Programming ColdFusion MX, 2nd Edition

Finding Strings

To find a string in a block of text, you use the REFind( ) or REFindNoCase( ) functions. REFind( ) and REFindNoCase( ) are used when you want to know the position of the expression being searched for within a string. REFind( ) performs a case-sensitive search; REFindNoCase( ) performs a case-insensitive search. Regardless of the function used, they both use the same syntax:

REFind(RegularExpression, String [, StartPosition] [, ReturnSubExpressions])
REFindNoCase(RegularExpression, String [, StartPosition] [, ReturnSubExpressions])

Both the REFind( ) and REFindNoCase( ) functions accept the same parameters. The following example finds the first occurrence of “tom” regardless of case:

<cfset MyString="This is a red tomato.">
<cfset ThePosition=REFindNoCase("tom", MyString)>
   
<cfoutput>
The Position:  #ThePosition#
</cfoutput>

In this example, we use REFindNoCase( ) to find the starting position of “tom” within the string “This is a red tomato.” This is done by assigning the result of the regular expression to a variable—in this case, ThePosition. The actual regular expression is embedded within the REFindNoCase( ) function. In its basic form, REFindNoCase( ) accepts two parameters, the regular expression and the string. In this example, the regular expression is simply the three characters “tom”, and the string is “This is a red tomato.” Upon execution, the value returned for ThePositon should be 15, as the first occurrence of “tom” begins at position 15 of the string. ...