How to do a Specific Search with " "

  • Thread starter Thread starter Miracle
  • Start date Start date
M

Miracle

Hey all... I have a database for a few thousand items with closel
related item names... I am trying to do a "find and replace" to renam
items in the database but here is the kicker.. when I do a search fo
item *abc* the search is finding item *abcd*, *abcde* and so on. I
there a way I can limit the search to find the exact name that I a
looking for? I thought maybe if I did a search and replace with "
around the name that the " " would limit the search to abc, but it doe
not seem to work. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance,
Chri
 
Are you looking for cases where abc is the complete "word", but it's in a
larger phrase, such as

He said purchasing abc would solve the problem.

You could try * abc * (i.e.: spaces between the asterisks and the word), but
that won't find cases where abc has punctuation after it:

He said purchasing abc, xyz and ijk would solve the problem.
The solution to the problem would be to purchase abc.

etc.
 
Is
there a way I can limit the search to find the exact name that I am
looking for?
Click to expand...

Yes; don't use LIKE and don't use wildcards.

Just put a criterion on the Item field of

abc

and it will find only those records where the exact and complete value
of the Item field is abc.

Note that an Update query may be a better tool than find and replace.
Make a backup of your database first just in case it gets messed up!
 
Doug, Thanks for your response.. actually it is a database for a websit
in which product names have similiar names.. I have a product with a
item code of "abc" and then other items with a code of "abcd", "abcde
and so on.. I am trying to do a search and replace to rename th
items.. problem is the item codes are also blended in another column i
the database which has the item codes for particular items mixe
together in the same box so that I can not use the search and replac
for the "whole field". If I do a search and replace for say "abc" usin
the "any part of field" command to do the name change database wide, i
not only replaces abc to the new name but also replaces item "abcd" t
the new name with a d on the end. For example:

If I change item _ABC_ to a new name of _Sony_ it will also change ite
_ABCD_ to a new name of _SonyD_ since it picks up the ABC in th
beginning of the item code. Grrrrrrrrrrr....... :eek:


Thanks,
Chri
 
problem is the item codes are also blended in another column in
the database which has the item codes for particular items mixed
together in the same box
Click to expand...

Could you post some actual examples? Given this, I don't see how ANY
process, automated or manual, can determine which ABC is a code and
which is part of some other code! Is there *any* sort of delimiter?
 
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