den4b Forum

fjord

Member

From: Denmark

Registered: 2006-08-25

Posts: 43

Created vs Modified file dates

I suppose this is one of those quirks of Windows semantics, but it would seem more logical to me if the "Created" file date referred to the original file date of a digital picture, ie. date picture taken. But no, the "Modified" file date is the real original file date, as copied directly from the camera, and matching the EXIF_Date value I'm inserting into the filenames (see image below).

Modified=original and Created=changed. I know you just use the same terms that appear on Windows Explorer. I guess I just have to live with Bill Gates view of creation. 

den4b

Administrator

From: den4b.com

Registered: 2006-04-06

Posts: 3,374

Re: Created vs Modified file dates

Nicely spotted!

I will explain now why this happens. "Created" time identifies time when files has been created on your file system, for example: when you create new file, or when you copy a file to a new place - that time will be the creation time. "Modified" time identifies time when the contents of the file has been changed last time.

Here is the funny part, as you probably noticed your self, sometimes modified time is earlier than the created time, this may happen when you copy file to a new place. And for the same reason, Exif date matches the Modified time, because that is when the contents of the file was last modified, BUT the file has been created on your PC later, and that time will be the Creation time.

Note: some programs may preserve modified time when copying files, while some will not, and some might also preserve creation time.

Is it any clearer now?

---

A story of software development, and how it all evolves into Live vs Pro
Request a Wiki account | Reporting spam and abuse | Why did I get banned?