Check If a Text String Contains a Particular Substring At the Start of the String

To determine if a particular string is contained at the start of a text attribute or text constant, you can use the following syntax with the StartsWith function. Either of these text strings can be text attributes or text constants. The text comparison is case-insensitive.

  • StartsWith(<text value>, <text substring>)

Examples of the use of the StartsWith function in rules are given in the following table.

Table 1. Examples of the use of the StartsWith function
Example rule Inputs Outputs

the record was created before 2000 if

StartsWith(the record identification code, "19")

the record identification code: 19005 the record was created before 2000 = true
the record identification code: 20158 the record was created before 2000 = false

the person should be represented if

StartsWith(the person's name, "Sir")

the person's name: Sir Lancelot the person should be represented = true
the person's name: Mr Bob Jones the person should be represented = false