You can replace text in the fields returned from the postal address file or remove text from it. In this way you can abbreviate texts or write them in full, depending on the replacement you want. With the Unwanted option, you can completely remove texts.
For both options you can define lists, which are postal field dependent. The program will try to locate the text in the string and, when found, replace the text or remove it.
The program uses Regular expressions to search for data of a specific format. A regular expression is a pattern that the regular expression engine attempts to match in input text. A pattern consists of one or more character literals, operators, or constructs.
In it simplest form, you enter the string you want to look for. So, if you want to find Company you enter that. However, it will find Company anyware in the returned field, even if it is not a seperate word. For that you have Anchors available that cause a match to succeed or fail depending on the current position in the string. The most important are:
| Assertion | Description | Pattern | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| ^ | The match must start at the beginning of the field. | ^Fl | "Fl" in "Fl 5 Fleetwood Grove" |
| $ | The match must occur at the end of the field. | Rd$ | "Rd" in "2 Millwards Rd" |
| \b | The match must occur on a boundary between two words or at the beginning or end of a field. | \bSt\b | "St" in "118a St Albans Road" |
The examples above are the ones you will most frequently need. However you have the full Regular Expression syntax available for more complex searches and replacements. For more information on patterns, see Regular Expression Language Elements.