staggerpost/Generator.cs

// I hereby waive this project under the public domain - see UNLICENSE for details.
namespace StaggerPost;

internal static class Generator
{
	/// <summary>
	/// Generates a schedule of article publishing times, ensuring a randomized
	/// delay between each while avoiding time conflicts within a 30-minute window.
	/// </summary>
	/// <returns>A list of TimeSpan objects representing scheduled article times.</returns>
	public static List<TimeSpan> GenerateTimes()
	{
		var numberOfArticles = 5; // Define how many articles to schedule
		var startTime = new TimeSpan(9, 0, 0); // Starting time at 9:00 AM
		var rng = new Random();
		var scheduledTimes = new List<TimeSpan>();

		for (int i = 0; i < numberOfArticles; i++)
		{
			var baseDelayHours = rng.Next(2, 4); // Randomly choose between 2-3 hours delay
			var minutesToAdd = rng.Next(0, 60); // Randomly choose minutes (0-59)

			// Calculate new time by adding base delay and random minutes
			var nextTime = startTime.Add(new TimeSpan(baseDelayHours, minutesToAdd, 0));

			// Check if the new time is within 30 minutes of any existing time
			while (
				scheduledTimes.Exists(previousTime =>
					Math.Abs((nextTime - previousTime).TotalMinutes) < 30
				)
			)
			{
				// If the new time is within 30 minutes of an existing time, adjust it
				nextTime = nextTime.Add(new TimeSpan(0, 30, 0));
			}

			scheduledTimes.Add(nextTime);
			startTime = nextTime; // Update start time for the next article
		}

		return scheduledTimes;
	}

	/// <summary>
	/// Converts a TimeSpan into a 12-hour AM/PM formatted time string.
	/// </summary>
	/// <param name="time">The TimeSpan representing the time of day.</param>
	/// <returns>A formatted string representing the time in AM/PM format.</returns>
	public static string ConvertTo12Hour(TimeSpan time)
	{
		var minutes = time.TotalMinutes;
		var hours12 = time.Hours % 12;

		if (hours12 == 0)
			hours12 = 1;

		var period = time.Hours >= 12 ? "PM" : "AM";
		return $"{hours12}:{time.Minutes:D2} {period}";
	}
}