Searching by text in HTMLText fields

[ThomasArndorfer]

Currently in Windchill 11.2 (and 12 I assume), the text users input into HTMLText fields is not searchable.  So that means that the Description field for Change Notice, Change Request, etc, is not searchable.  The old string Description value was searchable.  In fact, if you select Description via the Advanced Search, it will actually search the legacy string Description value - not the new HTMLText Description.  And for some reason when the HTMLText value is written to the database it is encrypted or otherwise obfuscated so that it cannot be searched.

My "idea" is that PTC should provide - at a minimum - the equivalent functionality to the field they are replacing and support searching by HTMLText fields.

[BjoernRueegg]

@ThomasArndorfer Have you opened up a case at PTC? If so, please link it to the idea. I also would expect that to work.

[ThomasArndorfer]

I have, and it was recommended to create a Windchill Idea.  The fix for this is in the backlog and not scheduled to be fixed unless more people raise the concern.

Case Details: 15736679 (ptc.com)

[TomU]

Your case isn't going to be visible to anyone else outside PTC.  Did tech support create an article or SPR?  Those may be public and worth linking here.

If the newfangled GUI eliminated the ability to actually leverage the information contained in it, then someone inside PTC isn't doing a good job with their spec. writing.  The information itself is way more important than how pretty it looks and it should be accessible everywhere it was before.

[ThomasArndorfer]

No SPR or article.  I was told "R&D acknowledges the limitation and will plan to implement enhanced functionality in a future release of Windchill" and that was where it was left.

We edited the forms for all these objects to remove the HTMLText Description field and put back the String Description field.  The new GUI was not worth the limited functionality.  And honestly, no one was asking for an HTMLText field, so it was not worth pushing for an SPR.  If it was fixed we might look at migrating to the new field in the future, but no demand for it.  Just making PTC aware of the half baked deployment of this functionality.

[olivierlp]

Hello,

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