DIFFERENCE( ) Function
Returns an integer, 0 through 4, which represents the relative phonetic difference between two character expressions.
DIFFERENCE(cExpression1, cExpression2)
Return Values
Numeric
Parameters
- cExpression1, cExpression2
Specifies the character expressions that DIFFERENCE( ) compares.
Remarks
DIFFERENCE( ) is useful for searching tables when the exact spelling of an entry isn't known.
The more alike the two expressions are spelled, the higher the number DIFFERENCE( ) returns. If the character expressions are spelled very similarly, DIFFERENCE( ) returns 4. For two character expressions with little in common phonetically, DIFFERENCE( ) returns 0.
Example
STORE 'Smith' TO gcName1
STORE 'Smythe' TO gcName2
STORE 'Smittie' TO gcName3
STORE '' TO gcName4
CLEAR
? DIFFERENCE(gcName1, gcName2) && Displays 4
? DIFFERENCE(gcName1, gcName3) && Displays 4
? DIFFERENCE(gcName1, gcName4) && Displays 1