The search button, associated with the Code field on various windows, will open a list of records. This list enables you to search for and select the record you wish to work with, either for record maintenance or for inclusion in a transaction.

It is available on various record windows in the Sales and Purchase Ledgers and in Costing.

It is also found on Transaction Header windows in Sales and Purchase Order Processing and in Costing.

Similar lists are available in the Nominal Ledger and in Stock Control. These are described in the Help for those units.

When the list is opened from a record window, it can be left open and be used for browsing.

When the list is opened from a transaction window, it closes when the required record is selected (double click the record to select).

The operation of the record list is controlled by settings in System Control. It can be set to open and populate automatically whenever a Record window is opened.

The full toolbar may not be visible unless you resize the window. The Display and Help icons are located to the far right of the window.

Each search can be edited, duplicated, and deleted. You can only edit or delete your own searches; if a User is deleted then their searches are also deleted.

All searches are visible, therefore searches must be saved with a unique name within the particular search list. When editing a search, if you do not specify a new name the original search will be overwritten. When duplicating a search, if the original search is your own, you must rename the search; however, if the original search was saved by another user, you can save with the same name (as the new search will be attributed to you).

The Select Search and Save Search buttons are available on the following record lists: Customer, Supplier, Sales Analysis, Purchase Analysis, Nominal Accounts, Stock Records, Price Records, Resource Records, Project Records, Rejections Records, Campaign Records, Route Records, Approver Groups.

When the list has been opened from a record window, the option behaves in the same way as selecting Insert on the record window. An empty record window will be displayed.

When the list has been opened from a transaction window, a special, reduced input window is opened to enable you to insert a new record. This is referred to as inserting 'on the fly’ and is particularly useful if you are entering an Order for a Customer or Supplier and you find that their record has not yet been set up. When you click OK to save the record, you will be returned to the Transaction entry window.

Next/Previous The number of records displayed in the list window is set on the System Format tab. If the number of records exceeds the list size, the browse buttons enable you to display the next set of records, or return to a previous set. The tool-tips, associated with these icons, indicate the list size currently in use and the icons will not be active if there are no more records to be displayed.

Display Clicking this icon will populate the list if it has not been populated automatically.

Clicking on Display will display all the records, up to the maximum list size.

After entering search criteria, the Display button should be pressed to display the records that match the search criteria.

Export to Excel: clicking on this button will export the current list to MS Excel.

Help this button will open the Help.

Details from the records will be displayed in the record list in a columnar format . The columns that are included will vary from record to record but the record Code or Name will be displayed in one of the first columns. The horizontal scroll bar can be used to view all the columns.

You can change the width of the columns - Place the cursor over the right-hand edge of the column, when the cursor changes you can pull the edge to widen the column or to make it narrower.

Some record lists will include icons to indicate the current status of a record.

For example: Customer record list

Most record lists have additional functionality available on the right-click menu. This menu is opened by placing the focus on the record you require and clicking the right-hand mouse button.

For example: Customer record list

The right-click menu enables you to open a selection of different Enquiry windows for the selected Customer.

Sales Transactions, Outstanding Sales Orders, Delivery Document History.

Clicking on the column headings enables you to change the sort order of the list by putting the data in either Ascending or Descending order based on the data in that column. A second click will re-sort the list to opposite order (ascending or descending).

An arrow head image will be displayed in the column heading to indicate which data has been used to sort the list.

Columns containing icons can also be sorted. Click the column heading to move records in the list that are 'On Stop' or 'Over Credit Limit' to the top of the list. The symbols will be repeated on the relevant lines.

Entering selection criteria enables you to limit the records that are displayed making the list faster to load and easier to work with.

Click this Window View icon to open the search pane at the foot of the window.

Enter the criteria to be applied to the data. Only records that match the search criteria you have entered will be retrieved and displayed in the list.

For example: You may wish to search for Customers in a particular area or linked to a particular Sales Representative.

To search for all Customers in the 'CO' postcode area: select Begins from the drop-down menu of search operators against the label Postcode; enter CO in the Postcode field; click Display.

To search for Customers linked to a particular Sales Representative (this information stored in the Sort Key of the record): select Equal from the drop-down menu of search operators against the label Sort Key; enter the representatives name in the Sort Key field; click Display.

The menu buttons, alongside the fields in the search pane, enable you to select the search operator to be applied when the search is run.

The default will be Range or Begins.

The menu also includes Contains, Equal, Not Equal, Exclude.

When you have selected the operator to be applied, enter the value to be used in the field alongside the menu.

For Range, begins and Contain, the first few characters of the field value can be used.

For Equal, Not Equal and Exclude, a complete value must be entered for an exact match to be found.

On certain Record lists there are right-click options to save and select (previously saved) search criteria. Each user is able to set a default search for each record list. The search name is shown on the Title Bar of the record list form. Double-click on a saved search runs the search against the record list.

This option is influenced by the System Format option 'Automatically Populate Record Lists'. If this option is on, your default search will be applied and the list populated. If the option is off, then your default search will be loaded into the record search.

You are prompted to enter a name for the search and specify whether it is the default. You are allowed one default per user per list. When you save, all search values (i.e. equal to, range, etc) are also saved. Each search must be given a unique name within the list per User.

Each search can be edited, duplicated and deleted, however you can only edit or delete your own searches.

When a User is deleted from the system, their searches are also deleted.

You are shown a list of searches for that particular list. Initially, only your searches are displayed, however you are able to choose to view all available searches for that list. Default is at the top of the list. You are able to set the Default in this list using the 'make default' option or via right-click. A double-click on a search runs the search criteria against the record list.

When using the search pane on a record list, after you have entered selection criteria to display just the records you require, you can save the resulting list as your Personal version of this list.

Clicking the Personal List button while it is ‘raised’, will store the currently displayed list for you. Then next time you use this list window, you will not need to build and refine the list, you can just reload the list.

If a Personal List is in use, the Personal List button will be ‘depressed’ and the Reload Personal List button will become active. A legend in the window heading will confirm that you are using your list rather than the default full list.

Once you have set up your Personal List for a search window, it will be available throughout the system wherever that window is used. This feature is available on most list windows.

If a Personal List is being used, the Personal List button will be depressed, and the Reload Personal List button will become active. A legend in the window heading will confirm that you are using your list, rather than the default full list.

Clicking the Reload Personal List button will reload your personal list and will overwrite any changes you may have made to the list on the current window.