matlab datenum to excel datetime

Hello Forum, This might really be an Excel question, but is there an Excel method that converts the Matlab datenum to an Excel date time, in Excel?

Thanks

Answer 1

[Azzi Abdelmalek]

That mean you are exporting your data from Matlab to Excell, then you can set the format you need in Matlab and export it to Excell file. Example

yourdates=datestr(datenum(2013,1,(1:365)),'dd-mmm-yyyy')
xlswrite('file.xls',cellstr(yourdates))

Then in Excell you can use other formats

Answer 2

[Oleg Komarov]

In MATLAB you can convert MATLAB datenums into EXCEL datenums with the function m2xdate(). Then export to excel and set the column with the serial dates to type date.

Answer 3

[Jan]

What kind of "Excel date time" do you mean? The serial date number? See:

• http://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/46465
• http://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/25582
• m2xdate (Financial Toolbox)

Please note, that Excel uses another start point for the serial datenumbers when run on Macs, 1904 instead of 1900. Isn't this cute?

[adams13]

Now it is even better, Excel for windows has a setting "Use 1904 date system". You have to activate it to let Excel show negative time differences (all the dates in the workbook will be changed if you change it).

So, if you whant to read/write the date from Matlab, you have to figure out which system is used in a particular file and provide correct parameter to

matlab_value = datetime(excel_value, 'ConvertFrom', 'excel')
matlab_value = datetime(excel_value, 'ConvertFrom', 'excel1904')

or another way

excel_value = exceltime(matlab_value, '1900')
excel_value = exceltime(matlab_value, '1904')

[Rik]

As if you would need additional reasons to doubt the interoperability of Excel.