+(see above) and from @code{file-attributes} (@pxref{File Attributes}).
+@end defun
+
+@node Time Conversion
+@section Time Conversion
+
+ These functions convert time values (lists of two or three integers)
+to strings or to calendrical information. There is also a function to
+convert calendrical information to a time value. You can get time
+values from the functions @code{current-time} (@pxref{Time of Day}) and
+@code{file-attributes} (@pxref{File Attributes}).
+
+@defun format-time-string format-string time
+This function converts @var{time} to a string according to
+@var{format-string}. The argument @var{format-string} may contain
+@samp{%}-sequences which say to substitute parts of the time. Here is a
+table of what the @samp{%}-sequences mean:
+
+@table @samp
+@item %a
+This stands for the abbreviated name of the day of week.
+@item %A
+This stands for the full name of the day of week.
+@item %b
+This stands for the abbreviated name of the month.
+@item %B
+This stands for the full name of the month.
+@item %c
+This is a synonym for @samp{%x %X}.
+@item %C
+This has a locale-specific meaning. In the default locale (named C), it
+is equivalent to @samp{%A, %B %e, %Y}.
+@item %d
+This stands for the day of month, zero-padded.
+@item %D
+This is a synonym for @samp{%m/%d/%y}.
+@item %e
+This stands for the day of month, blank-padded.
+@item %h
+This is a synonym for @samp{%b}.
+@item %H
+This stands for the hour (00-23).
+@item %I
+This stands for the hour (00-12).
+@item %j
+This stands for the day of the year (001-366).
+@item %k
+This stands for the hour (0-23), blank padded.
+@item %l
+This stands for the hour (1-12), blank padded.
+@item %m
+This stands for the month (01-12).
+@item %M
+This stands for the minute (00-59).
+@item %n
+This stands for a newline.
+@item %p
+This stands for @samp{AM} or @samp{PM}, as appropriate.
+@item %r
+This is a synonym for @samp{%I:%M:%S %p}.
+@item %R
+This is a synonym for @samp{%H:%M}.
+@item %S
+This stands for the seconds (00-60).
+@item %t
+This stands for a tab character.
+@item %T
+This is a synonym for @samp{%H:%M:%S}.
+@item %U
+This stands for the week of the year (01-52), assuming that weeks
+start on Sunday.
+@item %w
+This stands for the numeric day of week (0-6). Sunday is day 0.
+@item %W
+This stands for the week of the year (01-52), assuming that weeks
+start on Monday.
+@item %x
+This has a locale-specific meaning. In the default locale (named C), it
+is equivalent to @samp{%D}.
+@item %X
+This has a locale-specific meaning. In the default locale (named C), it
+is equivalent to @samp{%T}.
+@item %y
+This stands for the year without century (00-99).
+@item %Y
+This stands for the year with century.
+@item %Z
+This stands for the time zone abbreviation.
+@end table
+@end defun
+
+@defun decode-time time
+This function converts a time value into calendrical information. The
+return value is a list of nine elements, as follows:
+
+@example
+(@var{seconds} @var{minutes} @var{hour} @var{day} @var{month} @var{year} @var{dow} @var{dst} @var{zone})
+@end example
+
+Here is what the elements mean:
+
+@table @var
+@item sec
+The number of seconds past the minute, as an integer between 0 and 59.
+@item minute
+The number of minutes past the hour, as an integer between 0 and 59.
+@item hour
+The hour of the day, as an integer between 0 and 23.
+@item day
+The day of the month, as an integer between 1 and 31.
+@item month
+The month of the year, as an integer between 1 and 12.
+@item year
+The year, an integer typically greater than 1900.
+@item dow
+The day of week, as an integer between 0 and 6, where 0 stands for
+Sunday.
+@item dst
+@code{t} if daylight savings time is effect, otherwise @code{nil}.
+@item zone
+An integer indicating the time zone, as the number of seconds east of
+Greenwich.
+@end table
+
+Note that Common Lisp has different meanings for @var{dow} and
+@var{zone}.
+@end defun
+
+@defun encode-time seconds minutes hour day month year &optional zone
+This function is the inverse of @code{decode-time}. It converts seven
+items of calendrical data into a time value. For the meanings of the
+arguments, see the table above under @code{decode-time}.
+
+Year numbers less than 100 are treated just like other year numbers. If
+you them to stand for years above 1900, you must alter them yourself
+before you call @code{encode-time}.
+
+The optional argument @var{zone} defaults to the current time zone and
+its daylight savings time rules. If specified, it can be either a list
+(as you would get from @code{current-time-zone}) or an integer (as you
+would get from @code{decode-time}). The specified zone is used without
+any further alteration for daylight savings time.