Change Regional and Language Options You can use the Regional and Language Options tool in Control Panel to customize how Windows handles dates, times, currency values, and numbers.

To open the Regional and Language Options tool: Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Date, Time, Language, and Regional Settings, and then click Regional and Language Options. To change one or more of each setting, click Customize.

Note: The location options you select include default display options for how dates, times, and numbers are displayed. Change Dates In the Custom Region Options dialog box, click the Dates tab to specify any changes you want to make to short and long dates. If you don't see the format you want in the Short Date or Long Date box, use these guidelines: To display 1-digit numbers without leading zeros, type d for the Date setting, type y for the Year setting, To set the month, please type M. To display a 1-digit number with leading zeros, type dd for the day setting, yy for the year setting, or MM for the month setting. To display the last two digits of the year, type yy for the year setting. To display a 4-digit year, type yyyy for the year setting. .To display the day or month abbreviation, type ddd for the day setting or MMM for the month setting. To display the full name of the day or month, type dddd for the day setting or MMMM for the month setting. To display additional text, type single quotes (') to enclose the text.

Note: Please type a capital M for the month setting. Lowercase m is used for minute settings. To specify how the computer interprets two-digit years, on the Date tab, under When a year you type is two digits, display it as between these years, type or click the setting you want to configure for this setting end year.

The year span for this feature is 100 (the default range is 1930 to 2029). 4-digit years are not affected by this option. Programs that use this option to interpret two-digit years treat years between 30 and 99 (inclusive) as if they were preceded by 19, and years between 00 and 29 (inclusive) as if they were preceded by 19. 20. For example, 99 is interpreted as 1999, and 01 is interpreted as 2001.

Note: Not all programs use this option. If you are using a program that does not interpret two-digit years correctly, check the program's documentation or consult the program manufacturer. The time of change appears in the Custom Region Options dialog box, click the Time tab to specify any changes you want to make.

Note: To configure the setting not to display leading zeros in 1-digit hours, minutes, or seconds, type a single uppercase H, or a lowercase letter such as h, m, or s. If you don't see the format you want in the Time format box, use these guidelines: To display the time in 24-hour format, type a capital H or HH for the hour. To display the time in 12-hour format, type a lowercase h or hh for the hour. To display leading zeros in 1-digit hours, type HH or hh. To display a letter to indicate morning or afternoon, type a lowercase t. To display two letters to indicate morning or afternoon, type lowercase tt. To display text, type single quotes (') to enclose the text. Change currency value display In the Customize Region Options dialog box, click the Currency tab to specify any changes you want to make. You can change the currency symbol, the format of positive or negative numbers, and punctuation.

Note: If you are doing a currency conversion (for example, converting your home currency to euros), change the currency symbol and click OK or Apply. Other fields will change to reflect the new currency.

Changing Number Display In the Customize Region Options dialog box, click the Numbers tab to specify any changes you want to make. You can change the decimal point and list separators, the format of negative numbers and leading zeros, and the weights and measures system (US or metric).

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