Setting ISO 8601 Date and Time Format for Windows
(95, 98, 98 Second Edition, Millennium Edition, NT, 2000, XP, Vista and Windows 7)

Note that, for the following paragraph, later versions of Windows, including Windows 7, don't require the Settings step and Regional Settings is now Region and Language.

Click on Start, then Settings, then Control Panel. On the Control Panel, double click on the Regional Settings icon. The dialog box shown here will appear (although the Regional Settings tab will initially be selected). Follow the instructions in the illustration, then scroll down to the second illustration and follow the instructions there to set the time format.

The differences between the Regional Settings panel shown below and that of Windows Me and Windows 2000 are minor or non-existent. For Windows XP, there is some rearrangement, but the options are easy to find. For Windows 7, which has made the entire process much simpler, scroll to the bottom of the page.

Note that, for the long date style, the year-month-day sequence (and its punctuation) is simply a recommendation. ISO 8601 does not deal with long dates (where the month is spelled out).

Close this window when you've finished with it. The SI Navigator window will still be open.

Windows 7 Region and Language Format Settings

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