The search tool is used to search information from the database.
First selection can be made with the status combo box on the right side of the search tool. The contents of the list depend on the active view but it gives a quick way to show only the rows in the list which have the selected status.
Second way to limit the number of rows in the list and search desired information is to use the left side of the search tool. Search can be done using all the fields in the list with the combo box on the left. Search criteria can be given in the fields of the search tool and several search criteria can be set to find the desired information. The combo box contains column names of the shown list.
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Select the desired field of the database from the list.
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Desired information can be filtered out by specifying criteria in the text boxes and by selecting either =, >< or != from the drop-down list box. The quotation marks “” in the first text box means that the search criterion is blank. The equal mark (=) is normally used. It can also be used along a wild card if one doesn’t have all the information available about the searched item. A question mark (?) or an underline character (_) can be used to replace one character whereas an asterisk (*) or a per cent mark (%) replaces several characters.
The equal mark also means word OR. So, the user can make a search with the criterion Drawing no by giving the first numbers, e.g. 1* and 2*, into the text boxes.
The restrictive mark (><) is selected if, for example the user wants to search all plates which have thickness between 10 and 15. Wild cards are not allowed in these cases. != is selected from the drop-down list box when the search criterion is not equal to.
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After the first criterion has been given other search criteria can be given by changing the field.
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Click Search after setting the criteria.
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Additional searches can be made to find the desired information. New criteria might be inserted or the old might be changed.
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It is possible to restart the search by selecting Reset to delete the criteria. Clicking Search then shows the contents of the entire database.