[How To] Date & Time in Menu Bar

[bobw]

This is a tip from http://www.macosxhints.com;

10.3: Add the date to the menubar clock
*Thu, Nov 20 '03 at 11:10AM • from: jpkelly

I found a way to add the date to the menubar clock in Panther. Open ~/Library -> Preferences -> .GlobalPreferences.plist in your favorite text editor. Look for theAppleICUTimeFormatStrings section. In my file, it looked like this:
<key>AppleICUTimeFormatStrings</key>
<dict>
*<key>1</key>
*<string>h':'mm' 'a</string>
*<key>2</key>
*<string>h':'mm':'ss' 'a</string>
*<key>3</key>
*<string>h':'mm':'ss' 'a z</string>
*<key>4</key>
*<string>h':'mm':'ss' 'a z</string>

I found that modifying the <key>2</key> string changed my menu bar clock -- your mileage may vary. I changed the code so it lookes like this:
<key>2</key>
<string>d' 'h':'mm':'ss' 'a</string>

Note that I added d' ' right after the <string> tag. The d represents the date, while the two tick marks (which have a space between them) surround the separator. The result (robg adds: as seen on my screen):

I found that simply opening up the Date and Time Preference Pane will update the clock format, but you may need to disable/enable the clock to see the change. I only changed the <key>2</key> string. If this does not work for you, you may need to modify one of the other four keys or just modify all four. Note: making changes to the International formatting will overwrite your change.

[robg adds: I didn't have these keys in my preferences. A quick email exchange with jpkelly led to the solution -- open the International preference pane, click on Formats, and then click on Customize for the Times section. Don't change anything, just quit System Preferences. You should now be able to find the keys in your .GlobalPreferences file (in the Terminal, of course, as it's hidden in the Finder). This is probably the #1 most requested Panther hint that I've seen flow through my inbox ... thanks jpkelly!]
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