[R] RODBC and Date/Time variables

[David Scott]

This is really a query about MySQL which I am trying to use to set up a 
database which I will then access with RODBC.

I have my data in a .csv file, and some of the fields are date/time 
fields. I tried to create a table using mysql with the definition of the 
date/time field given by

CallDate DATETIME,

but I got an error saying that the first row has
28/07/2006 0:00
in that field. What I don't understand is if I open up the .csv file 
using XEmacs and look at that datum I see
2006-07-28 00:00:00
which mysql should accept as a DATETIME value.

If I specify that the field is text with

CallDate CHAR(19),

then I can create the table without a problem. Then when I issue a query 
and obtain the value of the field in the first row RODBC gives me

28/07/2006 0:00

which I guess doesn't surprise me.

Can anybody offer an explanation, and also can anybody advise how to read 
the field in as a DATETIME type in MySQL?

I have some other date fields too which in XEmacs show as for example
18/01/2007

My understanding is I can't read those into a MySQL table as type DATE. 
Can anyone offer some advice on that?

Some details:
Windows XP, R 2.4.1, RODBC 1.1-9, MySQL 5.0.41

Thanks in advance

David Scott


_________________________________________________________________
David Scott	Department of Statistics, Tamaki Campus
 		The University of Auckland, PB 92019
 		Auckland 1142,    NEW ZEALAND
Phone: +64 9 373 7599 ext 86830		Fax: +64 9 373 7000
Email:	d.scott at auckland.ac.nz

Graduate Officer, Department of Statistics
Director of Consulting, Department of Statistics