# getd_partial_key

Definition: | object key = getd_partial_key(object pkey, integer tid=1, bool rev=false)
Description: | Retrieve the first key >= (or <= if rev is true) the specified partial key.
pwa/p2js: | Supported.
Comments: | tid can be omitted, to use the default dictionary, or the result of a previous new_dict() call. This routine is a "single-shot" variant of traverse_dict_partial_key(); obviously the latter must be used when you want to "carry on" in any way. As per getd(), this function can return the setd_default() value for non-existent keys (ie the specified key is past the end/start of file, or rather in this case the highest/lowest entry). In other words there is no equivalent of getd_index() here, other than by using traverse_dict_partial_key() and finding out that either rid was not invoked, or the first time it was invoked the key was already past anything of interest.
Example: |
    setd("this",0)
    setd("that",0)
    setd("those",0)
    ?getd_partial_key("the")    -- prints "this"
It is up to the calling program to decide whether "this" is of any use, when it does not actually start with the partial key, ie "the".
See Also: | getd, setd_default, getd_index, traverse_dict_partial_key