Find

The Find functionality is universal throughout netFORUM.

There are four primary ways to Find a record:

  1. The Find group item link located in group items across netFORUM.
  2. The Find links on the Overview page.
  3. The Find icon on the List page.
  4. The Super Search field.

These methods allow you to find records (or groups of records) that meet a relatively simple, predefined set of criteria.

Understanding Find

The example below is from the Find page from the Individual group item in CRM.

Note: Selecting the Advanced View check box displays the drop-down list of Boolean Operators for each search criteria (see Technical Information below).

Results of a Find are displayed in a List page. Regardless of the object you are searching for, the List pages looks very similar.

Tip: The netFORUM wild card character is the percent sign (%). The wild card can take the place of any character or combination of characters in any field of the Find page. For example, a search for a last name beginning with M%arth will return McCarthy, McCarthey, McArthur, MacArthur, Mc Carthy.

Using Find

If you enter more than one search criterion, there is an and between the criteria automatically. That means that by default, a record must meet all of the values you entered to be returned by the search. You can change from an and between the criteria to an or. Setting the search to or means that a record that meets only one of the values you entered can be returned by the search. Using or, you'll get more results from the same search values than you will using and.

The Limit results to records added on or after [date] check box appears only if your netFORUM administrator has decided to improve Find performance by partitioning the associated SQL Server table based on record add date. The purpose of partitioning is to limit the search to the most recently-added records, as indicated by the date. When the Limit results to records added on or after [date] check box appears, it is checked by default. The date is the date of the most recent partition, detected automatically by netFORUM. If you would like your search to include older records, clear the checkbox.

The fields that are not drop-down lists or check boxes (with the exception of date fields), have an assumed operator of Begins With. So you do not need to enter a wild card at the end of values you enter into plain-text fields. If you select the Advanced View check box, you can change the criteria parameters from Begins With to one of the following:

  • Does Not Begin With
  • Contains
  • Does Not Contain
  • Ends With
  • Does Not End With
  • Is Equal To
  • Is Not Equal To
  • Greater Than
  • Greater Than or Equal to
  • Less Than
  • Less Than or Equal To
  • Sounds Like

Finding a Record From the Group Item Links

  1. From any page in any module, click the appropriate Group Item to see a menu of Group Item Links.
  2. Click Find (group item name) group item link. The Find page for that specific Group Item displays
  3. Enter the appropriate data.
  4. Click the Go button.
  5. A List page displays with all of your results. If the search is very specific, the Profile page for the record displays.

Finding a Record From the Overview Page

  1. In any Module, click the Overview group item and select Overview and Setupto see the Module Overview page.
  2. Click the Find link or icon.
  3. The Find page for that specific area (e.g. individual, organization, event) displays.
  4. Enter the appropriate data.
  5. Click the Go button.
  6. A List page displays with all of your results. If the search is very specific, the Profile page for the record displays.

Finding a Record From the List Page

  1. On any List page, click the Find button .
  2. The Find page for that specific Group Item displays.
  3. Enter the appropriate data.
  4. Click the Go button.
  5. A List page displays with all of your results. If the search is very specific, the Profile page for the record displays.

Finding a Record From the Super Search Field

The Super SearchSuper Search field is the Search field in the upper right corner of the page. Super Search is best used to search for a single record (not a group of records) using a relatively unique value.

  1. Enter a value in the Super Search field.
  2. Click the Find button beside the Super Search field. netFORUM Searches for your term.
  3. The Search Results page displays groups with results for your entered value.

Find vs. Query

Most Finds and Queries in netFORUM are run in CRM. The Find page is set up with a predefined set of columns (fields) versus a Query which allows you to select from any column in the table.

Technical Information

Go to the AdvanceViewForBasicSearch user option to default the Find page to the Advanced View (The Advanced View check box defaults to selected).