I'm trying to look for a way to determine if a particular text or string is present in external .tex files. It is like accepting a text input from a user and determining if that text can be found in your .tex files. For example, you may want to search for a title of an article, if it is present in your .tex or .bib files. Consider the following MWE.
%MWE
\documentclass{article}
%this is a temporary definition, just to declare the command.
\newcommand*{\mySearchforStringinExternalFilesCommand}[4]{#1#2#3#4}
%first argument is the text/string to be searched.
%second argument is a list of external files that will be searched if the given string is present.
%third argument is the output if the string is found.
%fourth argument is the output if the stsring is not found.
\begin{document}
%I am trying to search for the text vibration'' if it is present inside the external files datafileone.tex, datafiletwo.tex, and datafilethree.tex. %If the text can be found inside the external files, thenThe search phrase ... was found in ... '' will be printed in the pdf file together with the filename/s of the external file/s where the text was found. If not, then The search phrase was not found in any of the datafiles.'' will be printed. %datafileone.tex contains the phraseamplitude of vibration''.
%datafiletwo.tex contains the phrase frequency of vibration''. %datafilethree.tex contains the phraseinstantaneous frequency and instantaneous amplitude''. (these are terms from my thesis :) )
%Therefore, if the macro \mySearchforStringinExternalFilesCommand is designed properly, it must output ``The search phrase `vibration' was found in datafileone.tex and datafiletwo.tex''
\mySearchforStringinExternalFilesCommand%
{vibration}%This is the text or string to be searched in the given external files.
{%These are the external files.
datafileone.tex%
datafiletwo.tex%
datafilethree.tex%
}%
{The search phrase ... was found in ...}%datafileone.tex and/or datafiletwo.tex and/or datafilethree.tex
{The search phrase was not found in any of the datafiles.}%This is printed if the text is not found.
\end{document}
Phelype Oleinik used expl3 syntax and proposed the command \replacelineonce{<file>}{<search string>}{<replacement>}{<true code>}{<false code>}
for find and replace, found in How to replace a line in a file written by TeX' \write command. The code is as follows (taken from the URL)
\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{xparse}
\ExplSyntaxOn
\NewDocumentCommand \replacelineonce { m m m m m }
{ \mountain_replace_once:nnnTF {#1} {#2} {#3} {#4} {#5} }
\NewDocumentCommand \replacelineall { m m m m m }
{ \mountain_replace_all:nnnTF {#1} {#2} {#3} {#4} {#5} }
\tl_new:N \l__mountain_tmpa_tl
\tl_new:N \l__mountain_file_seq
\bool_new:N \l__mountain_replaced_bool
\ior_new:N \l__mountain_replace_ior
\iow_new:N \l__mountain_replace_iow
\prg_new_protected_conditional:Npnn \mountain_replace_once:nnn #1 #2 #3 { T, F, TF }
{ \__mountain_replace_aux:Nnnn \c_false_bool {#1} {#2} {#3} }
\prg_new_protected_conditional:Npnn \mountain_replace_all:nnn #1 #2 #3 { T, F, TF }
{ \__mountain_replace_aux:Nnnn \c_true_bool {#1} {#2} {#3} }
\cs_new_protected:Npn \__mountain_replace_aux:Nnnn #1 #2 #3 #4
{
\ior_open:NnTF \l__mountain_replace_ior {#2}
{ \__mountain_replace_line:Nnnn #1 {#3} {#4} {#2} }
{
\msg_error:nnn { mountain } { file-not-found } {#2}
\prg_return_false:
}
}
\cs_new_protected:Npn \__mountain_replace_line:Nnnn #1 #2 #3 #4
{
\seq_clear:N \l__mountain_file_seq
\bool_set_false:N \l__mountain_replaced_bool
\ior_str_map_inline:Nn \l__mountain_replace_ior
{
\str_if_eq:nnTF {##1} {#2}
{
\bool_set_true:N \l__mountain_replaced_bool
\seq_put_right:Nn \l__mountain_file_seq {#3}
\bool_if:NF #1
{ \ior_map_break:n { \__mountain_replace_skip: } }
}
{ \seq_put_right:Nn \l__mountain_file_seq {##1} }
}
\__mountain_replace_end:n {#4}
}
\cs_new_protected:Npn \__mountain_replace_skip:
{
\ior_str_map_inline:Nn \l__mountain_replace_ior
{ \seq_put_right:Nn \l__mountain_file_seq {##1} }
}
\cs_new_protected:Npn \__mountain_replace_end:n #1
{
\ior_close:N \l__mountain_replace_ior
\iow_open:Nn \l__mountain_replace_iow {#1}
\seq_map_inline:Nn \l__mountain_file_seq
{ \iow_now:Nn \l__mountain_replace_iow {##1} }
\iow_close:N \l__mountain_replace_iow
\bool_if:NTF \l__mountain_replaced_bool
{ \prg_return_true: }
{ \prg_return_false: }
}
\msg_new:nnn { mountain } { file-not-found }
{ File~`#1'~not~found. }
\ExplSyntaxOff
\begin{document}
\newwrite\tempfile
\immediate\openout\tempfile=lists.tex
\immediate\write\tempfile{line1}
\immediate\write\tempfile{}
\immediate\write\tempfile{line2}
\immediate\write\tempfile{}
\immediate\write\tempfile{line2}
\immediate\write\tempfile{}
\immediate\write\tempfile{line2}
\immediate\closeout\tempfile
\replacelineonce{lists.tex}{line2}{line replaced}
{Replaced once:}
{Nothing replaced:}
\input{lists}
\bigskip
\replacelineall{lists.tex}{line2}{line replaced}
{Replaced all:}
{Nothing replaced:}
\input{lists}
\bigskip
\replacelineonce{lists.tex}{line2}{line replaced}
{Replaced once:}
{Nothing replaced:}
\input{lists}
\bigskip
\end{document}
My interest, though, is only to “find”, and not “find and replace”.
Another similar topic is Find and replace in a document consisting of many 'included' files using \include
Kindly seeking your help.
