Quick Tip – Converting JSON Serialized .NET DateTime to JavaScript Date

Quick Tip – Converting JSON Serialized .NET DateTime to JavaScript Date

When you are using the controller JSON method in ASP.NET MVC or scriptable WCF services you sometimes have to serialize a .NET DateTime property. The DataContractJsonSerializer will serialize it into the following format:

/Date(1235398665390)/ 

This format indicate to the client side parsers that the data fragment that was sent is a date representation.
But how can you convert it to a JavaScript Date object?

There are a few methods:

• “Brutal Force”: Extract the number using regular expression or substring functions and pass it to the Date object which get the time in milliseconds in its constructor:
  

  var date = new Date(1235398665390);

• Server Side Approach: Send to the client side not a .NET DateTime but the total milliseconds and then use the same constructor from the previous bullet. You should pay attention that JavaScript’s base date is 1/1/1970. The following code can help:
  

  var baseDate = new DateTime(1970, 1, 1); 

  var currentDate = DateTime.Now.ToUniversalTime(); 

  TimeSpan ts = new TimeSpan(dcurrentDate.Ticks - baseDate.Ticks); 

  return ts.TotalMilliseconds;

• The Eval Way: on the client side use the eval function to evaluate and create the Date object:
  

  var date = eval("new " + dateFromTheServer.slice(1, -1));

  
  Where the dateFromTheServer is in the format which was presented at the top of the post.

There are probably other ways which can help you. What is your way?

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