Special Query Arguments

There are a number of special query arguments on based on attributes or arithmetic operators.

#contains( note )

Effects the expression 'is a container for', gathering all the notes that contain (the original or an alias of) a specified note. If several distinct notes have the same name, the result is not defined.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'is container of'.

#between(attributeName, min, max )

This query:

#between(attribName,minimum,maximum)

is true if the value of attribName lies between the minimum and maximum values.

minimum <= value <= maximum

The minimum and maximum values may be constant expressions or may use $attributeName to refer to other attributes.

The attribute name may also use $attributeName notation

#between($Name(parent),bar,foo)

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'is between'.

#descendedFrom( note )

Gathers all children of a note and their children, and so on. To gather just the immediate children use #inside( note ).

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'descended from'.

#first( note[, N] )

Gathers the first child of a specified note. Alternatively, a path my be supplied instead of a note name. The optional second argument gathers the first N children of a specified note; if N is omitted, a default value of 1 is assumed.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'first inside'.

N may be:

• a number, e.g. 6
• an export template expression, e.g. ^get(MyCount)^
• an attribute expression, e.g. $MyCount+3

Prior to this N could only be a literal number character.

#indented( N[, note] )

The agent query #indented(N) is true if a note is indented exactly N steps. For example:

#indented(0)

... collects all notes in the top level map.

#indented( N, note) is true if a note is descended from the specified note and indented exactly N steps. For example:

#indented(1,Morning Sessions)

... collects the grandchildren of note 'Morning Sessions'.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'has indentation'.

#inside( container )

The agent query #inside( container ) finds notes that are the children of the note named in the parentheses or if the container is an adornment, those notes that in Map View lie over - or overlap - the adornment. For example

#inside(Morning Session)

... collects all children of note 'Morning Session'.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'inside'.

#last( note[, N] )

Gathers the last child of a specified note. Alternatively, a path my be supplied instead of a note name. The optional second argument gathers the first N children of a specified note; if N is omitted, a default value of 1 is assumed.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'last inside'.

N may be:

• a number, e.g. 6
• an export template expression, e.g. ^get(MyCount)^
• an attribute expression, e.g. $MyCount+3

Prior to this N could only be a literal number character.

#linkedFrom( note [, type] )

Gathers all notes that have an incoming link from a specified note. Using an asterisk as a wild card will match any note. The optional type argument further restricts matches to a given link type.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'linked from'.

#linkedTo( note [, type] )

Gathers all notes that link to a specified note (i.e. lists incoming links to the note). Using an asterisk as a wild card will match any note. The optional type argument further restricts matches to a given link type.

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'linked to'.

#similarTo( note, count )

The agent query #similarTo locates notes that appear similar to a given note. It will find up to count notes, but may find fewer. The sequence of the notes returned is arbitrary. The underlying query is that used b the Similar Notes view.

Similarity is based on several factors, including:

• the text of the note
• the note title
• any text contained in user string attribute(s)

In addition, matches are also weighted by

• notes having the same prototype
• notes having roughly similar amounts of text

The same matching technique s also available as an export code - ^similarTo^

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'is similar to'.

#word( word )

The agent query #word matches all notes that contain a single word matching a word in:

• the title OR
• the text OR
• any user string attribute(s)

Note that #word is stricter in its matching than the #contains query as it looks only for entire words and does not match regular expressions. Although #word examines several different fields, the result is that #word is much faster than #contains.

The word must be:

• a single word
• contain only upper or lower case letters - so no white space, digits, or punctuation
• 4 characters or more (values less than 4 characters or less are ignored by Tinderbox).

This query is added to Agent and Find dialog's query pop-ups, listed as "contains word".

In agent create/rename dialogs this is listed as 'contains word'.

Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License
[See aTbRef CC licence Attribution/Waiver info info]