# How to do a find with conditions that contain an OR **URL:** \ **Category:** Rails\ **Created:** [February 11, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-do-a-find-with-conditions-that-contain-an-or/53596 "2006-02-11T00:00:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/x/0ea827/32.png) [@xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/xiheng_xu)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-do-a-find-with-conditions-that-contain-an-or/53596/1 "2006-02-11T00:00:25Z")
Hi, I’m trying to do a find with a condition that has an OR on the same column. Say I only want to use find() but not find\_by\_sql(). I reduced my problems into the following: values = [] … # filling up values from params Order.find(:all, :conditions =\> ["(action = ? OR action = ?) AND price = ?", values] For example I wanted the condition to be “(action = ‘SELL’ OR action = ‘SHORT’) AND price = ‘10.00’” Here I can’t use as a hash because the keys for the two values would be the same. I tried to use the variable values as an array, then as a comma-separated string. Both gave me the following error: wrong number of bind variables (1 for 3) in: (action = ? OR action = ?) AND price = ? I didn’t find any answers from the Agile book. Can anyone help? Thanks very much! - RoR newbie - ---
**Author:** ![xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/x/0ea827/32.png) [@xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/xiheng_xu)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2006, 12:12am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-do-a-find-with-conditions-that-contain-an-or/53596/2 "2006-02-11T00:12:54Z")
Hi, You have to have them seperate. ie. Order.find(:all,:conditions =\> [“(action = ? OR action = ?) AND price = ?”, action, action, price]) Eric xiheng xu wrote: > For example I wanted the condition to be > very much! > > - RoR newbie - – Eric G. [http://www.ericgoodwin.com](http://www.ericgoodwin.com) ---
**Author:** ![xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/x/0ea827/32.png) [@xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/xiheng_xu)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2006, 3:57am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-do-a-find-with-conditions-that-contain-an-or/53596/3 "2006-02-11T03:57:51Z")
On 2/10/06, Eric G. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > Hi, > You have to have them seperate. > ie. > Order.find(:all,:conditions =\> [“(action = ? OR action = ?) AND price = ?”, action, action, price]) Not sure if this works, but you could try: Order.find(:all,:conditions =\> [“action IN (?) AND price = ?”, actions, price]) ---
**Author:** ![xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/x/0ea827/32.png) [@xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/xiheng_xu)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:31pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-do-a-find-with-conditions-that-contain-an-or/53596/4 "2006-02-13T16:31:02Z")
Thanks guys! No Jeremy, that didn’t work for me… I came to understand my question is really not about using an OR in the find query. The problem is that I actually construct the query as well as the parameter values from users input before i put them into the find(). This comes from the fact that I have a big form with almost every text field being optional for the ultimate selection in the legacy table. I think I can use the unsafe approach of embedding the values into the doublequotes. But that’s not recommended, is it? The Agile book on p.206 says “This condition can be either a string containing SQL or an array containing SQL and substitution values”. I took it literally and that’s why I pumped both the query and the arguments into one array on the RHS of the :conditions =\>… Is there solutions other than having everything within double quotes? Thanks to all! -xiheng On Friday, February 10, 2006, at 6:57 PM, Jeremy E. wrote: > actions, price]) > > * * * > > Rails mailing list > removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid > [http://lists.rubyonrails.org/mailman/listinfo/rails](http://lists.rubyonrails.org/mailman/listinfo/rails) - RoR newbie - ---
**Author:** ![xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/x/0ea827/32.png) [@xiheng\_xu](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/xiheng_xu)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:33pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-do-a-find-with-conditions-that-contain-an-or/53596/5 "2006-02-13T16:33:00Z")
Thanks guys! No Jeremy, that didn’t work for me… I came to understand my question is really not about using an OR in the find query. The problem is that I actually construct the query as well as the parameter values from users input before i put them into the find(). This comes from the fact that I have a big form with almost every text field being optional for the ultimate selection in the legacy table. I think I can use the unsafe approach of embedding the values into the doublequotes. But that’s not recommended, is it? The Agile book on p.206 says “This condition can be either a string containing SQL or an array containing SQL and substitution values”. I took it literally and that’s why I pumped both the query and the arguments into one array on the RHS of the :conditions =\>… Is there a solution other than having everything within double quotes? Thanks to all! -xiheng On Friday, February 10, 2006, at 6:57 PM, Jeremy E. wrote: > actions, price]) > > * * * > > Rails mailing list > removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid > [http://lists.rubyonrails.org/mailman/listinfo/rails](http://lists.rubyonrails.org/mailman/listinfo/rails) - RoR newbie -