Introduction:
Wildcards and operators are powerful tools that can help you refine your search results when looking for information in a database or on the Internet. A wildcard is a symbol that stands in for one or more unknown characters in a search term, while an operator is a symbol that is used to combine search terms or specify a search range. In this article, we will explain how wildcards and operators work and how to use them effectively.
Prerequisites:
In order to use the Laserfiche Repository, your supervisor needs to submit a request using the Laserfiche Account service request. You can find the direct link to this request form under the "Related Services" category located on the right-hand side of the page. Simply click on the link and your supervisor can fill out the necessary information to request your Laserfiche account. Once the request is submitted and processed, you will be granted access to the Laserfiche Repository and can start using its features.
Wildcards:
Wildcards can be used in any type of search, including search bar searches, search filter searches, or search syntax searches. They are useful when you are searching for variations of a word or when you are not sure of the exact characters contained in a word. There are several types of wildcards that you can use:
| Symbol |
Description |
Example |
| * |
(Asterisk) Represents zero or more missing characters. |
For example, govern*s would find "governors," "governments," and "governs." |
| ? |
(Question mark): Represents any single character. |
For example, gr?y would find "gray" and "grey," but not "gravy." |
| [ ] |
(Brackets): Represents any single character within a limited set of replacement characters. |
For example, gr[ae]y would find "gray" and "grey," but no others. |
| - |
(Dash): Indicates a range of characters. |
For example, b[a-i]tter would find the words "batter," "better" and "bitter," but not "butter." |
| [0-9] |
[0-9]: Represents any single digit number. |
For example, [0-9][0-9] would find any two-digit number (but not a one- or three-digit number), and [0-9][0-9][0-9]-[0-9][0-9]-[0-9][0-9][0-9][0-9] would find a social security number. |
USEFUL INFORMATION:
Wildcards may be combined. For example, br[a-o]ke* would find all of the following words: brake, braked, broke, broker, and broken.
Operators:
Operators allow you to combine searches or restrict searches in certain ways. They are generally used in search syntax searches. There are several types of operators that you can use:
| Symbol |
Description |
Example |
| & |
(AND): Valid search results match the search criteria that appear before and after the ampersand. |
For example, Criteria1 & Criteria2. |
| | |
(OR): Valid search results match either or all search criteria that appear before or after the pipe (vertical bar). |
For example, Criteria1 | Criteria2. |
| - |
(NOT): Valid search results match the search criteria that appear before the dash but must not satisfy the search criteria that appear after the dash. |
For example, Criteria1 - Criteria2. |
| ^# |
(WITHIN): Use the caret symbol to determine the maximum distance by which two phrases can be separated in a document and still be considered a valid search result. This operator can only be used between two phrases in a text search. |
For example, Phrase1 ^5 Phrase2. |
| -^# |
(NOT WITHIN): Use the minus sign plus the caret symbol when you want to return documents in which two phrases exist but are not within a specified distance of one another. This operator can only be used between two phrases in a text search. |
For example, Phrase1 -^5 Phrase2. |
| , |
(Comma): Use a comma instead of the AND operator to perform a search on multiple fields. The advantage of using a comma instead of an ampersand is that it will return search results more quickly. |
For example, {[TemplateName]:[FieldName1]="Value1", [FieldName2]="Value2"}. |
Parentheses:
Parentheses can be used to group search criteria together. They are used to determine the order in which search criteria will be processed; they can be nested as deeply as you like. Laserfiche processes the innermost parentheses first and works outward. If there are no parentheses, NOT (-) searches will be evaluated first, then AND (&) searches, and finally | (OR) searches. If adjacent operators are the same (for instance "A & B & C"), they will be evaluated left to right.
USEFUL INFORMATION:
( is a delimiter. You cannot search for a word or phrase that includes this character unless you put the word or phrase inside quotation marks.
Search Syntax Operators:
Operators allow you to combine searches or restrict searches in certain ways. They are generally used in search syntax searches. There are several types of operators that you can use:
| Symbol |
Description |
Example |
| { } |
Used by all search syntaxes except for text search. Should enclose each search criteria, except text searches. |
For example, {LF:Name="Query", Type=FBD}. |
| = or ~= |
Indicates that valid search results must match the specified value. Some search types use the = operator, while others use the ~= operator; see the search syntax help for information on which operator to use. |
For example, {[General]:[Author]="John Smith"}. |
| > |
Indicates valid search results must be greater than the specified value. Can only be used when searching for date or numeric information |
For example, {[General]:[Date]>"5/27/2005"}. |
| >= |
Indicates valid search results must be greater than or equal to the specified value. Can only be used when searching for date or numeric information. |
For example, {[General]:[Date]>="5/27/2005"}. |
| < |
Indicates valid search results must be less than the specified value. Can only be used when searching for date or numeric information. |
For example, {[General]:[Date]<"5/27/2005"}. |
| <= |
Indicates valid search results must be less than or equal to the specified value. Can only be used when searching for date or numeric information. |
For example, {[General]:[Date]<="5/27/2005"}. |
| <> |
Indicates valid search results must not be equal to the specified value.
USEFUL INFORMATION:
The operator does not match blank values. To include blank values as part of the results, use the | operator to include a search that will match for "".
|
For example, {[General]:[Date]<>"5/27/2005"}
{[General]:[Date]<>"5/27/2005"} | {[General]:[Date]=""}. |
| '' |
Used to indicate an exact phrase search for several search syntax searches; see the search syntax help for information on which search types require single quotes for exact phrase search. (Text search indicates a phrase search using double quotes.) Search types that do not require single quotes for exact phrase searches are always performed as exact phrase searches. The single quotes are enclosed within the double quotes that are standard to the search syntax. |
For example, {[General]:[Status]~="'needs review'"}. |