Searching

There are two ways to find records in Linea Codex, and they answer two different questions. The quick search box at the top of the tree is for jumping to a record you can already half-name — type a few letters and the list narrows. Advanced search is for finding records by criteria you describe: everyone with a BIRT that has no DATE, every FILE whose value matches a pattern, every note used as a top-level record. This page covers both.

Quick search: type to filter

A search box (placeholder Search records…) sits at the top of the tree. Start typing and the list filters as you go, automatically expanding to reveal the matches. It searches more than just names:

• Record labels — the name or summary shown on each row (a person’s name, a source title, and so on).
• Cross-reference IDs — the record’s own xref, so typing @I937@ (or just I937) jumps straight to it.
• Deep record text — values buried inside a record, not only its top line. Searching London finds a person whose only mention of it is a PLAC under a residence event.

Matching is case-insensitive and accent-folded, so muller finds Müller without you typing the umlaut. Results are ranked, with xref matches first, then label matches, then deeper text matches.

In the Raw perspective the search also matches the structural TAG XREF VALUE line, so you can search by tag there; in the everyday Grouped perspective it matches names, ids, and deep text as above.

Press Esc while the box has focus, or click the clear (✕) button beside it, to reset the filter. If nothing matches you’ll see No matching records found.

Tip

Quick search and advanced search stack. If you’ve applied an advanced-search filter (below) and then type in the quick box, the tree shows records that satisfy both — a fast way to narrow a large result set by name.

Advanced search: find by condition

When you need records that share a shape rather than a name, open advanced search. Two ways in:

• Click the adjustments icon beside the quick search box (Open advanced search).
• Or use the menu bar: Edit → Advanced search…

Both open the Advanced search dialog. Neither has a keyboard shortcut.

Building conditions

You describe what to match by adding one or more conditions (the heading reads Conditions, with the hint All must match — every condition you add is combined with AND). Each condition is a row with a kind and, for most kinds, a value to fill in:

Condition	Label in the app	What it matches
Tag is	Tag is	A node whose tag is exactly what you type — e.g. BIRT, NAME, FILE.
Has a value	Has a value	Any node that carries a value at all (no value to fill in).
Value matches	Value matches	A node whose value matches a regular expression — e.g. ^\d{4}$ for a bare four-digit year.
Has child	Has child	A node that has a direct child with the tag you name — e.g. a BIRT that has child DATE.
Parent tag is	Parent tag is	A node whose immediate parent has the tag you name — e.g. a DATE whose parent tag is BIRT.

Each row has a small = / ≠ toggle in front of it. Flip it to ≠ to negate the condition — must NOT match — so you can search for, say, a BIRT that does not have child DATE to find births missing a date.

Click Add condition to stack more rows. Because they combine with AND, three rows describe a narrow, specific target: Tag is BIRT and has child PLAC and ≠ has child DATE finds every birth event that records a place but no date.

Conditions match nodes, not whole records

A condition describes a single GEDCOM node (one line and its place in the tree), not a whole person or family. That’s why Parent tag is and Has child exist — they let you pin down a node by its surroundings. The result list shows you the exact node that matched, in context.

Reading the results

As you build conditions, the dialog searches live (with a short debounce) and fills in:

• Results — a count (N matches) and a sample list of matched nodes, each shown as its path. The list is capped at a sample; if there are more you’ll see + N not shown — narrow your search. Before you’ve added a usable condition it reads Add a condition to start; when nothing matches, No nodes match.
• Record preview — click a result and the containing record is rendered on the right with the matched line highlighted, so you can confirm it’s what you meant. A structured/raw toggle above the preview switches how it’s shown.

Acting on the results

The bar at the bottom of the dialog offers four actions:

• Clear rules — empties the condition builder and starts over.
• Cancel — closes the dialog without changing the tree.
• Go to node — closes the dialog and selects the matched node you picked in the results list, scrolling the tree to it. (Double-clicking a result does the same.)
• Filter tree — applies the conditions as a filter on the tree itself: the tree collapses to just the matched records (and their ancestors), so you can browse the whole result set in place. The dialog closes.

The active-filter strip, and clearing it

After Filter tree, a status strip appears under the tree’s search box reading Advanced search · N shown, and the advanced-search icon shows as pressed. Browse the filtered tree as usual; to lift the filter, click the ✕ on that strip (Clear advanced search). Re-opening the dialog restores the conditions you last used, so you can refine and re-apply.

If you Go to node while a filter is active — or follow a link to a record that the filter would hide — Linea Codex clears the filter so the record is reachable, and shows a brief toast (Advanced filter cleared to show this node) with a Restore action to put the filter back. When both a text filter and an advanced filter are clearing at once, it offers Restore both.

Search finds; transforms change

Advanced search and the bulk transform rule builder share the same condition vocabulary — Tag is, Has a value, Value matches, Has child, Parent tag is — because they’re built on the same matching engine. The difference is what happens next: search shows and filters; a transform also attaches an action and changes the matching nodes. If you find a recurring problem with advanced search and want to fix it everywhere, carry the same conditions over to a transform.

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