I've attached a note I received from Tom Hofmann, slightly edited at Tom's request. --ado ... Date: Wed, 28 Jan 87 16:56:27 -0100 From: seismo!mcvax!cgcha!wtho (Tom Hofmann) Message-Id: <8701281556.AA22174@cgcha.uucp> ... Subject: Time zone handling ... ... Let me say something about European time rules. First of all, I'm surprised to find the zone MET for Central Europe in file 'europe'. The correct expression is CET (Central European Time), although it's not the first time I found the expression MET. Maybe the best is a link between MET and CET. Secondly, the European time rules are much more complex than described in 'europe'. It is standardized since 1981, when most European countries started DST. Before that year, only a few countries (UK, France, Italy) had DST, each according to national rules. In 1981, however, DST started on 'Apr firstSun', and not on 'Mar lastSun' as in the following years. So we should set 1981 for FROM, and ignore the past. But also since 1981 there are some more national exceptions than listed in 'europe': Switzerland, for example, joined DST one year later, Denmark ended DST on 'Oct 1' instead of 'Sep lastSun' in 1981---I don't know how they handle things now. Finally, DST is always from 'Apr 1' to 'Oct 1' in the Soviet Union (as far as I know). 'europe' should be corrected in that sense, but perhaps you better make a query to Usenet first---maybe you'll find somone who knows more about national exceptions to European time rules. Tom Hofmann, Scientific Computer Center, CIBA-GEIGY AG, 4002 Basle, Switzerland UUCP: ...!mcvax!cernvax!cgcha!wtho