Date Class in Java

Constructor

The constructors of the date class are listed below.

Let's have a look at an example to see how to use them.

Example

The following code snippet explains the implementation of the constructors of Date Class.

Implementation

• Java

Java

import java.util.*;
public class Ninja
{
      public static void main(String[] args)
   {
      Date d1 = new Date(); //Use of Date()
      System.out.println("The Current date is " + d1);
      Date d2 = new Date("2018 Jun 28"); //Date(String s)
      System.out.println("The Date represented is "+ d2 );
   }
}

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Output

The Current date is Thu Jun 09 13:42:12 IST 2022
The Date represented is Thu Jun 28 00:00:00 IST 2018

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Explanation

The first constructor initialises the current date. The second constructor converts the date from String format to Date format.

Let's go on to understand the various methods of the Java Date class. Try it on java online compiler.

Methods of java. util.Date

Certainly! Here is a table that explains the methods of `java.util.Date`:

Method

The methods of the date class are listed below.

Let's have a look at an example to see how to use them.

Example

The following code snippet explains the uses of the methods of Date Class.

Implementation

• Java

Java

import java.util.*;
public class Ninja 
{
      public static void main(String[] args)
   {
      Date d1 = new Date(2001, 05 , 28);
      Date d2 = new Date(); // It initialises the Current date
      Date d3 = new Date(2012, 1, 3);
      boolean a = d3.after(d1);
      System.out.println("Date 3-1-2012 comes after " +"date 28-05-2001: " + a);
      int c = d1.compareTo(d2);
      System.out.println(c); // 1
      System.out.println("Milliseconds from Jan 1 "+"1970 to date 28-05-2001 is " + d1.getTime());
      System.out.println("Before Changing The Date"+d2);
      d2.setTime(507587433443L); //The New date in Milliseconds is passed as argument
      System.out.println("The new Date is "+d2);
   }
}

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Output

Date 3-1-2012 comes after date 28-05-2001: true
1
Milliseconds from Jan 1 1970 to date 28-05-2001 is 60951810600000
Before Changing The DateThu Jun 09 13:59:30 IST 2022
The new Date is Sat Feb 01 02:00:33 IST 1986

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Explanation

The first statement prints true because date 3-1-2012 comes after date 28-05-2001.
The second statement prints 1 because the invoking date is greater than the former one.
The third statement prints the value in milliseconds from Jan 1, 1970.
The fourth and fifth statements print the dates before and after changing, respectively.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a package in Java?

A Java package is a collection of similar classes, interfaces, and sub-packages.

What is the java.util package?

The java.util package contains a collections framework, legacy collection classes, date and time facilities, event model, internationalisation, and other utility classes are all included (a string tokenizer, a random-number generator, and a bit array).

How to write date in Java?

To write the current date in Java, you can use the LocalDate class from the java.time package:

LocalDate currentDate = LocalDate.now(); System.out.println(currentDate);

This prints the current date in the format YYYY-MM-DD.

Which method of the date class is used to compare two dates?

The compareTo() method is used to compare two date values.

Conclusion

In this article, we have extensively discussed the Date Class in Java along with the details of its constructors, methods, and examples.
We hope that this blog has helped you enhance your knowledge regarding the Date Class in Java, and if you would like to learn more about Data Structures and Algorithms, you can enroll in our course on DSA in Java.

Recommended Readings:

Multiple Inheritance in Java.