Use the search feature
On various screens in Practice CS, you can search a list of clients, staff, or other items to find a specific record. Some screens have a basic search field that requires you to enter the 1st few characters of the item you're looking for, autofilling the field with the 1st item that matches your entry.
Practice CS also offers enhanced searching capabilities on many screens to make your searches easier and more effective. The enhanced search field appears on setup screens for offices, staff, activities, and clients, as well as the Billing, Time and Expense Entry, Manage Projects, Manage Clients, Client Calendar, and Client Dashboard screens.
Use the enhanced Search field
The enhanced
Search
field lets you restrict your search to one or more selected fields and to specify how closely the results must match your search criteria. To use the enhanced search, follow these steps.- Select the dropdown
in the Searchfield. - If you want to confine your search to specific fields, chooseSearch Fieldsfrom the menu, and select each field that you want to include in the search.noteChooseRestore defaultsto clear anySearch Fieldsyou have selected and restore the default search settings.
- Select the dropdown again and select 1 of the available options to perform your search.
- Exact: All characters in the name of the item must match the characters you enter in theSearchfield.
- Begins with: The 1st characters in the name of the item must match the characters you enter in theSearchfield.
- Contains: The characters you enter in theSearchfield must be contained, in order, within the name of the item.
- Ends with: The last characters in the name of the item must match the characters you enter in theSearchfield.
If, for example, you are searching for a client named "Smith & Jones" and you enterJonesin the Search field but choose theBegins withsearch option, Smith & Jones won’t appear in the search results, because the name of the client doesn’t begin with "Jones." However, if you perform the same search using eitherContainsorEnds withas the search option, the desired client would appear in the search results, because the search string fulfills the requirements for both options. - Enter a keyword or string of characters in theSearchfield.
- Select theSearchbutton
button or press Enter to perform the search. - To clear all search criteria and start over, select the clear button
in the Searchfield.noteThe Search Options selection defaults to the last selection you chose.
