dcdate

dcdate is a compact, machine-friendly date representation used in certain digital content management and metadata workflows. It is described as a lightweight encoding of calendar dates intended to simplify storage, sorting, and indexing, and is sometimes encountered in systems that implement Dublin Core metadata conventions by providing a numeric form of the dc.date element.

Structure and syntax: The basic form is an 8-digit sequence YYYYMMDD (for example, 20241231). An extended form adds a time component, typically after a 'T', such as 20241231T235959. Some implementations omit separators entirely and use a 14-digit form YYYYMMDDThhmmss, or append a trailing 'Z' to indicate UTC, yielding 20241231T235959Z. Time zone information may also be encoded as an offset in the time portion (for example, ±HHMM).

Semantics and validation: The encoding uses the proleptic Gregorian calendar and must yield a valid calendar date; time components, if present, must be within conventional ranges. Validation typically enforces proper year, month, day, hour, minute, and second ranges. For interoperability, dcdate values are usually mapped to ISO 8601 when exchanging data between systems.

Usage and interoperability: In some archival and data-management pipelines, dcdate provides a compact, sortable representation that supports efficient indexing. However, it is not a universal standard; many systems prefer explicit ISO 8601 strings or Dublin Core date literals. Converters and metadata libraries often provide bidirectional mappings between dcdate and ISO 8601.

See also: Dublin Core, ISO 8601, metadata standards, date encoding.

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