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any() Function

Function

any( predicate, list, context )

Calls a rule or function that returns either true or false for each item in list by asking the question, "Do any items in this list yield true for this rule/function?" with the intent to discover if any item(s) yield true.

Parameters

Keyword Type Description

predicate

Function, Rule, or Data Type Constructor

Expression that returns a Boolean (true or false).

list

Any Type Array

List of elements that the predicate iterates through.

context

Any Type Array

Variable number of parameters passed directly into each predicate evaluation.

Returns

Boolean

Usage considerations

Referencing expressions and rules

Use fn!functionName or a!functionName to reference an expression function and rule!ruleName to reference a rule.

Using rules or functions with multiple arguments

To use rules or functions that take more than two arguments, use the merge() function. For example, given a rule g(x, y, z), reduce(rule!g, i, merge({a, b, c}, {d, e, f})) returns g(g(g(i, a, d), b, e), c, f).

Understanding results

Returns true as soon as the returned value of an evaluation yields true; otherwise, returns false.

Empty and null lists yield false.

Limitations and alternatives

a!forEach() cannot be used within rules used in this function.

Examples

Generalized behavior

Given a function f(x) , any(fn!f, {a, b, c}, v)) returns or({f(a, v), f(b, v), f(c, v)})

Checking items in a list

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any(
  a!isNotNullOrEmpty,
  {1, 2, null, 3, null, 4}
)

Returns true. Note that since the first value 1 was not null or empty, the function will stop evaluating and return true after the first item in the list.

Checking items in an empty list

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any(
  a!isNotNullOrEmpty,
  {}
)

Returns false.

Checking items with context

To help demonstrate how the context parameter works in looping expressions, let's look at an example.

Imagine you're building an expression that uses looping to analyze group membership in your application. You have four Group constants configured in the following ways:

Constant Group(s) referenced Group membership
cons!csaAdmins CSA Administrators user1, user3
cons!csaProfs CSA Professors user1, user2, user4, user5, user6, user7
cons!csaBuilding1 CSA Building 1 user1, user2, user3, user5, user6, user7
cons!allGroups CSA Adminstrators, CSA Professors, CSA Building 1 See above

The following SAIL expressions reference these constants to show how context works when checking items in a list.

Note:  You'll need to adapt these expression examples for your own purposes, since the examples reference constants that may not exist in your Appian environment.

Checking items in a list with context

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any(
  a!isUserMemberOfGroup,
  {"user1", "user2", "user3"},
  cons!csaBuilding1
)

Returns true. Since user2 and user3 are members of the group referenced by cons!csaBuilding1, the function will return true.

Learn more about a!isUserMemberOfGroup().

Checking all items in a list with context for more than 2 parameters

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any(
  a!isUserMemberOfGroup,
  {"user1", "user2", "user3"},
  {cons!allGroups, true}
)

Returns true when user1 is a member of all the groups referenced in cons!allGroups. a!isUserMemberOfGroup has 3 parameters: username, groups, and matchAllGroups. The any() list corresponds to username, and the list of values provided in the context parameter are used as the next two parameters, groups & matchAllGroups.

Learn more about a!isUserMemberOfGroup().

Checking all items in a list with context for more than 2 parameters which accept lists

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any(
  a!isUserMemberOfGroup,
  {"user1", "user2", "user3"},
  merge({cons!csaAdmins, cons!csaProfs}, {true, true})
)

Returns true when user1 is a member of the groups referenced in cons!csaAdmins and cons!csaProfs. The merge function maps the list values to the correct parameters in this example.

Learn more about a!isUserMemberOfGroup().

Checking a list with a custom expression rule

In this example, we will use a helper rule, rule!isDateLater(value, referenceDate), which is defined as:

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ri!value > ri!referenceDate

Example filter:

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any(
  rule!isDateLater,
  {date(1950, 2, 3), date(1950, 6, 23), date(1950, 5, 2)},
  date(1950, 4, 7)
)

Returns true.

Feature compatibility

The table below lists this function's compatibility with various features in Appian.
Feature Compatibility Note
Portals Compatible
Offline Mobile Compatible
Sync-Time Custom Record Fields Compatible

Can be used to create a custom record field that only evaluates at sync time.

Real-Time Custom Record Fields Incompatible

Custom record fields that evaluate in real time must be configured using one or more Custom Field functions.

Process Reports Incompatible

Cannot be used to configure a process report.

Process Events Incompatible

Cannot be used to configure a process event node, such as a start event or timer event.

Open in Github Built: Thu, Mar 28, 2024 (10:34:59 PM)

any() Function

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