How to filter on any list in BOXI

The idea of this is to allow you to quickly create BOXI reports based on a list of data. This is helpful in checking information taken from another report either from BOXI or elsewhere.

It may seem a little complex at first but it is relatively simple.

Firstly take you list in Excel and in the first empty column add the formula

=B5&";"

Where B5 is the cell containing the information you are planning on seraching on

Then copy this formula and paste it down the whole column. This should fill the column with all of your data followed by a semi-colon.

Select and copy this whole column and then select Paste Special (either under Paste in the home tab or by right clicking). Then select the Paste Values option (circled red in below image).

Copy again and paste on a blank Excel sheet this time using the Transpose Paste Special (circled blue).

Copy this into a blank Word document. The data will all be tab spaced so highlight and copy the spacer. Then Find and Replace (Ctrl+H) with this as the Find option and leaving the replace blank.

This will then give you the information to put into BOXI in the following form:

PRMLTCELTI1F;PRMLTCELTI1F;PRMLTCELTI1F;PRMLTCELTI1F;PRMLTCELTI1F

In BOXI drag the corresponding Object into the Query Filters section of your report and make sure it is using In List and Constant. Paste in the values and then change the type to Value From List.

There is an upper limit of around 100 items per filter (it seems to change depending on the object) but you can get around this by simply filtering on the same object using the Or function as below:

In this example I have used Programme Codes but it is the same process for UUNs, exam numbers etc…

I hope this is of help. Please feel free to drop me an email if you have any questions Gordon.Littlejohn@ed.ac.uk