.” If it’s running Netware, IIRC, it’s a simple command-line entry, something like “SET TIME 05:12:00.” In the absence of synchronizing software, someone might have to perform this terribly onerous job once a week or so, to keep the clock drift from getting out of hand. When I was a sysadmin, I did it every morning during my first cup of coffee. Why the tech staff is telling the admins that this is some big problem that they’re not prepared to deal with is a complete mystery. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/15 "2005-03-17T14:55:21Z")
It’s not a big problem; just the opposite. The small tech staff at the Reader has so much to do in the course of a regular day that minor concerns like this are wayyyy down on the list. It’s not meant as disrespect, it’s just that there’s only so much time and so much more to do. They will get to it as they can, but it’s not up to the second and right on the spot. your humble TubaDiva ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/16 "2005-03-17T18:40:44Z")
Also: Isn’t the SDMB now hosted on a separate server, outside of the Reader’s offices? It may be that Jerry (upon him be peace) no longer has console-level access to the server, or not easily. In this case, it might be considerably more difficult for him to reset the time, or even impossible. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2005, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/17 "2005-03-17T19:04:27Z")
But if that’s true, why don’t the hosting folks take care of it without our intervention? It would seem to be a simple thing to do with a sync program as a matter of course for all of their servers. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2005, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/timestamp-keeps-on-slippin-slippin-slippin/280382/18 "2005-03-18T19:26:22Z")
I see my question has been answered [post=5961226]here[/post].