Shortest way to compare 2 dates in dd/mm/yyyy format

Question

can anyone suggest the neatest way to do this comparison? I need to test if a date provided in dd/mm/yyyy format is less than a fixed date, e.g 01/05/2009 - I know I can convert

Answer 1

use this method

yearmonthday

you have 01.05.2010 and 03.07.2010

and to compare : 20100501 <= or => 20100703