Search

[Rahim Nathwani]

For the requirment:
It must allow the user to search the data for all records, or for records where the name and/or location fields exactly match values specified by the user.

My interpretation for the method find(String[] criteria):
1. criteria{null,null,null,null......} - Display all records
2. criteria{"Fr",null,null,null......} - Display all records that name starts with "Fr"
3. criteria{null,"Ed",null,null......} - Display all records that location starts with "Ed"
4. criteria{"Fred","Ed",null,null......} - Display all records that name starts with "Fr" AND location starts with "Ed"

I'm not sure if point number 4 is correct - Anyone have thought about this requirement?

Thanks

[Rahim Nathwani]

Sorry number 4 has a typo:

4. criteria{"Fr","Ed",null,null......} - Display all records that name starts with "Fr" AND location starts with "Ed"

thanks

[Tim Anlauf]

Yes, that's excactly the way I have implemented it.

[Rahim Nathwani]

I just realized something in my assignment

The instructions.html states:
It must allow the user to search the data for all records, or for records where the name and/or location fields exactly match values specified by the user.

The DB intergace states:
// Returns an array of record numbers that match the specified
// criteria. Field n in the database file is described by
// criteria[n]. A null value in criteria[n] matches any field
// value. A non-null value in criteria[n] matches any field
// value that begins with criteria[n]. (For example, "Fred"
// matches "Fred" or "Freddy".)

public int[] find(String[] criteria) {
return null;
}

Which search do I do? Match exactly or "Fred" results in a return of "Freddy"?

[Jeremy Botha]

Hi, Rahim.

I followed the contract specified in the DBMain interface, and matched anything which started with the specified search term.

There are a number of WTF's in the documentation. I assume you're working on B&S?

Jeremy

[Marcelo Ortega]

When i first read the instruction on this point i interpreted it as having a button where the user can click on "Search All" which will show all fields, and two JTextFields, one for name and another for location (with a "Search" button), where the user can specify the name and/or location criteria. After reading a couple of threads i noticed that i had interpreted the instructions incorrectly, and that i should allow the user to be able to specify a value for any of the database fields. Is this correct? My instructions state the same as the first post:

It must allow the user to search the data for all records, or for records where the name and/or location fields exactly match values specified by the user

If i am right, this would be quit ugly for the GUI. Any thoughts?

Regards.
[ October 31, 2006: Message edited by: Marcelo Ortega ]

[Rahim Nathwani]

Hi jeremy,

You got it with the WTF --- Too many

I'm working on UrlyBird - Room rental. I have decided exactly what you did as far as the search. I am searching anything which started with the specified search term. So if the search is "Fr" --> returns "French", "Fred" ---> NOT "fred" ie. Case sensitive

Marcelo,

I have understood the search as you have. I don't think that we need a search on every column. Love for someone who has passed the certification doing it this way to conform.

[Marcelo Ortega]

Hi Rahim,
If this is so, then the findByCriteria(String[] criteria) method is quit stupid, because it says that field n matches criteria[n], and if we are only providing values for the name and location, what happens to the rest of the positions in the array?? I think explicitly setting them to null is pretty dum, don't you think?

Anyone got a different view on this?

Regards.

[Mark Smyth]

Originally posted by Marcelo Ortega:
Hi Rahim,
If this is so, then the findByCriteria(String[] criteria) method is quit stupid, because it says that field n matches criteria[n], and if we are only providing values for the name and location, what happens to the rest of the positions in the array?? I think explicitly setting them to null is pretty dum, don't you think?

Anyone got a different view on this?

Regards.

Yes but creating a String array will auutomatically set all the values to null, so you need only set the criteria fields you are interested in.

  
String criteria[] = new String[NUM_FIELDS];
criteria[NAME_INDEX]="Bed";
criteria[LOCATION_INDEX]="Bed";

while the search method as called by the GUI only requires the name and location fields to be searchable, it seems natural that it should be implemented in a way that would make it easy to add new fields to search on if a future search enhancement is required (I think the GUI requirement hint at this point too, ie establishing a framework ...).

My criteria method is a case insensitive startWith comparison of each field. I think that a case sensitive approach is not very user friendly at all and that a case insensitive search is very justifiable on these grounds.