Did you remember to change your clocks? It’s Daylight Saving Time again.

by Steve Ragan - Mar 8 2009, 05:00

Daylight Saving Time, DST for short, is often the cause for missed television shows, missed appointments, and for some the mental block of one hour less sleep. At 02:00 AM local time, depending on where you live, you will need to move the clock forward one hour. Other parts of the world will move back one hour, and some remain the same. Clock changes will take place all month long. Oh the joy.

Did you remember to change your clocks? It’s Daylight Savings Time again. (IMG: HLC Hotels)

Business IT and DSTExactly what does DST mean to you? Well, server logs for one thing will need to be checked. Unless the server logs are set using GMT, then there might be what appears to be a gap in data recording. This isn’t major, but it might give some pause and make others wonder what happened come Monday should they forget. Sometimes, patches that are minor in scope - such as those related to time - are forgotten. Check desktops to ensure they are on the correct time. At home with DSTFor those of you are home, geeky or not, DST can just drive you nuts. To make things simple, on March 8, 2009 at 02:00 AM local time (no matter where you live, 02:00 AM for you is always local time) move your clock forward to 03:00 AM. This applies to The United States, Canada, The United Kingdom, Cuba, and France. (Though not all of France and the UK, to be technically correct.)If you live in Hawaii, Arizona, Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Midway Islands, or Mariana Islands, there is no DST change needed.If you live in Paraguay, on March 8, 2009 12:00 MIDNIGHT move the clock backwards one hour to 11:00 PM local time. If you live in Uruguay, on March 8, 2009 at 02:00 AM move the clock backwards to 01:00 AM. Later in the month, on March 15, 2009, those of you in Argentina will move the clock backwards one hour at 12:00 MIDNIGHT local time to 11:00 PM. Depending on where you live in Chile, you will move the clock backwards on hour on March 15, from 10:00 PM to 9:00 PM or from 12:00 MIDNIGHT to 11:00 PM.March 28 and 29, April 2, 4, 5, 19, and 23 are all the other dates where clocks need to be moved forward or backward one hour. If you want to see the complete list, and check out where in the world you need to live to move your clock back one hour on April 4 or forward one hour on April 23, go here.Another hassle with DST changeover stems from the resetting of smaller appliances. TV sets, clock radios, car radios, VCR’s, DVD players, etc. each need to be changed as well. To that end there is an online search bank, which will help you locate the manual should you need it, so you can actually work the appliance and change the clock.Go to this address: http://www.retrevo.com/setyourclockOnce there, enter the model number and the brand name of the appliance you need the manual for, the search tool will try to locate a PDF copy for you. While the site asks for registration, you can skip that and go straight to the manual by entering a CAPTCHA (series of numbers) and downloading the file. Not all manuals are there, but many of them are present, so that is a plus. To test the site, and prove that registration was not needed, the sample search term “Panasonic dmr es25 set clock” was used. The manual appeared as expected and contained clock instructions. A second test, using “Sony VCR SLV N750” as the search term, yielded the same results.The reason some appliances need adjusting and others don’t depends on when they were made, and could have something to do with how the US altered the dates for DST in 2007. Often referred as the Y2k7 problem, you can learn more about it here. So what if you missed the changes? What if you woke up early Sunday morning and realize the world is an hour ahead of you? This goes without saying really, simply move the clocks backwards or forwards depending on where you live. In some cases, do nothing at all.As a final tip, while you are changing clocks and adjusting the “missing” one hour, change the batteries in your home smoke detectors. [Edit: Added exclusions, altered title -SR]

Comment on this Story

Interested in a more interactive TTH? Join our Facebook Group
Want regular updates from The Tech Herald? Follow us on Twitter

Comment on this Story

Note our older Talkback system is still running below. We hope to import existing comments into the new system shortly. Guest posting is still allowed, however, you can now login with any number of social network accounts.

Talkback

Add your comment (no registration required)

page: 1 2

Peregrino78Mar 8th, 2009 - 05:45:30

It is Daylight Saving Time, not Daylight Saving(s) time.

Report this comment

joeMar 8th, 2009 - 06:02:23

daylight savings time makes no sense. Everyone in the world should turn our calendars back 10 years so we can all be 10 years younger. Then 100 years later we can turn them back 10 years so everyone gets to live 10 years longer.

Report this comment

jgMar 8th, 2009 - 06:18:25

As the first poster mentioned, it is daylight SAVING, not daylight SAVINGS time. I figured a tech site would be a little smarter than this.

Report this comment

DanMar 8th, 2009 - 06:44:50

This article is wrong; it's not everywhere. Arizona and Hawaii do not observe DST. The time stays the same there all year around. They don't buy into this artificial bullsh*t.

Report this comment

Tim ParentiMar 8th, 2009 - 07:09:11

Numerous errors. Please do some research on the topic, as it's really not that hard to find.

As already mentioned, it's 'Daylight Saving Time,' without the extra 'S' on 'Saving.'

The United Kingdom and France are on the European Union schedule, which does not change its clocks until 29 March 2009 at 01:00 UTC (at the same instant in all time zones, unlike the North American method).

And again, most of Arizona, virtually all of Saskatchewan, and all of Hawaii do not observe DST and thus do not change.

Report this comment

RTFAMar 8th, 2009 - 08:16:09

'At 02:00 AM local time, depending on where you live, you will need to move the clock forward one hour. Other parts of the world will move back one hour, and some remain the same.'

So if you follow DST - change the clocks. Some places will change, some will not. Obviously if you do not follow DST you will not change. It's already mentioned.

Notice the link to the timeanddate.com? Again, that page list's every place that changes. UK and France are both listed on the 8th. Maybe not all of the UK and France but it is listed there.

Not sure about the Saving(s) time thing. Maybe an overlook?

Report this comment

SteevoMar 8th, 2009 - 09:13:18

Google posted you here. Time change is the issue?

I think the issue in financials is Google voted Obama. Do people wonder why?

Report this comment

Medusa84Mar 8th, 2009 - 09:33:59

The article clearly states which areas will not be changing times.

'If you live in Hawaii, Arizona, Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Midway Islands, or Mariana Islands, there is no DST change needed.'

I recommend you read the entire article before you comment. Sheer ignorance.

Report this comment

aksMar 8th, 2009 - 09:48:04

I knew I was bored but I see that some of you are really bored!

Report this comment

HarleyMar 8th, 2009 - 09:52:45

Well, I live in Germany.... we don't change our clocks for a couple more weeks.

Report this comment

page: 1 2

Add your comment (no registration required)