How can it be that APEX_UTIL.GET_SINCE with the current time tells me that that timestamp is 6 minutes in the future? Before it worked as expected and returned 'now' but since a short while it is saying that the current date is in the future.
The System time of the underlying Linux System has the correct time (up to a milisecond) and the sysdate returned by that statement is also the correct current time, so I expect that Oracle function to use a wrong reference from somewhere else?
As far as I can tell, it doesn't
tell that timestamp is 6 minutes in the future
but in the past.
It looks as if the first call sets a "mark", and subsequent calls return how much time has passed since that.
The first call is at 19:39:11 and it is "now":
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:39:11 Now
I'm now just pressing the UP key on the keyboard and hitting the ENTER:
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:39:12 1 seconds from now
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:39:13 2 seconds from now
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:39:14 3 seconds from now
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:39:15 4 seconds from now
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:39:16 5 seconds from now
SQL>
After typing the above message (I mean, answering the question), I'm calling it again; it says that it's been 3 minutes since the mark:
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:41:41 3 minutes from now
SQL>
In order to reset it, I'm exiting SQL*Plus and starting over:
SQL> exit
Disconnected from Oracle Database 11g Express Edition Release 11.2.0.2.0 - 64bit Production
c:\Temp>sqlplus scott/tiger
SQL*Plus: Release 11.2.0.2.0 Production on Pet Lis 18 19:42:31 2019
Copyright (c) 1982, 2014, Oracle. All rights reserved.
Connected to:
Oracle Database 11g Express Edition Release 11.2.0.2.0 - 64bit Production
SQL> col result format a50
New mark set to 19:42:36:
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:42:36 Now
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:42:38 2 seconds from now
SQL> select to_char(sysdate, 'hh24:mi:ss') sysd, apex_util.get_since(sysdate) result from dual;
SYSD RESULT
-------- --------------------------------------------------
19:42:39 3 seconds from now
SQL>