TUI setting to choose if time columns are shown as date-time or time spans

[marcelpaulo]

It would be useful to have a TUI setting to choose whether time columns (activity, completed, ...) are shown as date-time or as time spans.

I see that stig info shows them both as date-time and time spans, so I take it there's already code in place to evaluate the time spans.

I added column completed to the default columns, so that I could check for how long torrents have been seeding. As the format is date-time, I catch myself translating mentally the date-times to time spans.

Coming to think about it, time spans are more useful than date-times when showing time columns. I guess what one needs from looking at them is: how long ago that event (activity, torrent completed, ...) happened, and not the exact date/time.

My father uses μtorrent on Windows 10, and helping him out I noticed that μtorrent uses time spans to show date/time, and it felt more natural.

But then again, I might be wrong, so it might be good to have a TUI setting to choose.

[rndusr]

Internally, conversion between time spans and dates already exists. The only question is how to expose that to the user.

I find dates about as useful as time spans. It depends on the situation.

I'd like the option of having the same time twice, as a time span and as a date. But duplicating every time column would increase the total list of columns by quite a bit. Not sure I'd like that.

Adding a modifier to the column name (e.g. "eta:rel" or "eta:abs") could solve that more elegantly, but that'd be a lot harder to implement.

Adding an option would definitely be the easiest option, but also the least flexible.

[marcelpaulo]

I'd like the option of having the same time twice, as a time span and as a date

This goes to show I was being simplistic, exclusive-or thinking :-(

Adding a modifier to the column name (e.g. "eta:rel" or "eta:abs") could solve that more elegantly

Indeed !

Adding an option would definitely be the easiest option, but also the least flexible

There are 3 scenarios for displaying time columns:

1. All as relative
2. All as absolute
3. Mixed

Right now, (1) is not covered at all, (2) is fully covered, and (3) is covered as best effort (one can info specific torrents when needs relative times).

Although not flexible, with a setting: (1) and (2) would be fully covered, and (3) would still be best effort.

Not ideal, as you demonstrated, but would cover more usage cases.

[rndusr]

Scenario 2 (all as absolute) is actually not covered because of the 'eta' column, which is displayed as a time span.

I'll see how feasible it is to go the modifier route when I get to this issue.