How to Convert HH:MM:SS or MM:SS Time Strings to Seconds in Programming?

Converting Time Strings (HH:MM:SS or MM:SS) to Seconds Only

Converting time strings in HH:MM:SS or MM:SS format to seconds can be useful in various programming scenarios. Here's how you can achieve this conversion:

Without Regular Expressions:

• Split the time string into its components (hours, minutes, and seconds) using sscanf, assuming a fixed format:

sscanf($str_time, "%d:%d:%d", $hours, $minutes, $seconds);

• Handle the case where only minutes and seconds are present:

$time_seconds = isset($seconds) ? $hours * 3600 + $minutes * 60 + $seconds : $hours * 60 + $minutes;

Using Regular Expressions:

• Modify the time string to a standardized format (00:HH:MM):

$str_time = preg_replace("/^([\d]{1,2})\:([\d]{2})$/", "00::", $str_time);

• Then, extract the components and calculate the seconds:

sscanf($str_time, "%d:%d:%d", $hours, $minutes, $seconds);
$time_seconds = $hours * 3600 + $minutes * 60 + $seconds;

These methods allow you to accurately convert time strings to seconds, which can be useful for calculations, comparisons, or other time-related operations in programming.

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