DS3231, getDateStr query

MarkS1964:
So my question is,
in peoples opinion is it more efficient to query the Registers or employ another Library (Wire.h).

Here's how I do it:

#include <Wire.h>

byte ss=0, mi=0, hh=0, wd=6, dd=1, mo=1, yy=0;
 
void setup()
{
  Wire.begin();
  Serial.begin(9600);
 
  // clear /EOSC bit
  // Sometimes necessary to ensure that the clock
  // keeps running on just battery power. Once set,
  // it shouldn't need to be reset but it's a good
  // idea to make sure.
//  Wire.beginTransmission(0x68); // address DS3231
//  Wire.write(0x0E); // select register
//  Wire.write(0b00011100); // write register bitmap, bit 7 is /EOSC
//  Wire.endTransmission();
}
 
void loop()
{
  // ask RTC for the time
  // send request to receive data starting at register 0
  Wire.beginTransmission(0x68); // 0x68 is DS3231 device address
  Wire.write((byte)0); // start at register 0
  Wire.endTransmission();
  Wire.requestFrom(0x68, 7); // request seven bytes (ss, mi, hh, wd, dd, mo, yy)
  // check for a reply from the RTC, and use it if we can
  if (Wire.available() >= 7) { 
    // if we're here, we got a reply and it is long enough
    // so now we read the time
    ss = bcd2bin(Wire.read()); // get seconds
    mi = bcd2bin(Wire.read()); // get minutes
    hh = bcd2bin(Wire.read()); // get hours
    wd = bcd2bin(Wire.read());
    dd = bcd2bin(Wire.read());
    mo = bcd2bin(Wire.read());
    yy = bcd2bin(Wire.read());
    // show that we successfully got the time
    Serial.print("Got the time: ");
    printTime();
  }
  else {
    // if we're here, that means we were unable to read the time
    Serial.println("Unable to read time from RTC"); 
  }
  delay(500);
}

byte bcd2bin(byte x) {
  // converts from binary-coded decimal to a "regular" binary number
  return ((((x >> 4) & 0xF) * 10) + (x & 0xF)) ;
}

void printTime() {
  // just like it says on the tin
  Serial.print ("\'");
  if (yy<10) Serial.print("0"); Serial.print(yy,DEC); Serial.print("-");
  if (mo<10) Serial.print("0"); Serial.print(mo,DEC); Serial.print("-");
  if (dd<10) Serial.print("0"); Serial.print(dd,DEC); Serial.print("(");
  switch (wd) {
    case 1: Serial.print("Mon"); break;
    case 2: Serial.print("Tue"); break; 
    case 3: Serial.print("Wed"); break; 
    case 4: Serial.print("Thu"); break; 
    case 5: Serial.print("Fri"); break; 
    case 6: Serial.print("Sat"); break; 
    case 7: Serial.print("Sun"); break;
    default: Serial.print("Bad");  
  }
  Serial.print(") ");
  if (hh<10) Serial.print("0"); Serial.print(hh,DEC); Serial.print(":");
  if (mi<10) Serial.print("0"); Serial.print(mi,DEC); Serial.print(":");
  if (ss<10) Serial.print("0"); Serial.print(ss,DEC); Serial.println("");
}

This should print the date and time to the serial monitor. Remember to select the correct baud rate.

Note that I number the weekdays starting from 1 for Monday. Some people prefer to use 1 for Sunday.