1494a50123
* fix: restructure certifications guide articles * fix: added 3 dashes line before prob expl * fix: added 3 dashes line before hints * fix: added 3 dashes line before solutions
80 lines
3.2 KiB
Markdown
80 lines
3.2 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: Timestamp Microservice
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---
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# Timestamp Microservice
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---
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## Problem Explanation
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- You need to write a microservice that will return a JSON with the date in Unix format and in a human-readable date format. The JSON format is like the example output, "{"unix":1451001600000, "utc":"Fri, 25 Dec 2015 00:00:00 GMT"}".
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- The response depends on the URL. If the API endpoint is hit with no additional information, it returns the JSON with the current time.
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- If the endpoint is hit with a date in unix format, it should calculate the human readable format, and vice versa.
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- Note, the challenge requires a working solution deployed to the internet and a Github repo. You can copy your Glitch intance to your Github, instructions [here:](https://glitch.com/help/github/).
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#### Relevant Links
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- [Date at MDN:](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Date)
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---
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## Hints
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## Hint: 1
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You will need to create the '/api/timestamp/' endpoint separately from the endpoint that reads the date to be parsed from the URL. You won't need a conditional to deal with this endpoint.
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## Hint: 2
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Date.valueOf() and Date.toUTCString() will generate the correct strings for unix: and utc:. No need to import the Moment library!
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## Hint: 3
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The Javascript Date object checks for dates that are invalid dates under ISO-8601. Use a Javascript REPL or a short Node script to try it out. [Here is a free online service that lets you test some JS code.:]https://repl.it/site/languages/javascript
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---
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## Solutions
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<details><summary>Solution 1 (Click to Show/Hide)</summary>
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```javascript
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app.get("/api/timestamp/", (req, res) => {
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res.json({ unix: Date.now(), utc: Date() });
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});
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app.get("/api/timestamp/:date_string", (req, res) => {
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let dateString = req.params.date_string;
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//A 4 digit number is a valid ISO-8601 for the beginning of that year
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//5 digits or more must be a unix time, until we reach a year 10,000 problem
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if (/\d{5,}/.test(dateString)) {
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dateInt = parseInt(dateString);
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//Date regards numbers as unix timestamps, strings are processed differently
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res.json({ unix: dateString, utc: new Date(dateInt).toUTCString() });
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}
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let dateObject = new Date(dateString);
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if (dateObject.toString() === "Invalid Date") {
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res.json({ error: "Invaid Date" });
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} else {
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res.json({ unix: dateObject.valueOf(), utc: dateObject.toUTCString() });
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}
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});
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```
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#### Code Explanation
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- This is a pretty straightforward application of the lessons, Basic Node and Express - Serve JSON on a Specific Route
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and Basic Node and Express - Get Route Parameter Input from the Client. The added wrinkle is the use of Javascript's native Date object.
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- The route parameter is assigned to the variable dateString, and processed accordingly. If it is a 5-or more digit number, it is assumed to be a UNIX timestamp format, and cast into a number and passed to a Date object. Otherwise, it is passed to the Date object as a string.
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- This code has sequential if and if-else statements instead of a switch statement because it is easier to rely on the Date object's ability to reject invalid date formats.
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That's it. There is no intermediate or advanced solution yet. If you have a better, more elegant solution, help us all out and contribute them!
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</details> |