* Sorting of dates

[E Wilcock]

Can someone please help me or comment on date sorting in fh?

I am working on a data base which includes men of military age in World War 2. I currently have query results showing me this group with birth dates and places and death dates and places in columns.
But sorting on those dates is strange.

Those who died in WW2 in Europe without a known date of death I enter the date as "before 8 May 1945". Those who did not die in the war or soon after (from wounds) I mark after 1945.
Using the words before and after creates havoc with the sorting.
Any entries for "after 1945" come higher in the order than dates before June 1945 because after starts with A and comes earlier in the alphabet than before.

I would like to correct the entry so I get war dead above survivors

[tatewise]

It is not the after or before that is affecting the sorting, but that dates with only a year default to 1 January.
So after 1945 is effectively saying after 1 Jan 1945 and thus sorts before every other date in 1945.

Change to using after 9 May 1945 and all will sort well.

If you have a great many dates to change then use the Search and Replace plugin.

[E Wilcock]

Thank you Mike. Will do.