Wildcards are another search technique that is available to help locate titles and abstracts by owner name.  These wildcards are useful when searching a name when you do not know the exact spelling. 

There are two wildcard search options available to you: the percent (%) wildcard and the underscore (_) wildcard.  Both wildcards can be used in conjunction with each other within the same field.

The Percent (%) Wildcard

The percent (%) wildcard can be used when you know only a few letters of a name.  This wildcard works differently in different types of fields.

• When a wildcard (% or_) is used in a Firm Name or Family Name field of a Quick Search by Name, the first three letters of the name must precede the percent (%) wildcard.  This is referred to as the First Three Letters Rule. The percent (%) wildcard will then represent all letter combinations for the space that it fills within the name. 
  • For example, you are looking for a title owned by Family Name “Johnson” but are unsure of the exact spelling.  If you know the first three (or more) letters of this name, you can use the percent (%) wildcard to search all family names that begin with the letters “joh”.  You can do this by typing in the letters “joh” followed by the percent (%) wildcard (i.e., “joh%”).  This will bring back all family names beginning with the letters “joh” that hold ownership rights to a title in Saskatchewan.  You can then select the correct title from the Owner Name List screen that will be made up of all title owners beginning with the letters “joh”. 

NOTE: The First Three Letters Rule does not apply fields other than the Firm Name or Family Name field.

• When the percent (%) wildcard is used in the other fields (i.e., Given Name, P.O. Box/Street, and City), the First Three Letters Rule does not apply.  For example, typing “smith” in the Family Name field and “b%” in the Given Name field will bring back all Smith’s whose given name begins with the letter “b” (e.g. “Bob Smith”, “Bradley Smith”).  In these fields, any combination of letters and wildcards will work.

The percent (%) technique can bring back many results to choose from but is useful when trying to locate a title/abstract when you have little information to work with.  See below for more examples of using this wildcard technique in conjunction with the underscore (_) wildcard..

The Underscore (_) Wildcard

The second wildcard technique that is available is the underscore (_) symbol.  This symbol can be used to represent one unknown letter.  It is a one-for-one wildcard that can be used in place of any other letter.  This wildcard works differently in different types of fields.

• When the underscore (_) wildcard is used in the Family Name or Firm Name field, it must comply with the First Three Letters Rule that states that the first three letters of the name must be keyed in for the wildcards to operate.  For example, you are searching the family name “Daniels” but are unsure of the correct spelling (e.g. Daniels or Danials).  You can use the underscore (_) wildcard in place of the letter that you are unsure of.  To do this, you would simply key in “dani_ls” in the Family Name field, and all names with this letter combination will be displayed in the Owner Name List screen.
• When the underscore (_) wildcard is used in the other fields (i.e., Given Name, P.O. Box/Street, and City), the First Three Letters Rule does not apply.  For example, you could key “smith” in the Family Name field and “t_m” in the Given Name field to bring back all Smith’s whose given name begins with the letter “t”, is followed by another letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], and ends with the letter “m” (e.g. “Tim Smith”, “Tom Smith”).

 

Firm Name and Family Name Fields

Here are some examples for you to examine if you are unsure of how these wildcard techniques function in the Firm name and Family Name fields.

• abr%am – this will bring back any names beginning with the letter combination “abr,” followed by any other letter or letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard], and ending with the letter combination “am” (e.g. “Abraham”).
• a_r% – this will not bring back any results.  The underscore (_) wildcard does not count as one of the three required letters needed for the percent (%) wildcard to work.  The First Three Letters Rule is not satisfied.
• bro%_ or bro_% – both of these will bring back any names beginning with the letter combination “bro” followed by any other letter combination (e.g. “Brown”, “Brody”).  The percent (%) and underscore (_) wildcards, when placed beside each other, act as the percent (%) wildcard would alone.
• gar_n% – this will bring back any names beginning with the letter combination “gar”, followed by any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], followed by “n”, and ending with any other letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard] (e.g. “Garenger”, “Gartner”).
• jac_bs_n – this will bring back any name beginning with the letter combination “jac”, followed by any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], followed by the letters “bs”, followed by any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], and ending with any other letter “n” (e.g. “Jacobsen”, “Jacibsan”). 

 

Other Name Fields (Given Name, Street Name, City Name, Postal Code)

Here are some examples for you to examine if you are unsure of how these wildcard techniques function in the Other Name fields.

• j_hn% – if used in the Given Name field, this will bring back any given names beginning with the letter “j”, followed by any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], followed by “hn”, and ending with any other letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard] (e.g. “Johnny”).
• sta% – if used in the Given Name field, this will bring back any given names beginning with the letter combination “sta” followed by any other letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard] (e.g. “Stacey M.”, “Stanley”).  Notice that in the first example (i.e., “Stacey M.”), the owner name’s middle initial was included in the search results. Using the percent (%) wildcard in this situation is useful when you are not sure if the middle name or initial displays on the title or abstract.
• _o% – this will bring back any names beginning with any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], followed by the letter “o”, and ending with any other letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard] (e.g. “Dorothy”, “Morris”).
• m% – if used in the Given Name field, this will bring back any given names beginning with the letter “m” followed by any other letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard] (e.g. “Mike”, “Monty”). 
• abr%am – as above, this will bring back any names beginning with the letter combination “abr,” followed by any other letter or letter combination [as represented by the percent (%) wildcard], and ending with the letter combination “am” (e.g. “Abraham”).
• ale%_ or ale_% – both of these will bring back any names beginning with the letter combination “ale” followed by any other letter combination (e.g. “Alexis”, “Alexander”).  The percent (%) and underscore (_) wildcards, when placed beside each other, act as the percent (%) wildcard would alone.
• c_nd_ – this will bring back any names beginning with the letter “c”, followed by any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], followed by the letter combination “nd”, and ending with any letter [as represented by the underscore (_) wildcard], (e.g. “Cyndi”, “Cindy”).
• %streetname%- when using a street name to further define your search, you must enter the full street address in the PO Box/Street Name field to achieve accurate search results.  It is recommended that a %streetname% wildcard format be used, as both the number and type of street (e.g. avenue, crescent, boulevard, etc.) must be included.  This format will use the wildcards to include all unit numbers and any street type in its search.