function formatDate(sDate,sDel)                                          //
{
	//verify 'sDate' is a valid date
	if(!validDate(sDate))return "";
	
	//if sDel is omitted, default to "/"
	if(sDel==null)sDel="/";
	
	//get the month, day and year of 'sDate'
	var month=getMonth(sDate);
	var day=getDay(sDate);
	var year=getYear(sDate);
	
	//concatenate the values together with the delimiter
	sDate=month+sDel+day+sDel+year;
	
	//return the formatted date
	return sDate;
}