~~Title: As~~
<pageheader><i>varname</i> As <i>type / format</i></pageheader>

The **As** operator performs two functions - conversion and formatting.

==Conversion: varname As type==

Converts the variable //varname// to the specified //type//. Valid types are:

|bool|boolean (true or false)|
|int|signed 32-bit integer|
|uint|unsigned 32-bit integer|
|int64|signed 64-bit integer|
|uint64|unsigned 64-bit integer|
|double|double-precision floating point|
|date|date/time|
|str|string|
|path|path|

When converting from a string to a date, valid input formats are:
  * YYYY-MM-DD
  * YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
  * HH:MM:SS

Times must be in 24-hour format, minutes and seconds are optional. If a time is specified on its own, today's date is assumed.

==Formatting: varname As format==

Formats the variable //varname// using the specified formatting code.

Various formatting operations are available.

  * Date/time values can be formatted using the **D#**, **T#** and **A#** [[..:command_reference:external_control_codes:codes_for_date_and_time|prefix codes]]
  * File size values using the codes shown below
  * Zero-padding to //p// places using **#p** or **%0p**
  * Right-justify to //p// places using **%p**
  * Left-justify to //p// places using **%-p**
  * Internal-justify:
    * For negative numbers to //p// places using **%_p**
    * For positive numbers **%+p**
  * Limit to //p// decimal places using **%.p**
  * Zero-pad to //p// decimal places with **%.0p**
  * Convert to hexadecimal using **%x** (lowercase) or **%X** (uppercase)

Where it makes sense the above codes can be combined, e.g. **%_+8** would internal-justify a number to 8 places whether it was positive or negative.

===File size format===

Use **//value// as size** to automatically format a number as a file size using the default settings. You can also use the following keywords to control the units:

|size|Automatic (bytes/KB/MB etc) with user-configured decimal/binary unit option|
|szt|Automatic with traditional units (1 KB = 1024 bytes)|
|szi|Automatic with binary units (1 KiB = 1024 bytes)|
|szd|Automatic with decimal units (1 KB = 1000 bytes)|
|bytes|Bytes|
|kb|Kilobytes, traditional units|
|mb|Megabytes, traditional units|
|gb|Gigabytes, traditional units|
|tb|Terabytes, traditional units|
|pb|Petabytes, traditional units|
|kib|Kilobytes, binary units|
|mib|Megabytes, binary units|
|gib|Gigabytes, binary units|
|tib|Terabytes, binary units|
|pib|Petabytes, binary units|
|kbd|Kilobytes, decimal units|
|mbd|Megabytes, decimal units|
|gbd|Gigabytes, decimal units|
|tbd|Terabytes, decimal units|
|pbd|Petabytes, decimal units|

  * You use **%.//x//** to specify the number of decimal places, e.g. **%.3mib**. or **%.03kb** to zero-pad
  * Use **%^** to round up to the nearest kilobyte, e.g. **%^kb**.
  * Use **%0** in front of the "automatic" keywords to force 0 bytes to be formatted as kilobytes

\\

//Example://
<code>
d = "2023-09-23" as date;
Output(d as "D#dd-MMM-yyyy");
--> 23-Sep-2023

i = 1 as double / 3;
Output(i as "%-.3");
--> 0.333

i = 183743933;
output(i as "%.3kb");
--> 179,437.435 KB
</code>

//See also://
[[format]]