How can I convert the Typescript string to a date object?

General Discussions
#1

How can I convert a string to a Date object in TypeScript within an Angular2 application?

For example, if I have the following string:

let dateString = '1968-11-16T00:00:00';

How can I convert the Typescript string to a date object?

Note: I’m specifically looking for a solution in TypeScript and Angular2, not in JavaScript or AngularJS 1.x.

#2

Hi Anju,

You can directly pass the string to the Date constructor, which will parse the string and create a Date object.

let dateString = '1968-11-16T00:00:00';
let dateObject = new Date(dateString);

This is a straightforward approach that works well with standard date string formats like ISO 8601.

#3

Here’s a function to convert a string to a boolean value in TypeScript:

export const stringToBoolean = (str: string | null | undefined): boolean => {
    if (!str) {
        return false;
    }
    if (typeof str === "string") {
        return !["0", "false", "no", "n", "null", "undefined", "nil"]
            .includes(str.toLowerCase().trim());
    }
    return Boolean(str);
}

This function checks if the input string is null or undefined and returns false in such cases. If the input is a string, it converts it to lowercase, trims any whitespace, and compares it against a list of values that should be considered as false. Any value not in this list is considered true. For non-string inputs, it converts them to boolean using the Boolean constructor.

#4

You can also try this approach for converting values to boolean:

function parseBoolean(value?: string | number | boolean | null): boolean {
    value = value?.toString().toLowerCase();
    return value === 'true' || value === '1';
}

This function converts the input to a string, then checks if it matches ‘true’ or ‘1’. Including additional values like “no”, “yes”, and “y” could complicate the logic and lead to unexpected results, so it’s best to keep it straightforward unless there’s a specific need for those cases.

#5

If your application involves more complex date manipulation, using a date library like moment.js can be more robust.

import * as moment from 'moment';

let dateString = '1968-11-16T00:00:00';
let dateObject = moment(dateString).toDate();

This approach provides more flexibility and options for handling dates and times, especially when dealing with various formats or time zones.