[comp.sys.mac.apps] text search program needed

RKORNMAN@pucc.Princeton.EDU (Robin Brooks Kornman) (08/18/90)

I've got large encyclopedia-type files, up to 3 meg--- text-files.  When I was
using IBM, I used a very fast,dynamic program called ASK SAM to do word
searches in these text-files. ASK SAM turned my textfiles into databases
and then would pull out every paragraph that had the term or terms I was lookin
for.

Now I'm using a MAC SE with harddisk.  Does anybody know if there is an
equivalent of ASK SAM for MAC?  It would do fast searches of large
files and could use BOOLEAN logic to do word searches.... it would
be able to put together all the entries between two CRs into one file and dis-
play them.

If anybody canhelp me it would advance the cause of Tibetan Translation
inthe West immensely.  This is the first computerized Tibetan
dictionary in the history of this particular buddha field. Please send
me EMAIL at RKORNMAN@PUCC.PRINCETON.EDU

THANKS. Robin Kornman

Adam.Frix@p2.f200.n226.z1.FIDONET.ORG (Adam Frix) (08/20/90)

Robin Brooks Kornman  writes in a message on 08/17/90 at 18:07:31 ...

RBK>  I've got large encyclopedia-type files, up to 3 meg--- text-files. 
RBK>   When I was using IBM, I used a very fast,dynamic program called 
RBK>  ASK SAM to do word searches in these text-files. ASK SAM turned 
RBK>  my textfiles into databases and then would pull out every paragraph 
RBK>  that had the term or terms I was lookin for. 
RBK>  Now I'm using a MAC SE with harddisk.  Does anybody know if 
RBK>  there is an equivalent of ASK SAM for MAC?  It would do fast 
RBK>  searches of large files and could use BOOLEAN logic to do word 
RBK>  searches.... it would be able to put together all the entries 
RBK>  between two CRs into one file and dis- play them. 

On Location, from ON Technolgy Inc., should do what you need.

--Adam--
 

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pevans@umd5.umd.edu (Peter Evans) (08/22/90)

In article <66964.26D14DC6@cmhgate.FIDONET.ORG> Adam.Frix@p2.f200.n226.z1.FIDONET.ORG (Adam Frix) writes:
>
>Robin Brooks Kornman  writes in a message on 08/17/90 at 18:07:31 ...
>
>RBK>  I've got large encyclopedia-type files, up to 3 meg--- text-files. 
>RBK>   When I was using IBM, I used a very fast,dynamic program called 

FreeText is a hypercard stack which builds a fully inverted index and
then does VERY fast full text searching with boolean and user
specifiable proximity ranges.
It is available for ftp on sumex-aim.stanford.edu in the hypercard
directory.
               Peter Evans

clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu (Chaz Larson) (08/23/90)

In article <66964.26D14DC6@cmhgate.FIDONET.ORG> Adam.Frix@p2.f200.n226.z1.FIDONET.ORG (Adam Frix) writes:
>
>Robin Brooks Kornman  writes in a message on 08/17/90 at 18:07:31 ...
>
>RBK>  Does anybody know if 
>RBK>  there is an equivalent of ASK SAM for MAC?  It would do fast 
>RBK>  searches of large files and could use BOOLEAN logic to do word 
>RBK>  searches.... it would be able to put together all the entries 
>RBK>  between two CRs into one file and dis- play them. 
>
>On Location, from ON Technolgy Inc., should do what you need.

On Location won't do BOOLEAN logic, nor will it display multiple "finds" in
a single window or file.  It will only give a list of filenames containing
the search string, then allow you to view them one at a time.  You cannot
"cat" matching files, or portions of them, to a file.

On the other hand, GOfer [a DA from Microlytics; $45 from MacConnection --
a little more than half On Location's $75 MacConnection pricetag] will
do exactly what you want. You can specify a wide variety of BOOLEAN searches,
searching for exact or flexible matches, and once the search is complete, you
can save either:
	all finds +x/-y lines
	all finds +x/-y paragraphs
	just info and names of all files containing finds
	entire files
into another text file.

Say, for example, you had access to a mythical CD-ROM containing the text of
the New York Times from the past two years and you were researching Apple
Computer's recent litigation spree.  GOfer would allow you to make a query
like:
[find all files containing] ("apple" or "macintosh") NEARBY ("Hewlett Packard"
or "Microsoft" or "Windows" or "New Wave")

and save all found files into a single text file for later perusal.

I like it quite a bit.  It's flexible and cheap.  And even better, if you
buy DiskTop 4.0 [CE Software; $64 from MacConnection] you get GOfer v2.0
free with it.

Disclaimer: I have no connection with CE Software, Microlytics, or 
	    MacConnection. I have nothing against ON Technology.

<chaz>
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clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu                                       AOL:Crowbone