I do not believe that 20020416 is a date format in Crystal Reports, nor is it a default value. Parameters in Crystal do not have default values unless you give them one. Double check your parameter and make sure the data type is Date.
There are a number of software packages out there that store the dates as 8 digit integers, Macola being the one I am most familiar with.
To deal with this, there is a NumberToDate() function available for download at the Crystal Decisions website. NumberToDate(20020416) will return a date of 04/16/2002. So to use this in your record selection formula,
NumberToDate({datefield}) in {?DateRangeParameter}
Should work fine. Is this what you need? Software Support for Macola, Crystal Reports and Goldmine
dgilsdorf@mchsi.com