Emerging
May 28, 20261
50%
Bttf: A Versatile Command-Line Tool for DateTime Operations
Bttf is a free, open-source command-line tool for datetime operations including formatting, arithmetic, parsing, and sequence generation. It supports multiple time formats, time zone conversions, and practical use cases like log file processing and recurring date generation.
Quick Facts
Who
Bttf developers
What
Command-line datetime utility offering arithmetic, parsing, and formatting
When
Published May 28, 2026
Where
Command-line environments
- Command-line datetime utility offering arithmetic, parsing, and formatting
- Supports time zone conversions
- Calculates time spans and durations
- Generates date sequences with filtering criteria
- Processes and reformats timestamps in log files
Bttf is a comprehensive command-line utility designed as a "datetime Swiss army knife," offering extensive functionality for datetime arithmetic, parsing, formatting, and manipulation. The tool is dual-licensed under the MIT License or the UNLICENSE, making it freely available for both commercial and personal use.
The tool provides a wide range of capabilities for working with dates and times from the command line. Users can perform basic operations such as displaying the current time, converting between time zones, adding durations to dates, calculating time spans between dates, and generating sequences of dates based on specific criteria. Bttf supports multiple output formats including RFC 3339, RFC 9557, and custom strftime patterns, allowing developers to tailor the output to their specific needs.
Bttf excels in practical applications such as processing log files with timestamps, scheduling operations on specific days and times, and performing complex datetime calculations. For example, users can extract timestamps from log files and convert them to local time, generate recurring date sequences filtered by day of week, or find specific dates like the last weekday of each month. The tool supports relative time expressions such as "next Saturday" or "9pm last Monday," making it intuitive for human-readable date specifications.
The tool is designed with developer convenience in mind, offering built-in help documentation accessible through `bttf --help` and subcommand-specific help via `bttf <sub-command> --help`. Additionally, locale support can be enabled through environment variables and GitHub release binaries, allowing for proper time and date formatting according to local conventions. For users seeking alternatives, Bttf provides a comparison guide with similar tools to help determine if it meets their specific requirements.
Topics
Why This Matters
Bttf addresses a critical gap in command-line datetime handling by providing developers with a single, versatile tool for complex time operations. Whether processing logs with timestamps, scheduling recurring tasks, or converting between time zones, Bttf simplifies workflows that traditionally required multiple tools or scripting. Its open-source, dual-license approach ensures accessibility for both enterprise and personal projects, making it a practical addition to any developer's toolkit for automation and data processing tasks.
Timeline & Sources
May 28, 2026
WireBttf command-line datetime tool announced on Hacker News