Introduction

Starting with version 2.2, the Find function helps you navigate Spotfire applications and data much more easily with one simple tool.  You will find that it makes ad-hoc analysis, as well as the job of building analyses, much easier.

If you press Ctrl+F (or click on Tools > Find), you will see a text entry box hovering over Spotfire.  This entry box gives you quick access to execute menu commands, open recently opened files, mark or tag records with certain values, and jump to pages and visualizations of interest.  You can use the "Find" tool anytime Spotfire is open, and the actions it takes are context dependent on the returns of your search term.  Read the rest of this article to see a few basic usages of the tool.  You can also read more detailed information on using Find here on the Spotfire Technology Network.

Perform Actions using Find

Try launching Spotfire, press Ctrl+F, and type the word Open.  See that any menu command that includes the word "Open" is listed.  If you click on any of the commands listed under "Perform Action," Spotfire will execute that specific function as if you had called that command from the menu system.  For example, if you click on "Open File" in the list of commands, Spotfire will react exactly as if you had clicked on File > Open from the menu system.  This sequence is depicted below ...

Access Previously Opened Files using Find

Let's say I was recently working on a file using stock data related to the S&P 100.  By typing "S&P" in the Find tool, I can quickly see the files I've recently opened with S&P in the name.  Clicking on a file name will open it.  This sequence is depicted below ...

Navigate the Document using Find

Find can help you quickly jump to pages and visualizations of interest.  In this example, once I've opened my Spotfire file, I can only recall that I want to see a visualization related to share prices.  By typing "share" in the Find tool, any visualizations with "share" in the title appear in the Find list.  Clicking on the visualization will take me straight to that page and visual.  This sequence is depicted below ...

Mark (or Tag) Data using Find

The Find command also has access to the data you have loaded so you can mark or tag values of interest.  For example, in my S&P 100 example, the dataset has simple stock ticker data.  Using this data I've made a trend line plot that shows trends in stock ticker prices over time.  I can then use the Find command to mark the stocks that belong to the S&P 100.  First, press Ctrl+F and enter "S&P", which will pick up on the column name that looks like this.  If you click on the list item "In S&P 100 - Yes", that will mark all rows with a value "Yes" in the column called "In S&P 100."  This sequence is depicted below ...

You can read more detailed information on using Find here on the Spotfire Technology Network.