A search ultimately has two sections: Input and Output

1.1 Input

The Input of a search is a list of Filters, i.e. what parameters should be supplied to a search, and how should these parameters be used to filter the result.

Here is a brief explanation of various terms, which are relevant for a search's Input. Each term can be found on another page close to this, where there will be a more in-depth explanation and guide on how to apply it.

• Filter
  
  • A Filter is a condition, which is applied to the data in the DAM Center during a search. 
• Group
  
  • A Group is a conditional collection of 1-many Filters, i.e. a set of if- and else-if statements.
• Comparison Type
  • Determines how a given Filter does its "filtering".
• Input Type
  • Determines how any Visible filter gets the user's input, i.e. Input Type can be used to gather a search's parameters and therefore has no impact on the search itself.
• Visible filter
  
  • If a Filter is visible, then parameters for that filter can be supplied by the user in Media Manager and Video Portal.
• Predetermined values
  
  • If the parameters for a Filter are known in advance, predetermined values can be applied to the Filter. If Predetermined values are applied to a Filter, any parameters supplied by the user or client code will be ignored.

1.2 Output

The Output of a search is a list of Value Fields, i.e. what data is output by a search.

Here is a brief explanation of various terms, which are relevant for a search's Output. Each term are discussed further page close to this, where there will be a more in-depth explanation and guide on how to apply it.

• Value Field
  
  • A Value Field is an element, which defines a property in the search result.
• isArray
  • Determines whether a Value Field is ALWAYS output as an array.
• returnType
  
  • Determines how a Value Field is represented in the search result.
• Tooltip
  
  • Determines whether a Value Field is used in the tooltip of an asset
    

1.3 Input and Output

Some terms are used in both the Input and Output of a search. As with the two previous paragraphs, here is a brief explanation of these terms as well as a link to a page with a more in-depth explanation.

• ID
  
  • The ID has two different implications: one for Input, and one for Output
    • Input: The ID of a Filter is the name of the parameter given to the search.
    • Output: The ID of a Value Field is the name of the property in the JSON returned by the search. It can also be the Constant of a label, which is used in the DAM Center, Media Manager, and Video Portal to display the output of a Value Field.
• Custom attributes
  • Custom attributes are user-defined attributes of a Filter or Value Field.
• Field
  
  • A Field is used in conjunction with a Metadata field to specify a value other than the default Metadata field value.
• Meta field group
  
  • A metadata field belongs to a meta field group. Many different meta fields MAY have the same label, but belong to widely different meta field groups and used in very different context.

A user can add three different categories of Filters and Value Fields:

• Table and column
  
  • This is a filter or value field, which acts upon a specific table and column in the database.
• Metadata field
  
  • This is a filter or value field, which acts upon a metadata field, eg "Keywords", "Description", or "Title".
• Predefined
  
  • This is a special filter or value field, which can be a Group, Value Field, Filter, any combination of these, or something else entirely. A Predefined Filter or Value Field is an element, which represents functionality, that is not supported by either a Table and column element or Metadata field.

1.4 Translations

During the genesis of the Search Editor a decision was made to rename certain concepts. This was done to help the user understand what these concepts do. 

This small section's purpose is to explain, that these concepts might be called something different elsewhere in the documentation.

"searchField" → Filter.

"searchFields" → Group.

"valueHandler" → "Comparison Type". 

"renderType" → "Input Type". 

"operator" → "Condition"