WinFinder
A simple, quick, easy to use tool for text data base searches. 
Features
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Simple text data format will never be redundant.
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Minimum number of key/mouse actions to retrieve your data.
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No need for complex regular expression syntax.
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Free for all uses except sale.
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Import data easily for other data bases, company phone books etc.
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No need to structure data.
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Cut and paste from winFinder output into dialers, email etc.
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Use your favorite text editor to edit data or use built in line editor.
Why WinFinder?
If you have ever used a proprietary contacts data base you will have noticed some significant issues such as:
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You have to re-input all your contact/phone book information.
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When that package goes out of style, you change job or type of computer you often end up re-entering the data or loosing part of it during an automatic translation.
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You will find that your data base is not portable between a MAC, PC, and UNIX platform.
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It is improbable that you will be able to integrate your company's existing phone book (or other useful text information) into your data base.
By contrast a simple text data base is great. I have had mine for 15 years and never had to translate it. Because of this it has grown to over 6000 entries including the complete phone books of several organizations.
At first I simply used grep (in UNIX) or find (in DOS) inside a little shell program so that with 5 or 6 key strokes I could search the data base. In Windows however it is painful to go back to DOS for copy and paste operations. Hence WinFinder: a simple tool doing a simple job designed for frequent use.
Now very nice shareware WinGreps are available that have the full UNIX regular expression capability and lots of great features. The difference with WinFinder is that it is optimized to be open all the time and to access your contact data with the minimum number of key or mouse clicks. There are no literal characters or special syntax.
You can just type the characters you need so you can easily use the ^&*!$+~?<>-_ characters as special find keys. Only simple logic operations are needed for this type of search and are supported with intuitive buttons. And it's free!
DownLoad WinFinder here (requires
Microsoft MFC dll installed to function)
Page created by: robert@rh1.org
Changes last made on: Wednesday, February 08, 2006
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