Search matching with Pocket Query
Asked by Eugene Domingo:

I have this inventory database used to track where items are. The query below doesn't seem to work how I expect it. I would like to be able to input something like "Dell" and it should come up with everything in the description box with the words "Dell" in it (not case sensitive). But, it only comes up when using exact matches (inputting "Dell Monitor"). I thought using "like '%:Value%'" would do it but that don't work. neither does " = :Value" (Value is my dynamic variable). I thought that by default, searches are done as wildcards. I can't seem to find any documentation on the syntax either.

```
select a.asset_tag AS 'Asset Number', a.asset_description AS 'Asset', i.item_number AS 'Item Description', a.model AS 'Model Number', a.serial_number AS 'Serial Number', l.code AS 'Location', c.description AS 'Category', d.contract_id AS 'Contract ID'from asset a, location l, item i, category c, contracts dwhere (a.asset_description = :Value or              i.item_number = :Value or              l.code = :Value or              a.model = :Value or              a.serial_number = :Value or              a.asset_tag = :Value or              c.description = :Value) and                     a.location_id = l.location_id and                     a.item_id = i.item_id and                     c.category_id = i.category_id and                     a.record_status = '1'order by l.code
```


Answers:
author: Eugene Domingo
body: I discovered that if you place % within the query field, it will glob the search, provided I use LIKE instead of =.

But, if there is a way to default glob search without having to place the % sign in it, that would be great.


author: Felix Grund (Scandio)
body: Hi Eugene!

I actually found a good solution for this! You can use a concatenation function in your SQL dialect that prevents the parameters from being inside quotes. The following example is MySQL-specific.

Instead of this:

```
SELECT * FROM Country WHERE Name LIKE '%:param%'
```

You can write this:

```
SELECT * FROM Country WHERE Name LIKE CONCAT("%",:param,"%")
```

Let me know if this helps!

Regards, Felix \[Scandio\]

comments: author: Eugene Domingo
body: It doesn't seem to work. I get an error. I'll look into it more.


author: fvalenzuela
body: Try this:

```
SELECT * 
FROM YOUR_TABLE
WHERE YOUR_FIELD LIKE '%' || UPPER(NVL(:YOUR_PARAM,'')) || '%'

```

NVL allows you to use an optional parameter if you leave it empty


author: Felix Grund (Scandio)
body: Hi Eugene!

Thank you for your interest in PocketQuery. We once had [an issue](https://answers.atlassian.com/questions/326950/pocketquery-and-oracle-date-format-colon-is-misinterpreted-as-a-parameter) regarding a problem with colons inside single quotes. So in version 1.13.1, we implemented that the pattern :xxx is not interpreted as parameter when it is inside single quotes. Now in your case with the LIKE statement, of course, you want your parameter interpreted. This is legitimate and I see that it's no good that it doesn't work with the current implementation. I'll think about how we tackle this problem and in the meantime please use your workaround :wink:.

Regards, Felix

comments: author: Eugene Domingo
body: Thanks.


author: Eugene Domingo
body: I checked out PocketQuery, PlaySQL and SQL macro (legacy) and found that PocketQuery does best for what I need. I like how you can customize the dynamic fields on the screen, the use of modifying links to display tables differently by using get in the link, and how easy it is to implement. I was able to utilize the documentation on the website but some questions I have are not answered in the documentation, which is why I've already asked several questions on this forum so far.


author: Eugene Domingo
body: Is there a way to add the '%' sign to the value of the dynamic field without it appearing on the screen?


author: Felix Grund (Scandio)
body: Thanks for your feedback! At the moment, unfortunately no. I will fix this in the next version and let you know!


Tags: confluence-administration

pocketquery