Date65 is a Network Time Protocol (NTP) client.

It is currently available for the C64, the enhanced Apple //e and the Atari.

Date65 doesn't support a static IP configuration so a DHCP server is obligatory.

It shows the current time for the CST (UTC-06) time zone. If you want to use Date65 regularily you may want to adjust it to your local time zone. To do so you need to modify the file DATE65.TZ. That file consists of three characters: A + or - sign and two digits. The default file contains -06.

The C64 version of Date65 supports the RR-Net and the ETH64 Ethernet devices.

Date65 sets the CIA1 Time Of Day (TOD) clock to the time displayed.

The Apple //e version of Date65 supports the Uthernet, the LANceGS and the Uthernet II Ethernet cards.

The file DATE65 is intended to be run from BASIC.SYSTEM and returns directly to BASIC. The file DATE65.SYSTEM is intended to be run as part of the ProDOS system startup. To do so you need to place DATE65.SYSTEM before your usual .SYSTEM program (e.g. BASIC.SYSTEM) on the boot volume. On program exit DATE65.SYSTEM automatically runs the next .SYSTEM program on the boot volume. The video Set Apple II Date From The Internet demonstrates that very process.

Date65 presumes the Ethernet card to reside in slot 3. If however your Ethernet card resides in a different slot you can create a file named ETHERNET.SLOT. Only the first byte of that file is relevant. This byte can either represent your Ethernet card slot as binary value (e.g. $04 for slot 4), as ASCII digit (e.g. $34 for slot 4) or as Apple TEXT digit (e.g. $B4 for slot 4).

If Date65 finds no realtime clock (RTC) to be active it sets the current ProDOS date to the date displayed. It deliberately does not change the current ProDOS time from 0:00 as that would be inaccurate a minute later anyhow. If Date65 does find a realtime clock (RTC) to be active it marks setting the the time as Fail.

The ATARI version of Date65 supports the Dragon Cart Ethernet device.

The CC65 runtime functions for setting and getting the time only support SpartaDOS X. So on SpartaDOS X 4.40 and higher Date65 can set the system time/date. This is especially useful if no realtime clock hardware is present. In this case typically JIFFY.SYS is used to handle date and time. DATE65.COM (the executable file) can be run on system startup on those system so that the current date and time doesn't have to be entered by the user.