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+--- Thread: timestamp or int in mysql (/showthread.php?tid=69152)
timestamp or int in mysql - glorsh66 - 10-14-2017
Which is better?
I am making my own user auth lib - and want to wite last activity.
Which is better to use?
RE: timestamp or int in mysql - dave friend - 10-14-2017
Might depend on how you want to use it. Using int, it may be a bit easier and faster to compare values in certain circumstances. For example, you want to see if a certain interval has passed since the last login.
PHP Code:
if($last_login + $check_interval < time()){ ...
On the other hand, the mysql DATETIME type is easily used to make a PHP DateTime object. From there it's easy to get a display string formatted just about any way you want.
The DATETIME type is handy when you want to automatically capture the last time a record is updated. For instance, consider a user profile where a column is defined like this
Code:
`last_updated` timestamp NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP ON UPDATE CURRENT_TIMESTAMPwill capture the update time without any added code on your part.
RE: timestamp or int in mysql - PaulD - 10-14-2017
Personally, I think if you are using a MySQL database, and you want to store a date/time field, then you should use the MySQL date time fields.