On 27 May 2006, wrote:

In sci.physics Alex Coleman wrote:
(1) I see several worthy attempts to write the time in a 24-hour
format. Does a definitive format exist?

I want to leave out the seconds. Also note that I am NOT
referring to computer conventions of any sort.

QUESTION: If it is 11 minutes past six in the evening then what
is the correct format?

1816 hrs
18:16 hrs
18:16 hours
18:16 h
18:16
18.16
18-16

Does it vary between being written by a word processor and by
hand? See below.

(2) What is the correct way to write a decimal point? I am
English and that means that a comma is not the correct symbol for
the decomal point.

But ISTR that when the decimal point was written by hand it was in
the air about half the height of the digits. Typewriters and word
prorcessors did not offer that half-way character so a full stop
was used. But is it more correct to handwrite the decimal point
as half way up the height of the digits?



Ignoring computers leaves military and aviation as users of 24 hour
time.

That was not my intention. I am thinking of this purely for use by the
layman.

As this forum is accessed by computer then I wanted to be clear that
wideley used Unix or Microsoft time formats (however standard in
computing) are not relevant here.


By their convention, when written, the time would be 1816Z if in
UTC, some other letter if a different time zone.

When spoken, it would be eighteen sixteen zulu if in UTC, or
eighteen sixteen local.