A gtksource.search_context.SearchContext is used for the search and replace in a
class@Buffer. The search settings are represented by a
class@SearchSettings object. There can be a many-to-many relationship
between buffers and search settings, with the search contexts in-between: a
search settings object can be shared between several search contexts; and a
buffer can contain several search contexts at the same time.
The buffer is scanned asynchronously, so it doesn't block the user interface.
For each search, the buffer is scanned at most once. After that, navigating
through the occurrences doesn't require to re-scan the buffer entirely.
Note that the property@SearchContext:highlight and
property@SearchContext:match-style properties are in the
gtksource.search_context.SearchContext class, not class@SearchSettings. Appearance
settings should be tied to one, and only one buffer, as different buffers can
have different style scheme associated (a class@SearchSettings object
can be bound indirectly to several buffers).
The concept of "current match" doesn't exist yet. A way to highlight
differently the current match is to select it.
A search occurrence's position doesn't depend on the cursor position or other
parameters. Take for instance the buffer "aaaa" with the search text "aa".
The two occurrences are at positions [0:2] and [2:4]. If you begin to search
at position 1, you will get the occurrence [2:4], not [1:3]. This is a
prerequisite for regular expression searches. The pattern ".*" matches the
entire line. If the cursor is at the middle of the line, you don't want the
rest of the line as the occurrence, you want an entire line. (As a side note,
regular expression searches can also match multiple lines.)
In the GtkSourceView source code, there is an example of how to use the
search and replace API: see the tests/test-search.c file. It is a mini
application for the search and replace, with a basic user interface.
Search context.
A gtksource.search_context.SearchContext is used for the search and replace in a class@Buffer. The search settings are represented by a class@SearchSettings object. There can be a many-to-many relationship between buffers and search settings, with the search contexts in-between: a search settings object can be shared between several search contexts; and a buffer can contain several search contexts at the same time.
The total number of search occurrences can be retrieved with gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.getOccurrencesCount. To know the position of a certain match, use gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.getOccurrencePosition.
The buffer is scanned asynchronously, so it doesn't block the user interface. For each search, the buffer is scanned at most once. After that, navigating through the occurrences doesn't require to re-scan the buffer entirely.
To search forward, use gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.forward or gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.forwardAsync for the asynchronous version. The backward search is done similarly. To replace a search match, or all matches, use gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.replace and gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.replaceAll.
The search occurrences are highlighted by default. To disable it, use gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.setHighlight. You can enable the search highlighting for several gtksource.search_context.SearchContexts attached to the same buffer. Moreover, each of those gtksource.search_context.SearchContexts can have a different text style associated. Use gtksource.search_context.SearchContext.setMatchStyle to specify the class@Style to apply on search matches.
Note that the property@SearchContext:highlight and property@SearchContext:match-style properties are in the gtksource.search_context.SearchContext class, not class@SearchSettings. Appearance settings should be tied to one, and only one buffer, as different buffers can have different style scheme associated (a class@SearchSettings object can be bound indirectly to several buffers).
The concept of "current match" doesn't exist yet. A way to highlight differently the current match is to select it.
A search occurrence's position doesn't depend on the cursor position or other parameters. Take for instance the buffer "aaaa" with the search text "aa". The two occurrences are at positions [0:2] and [2:4]. If you begin to search at position 1, you will get the occurrence [2:4], not [1:3]. This is a prerequisite for regular expression searches. The pattern ".*" matches the entire line. If the cursor is at the middle of the line, you don't want the rest of the line as the occurrence, you want an entire line. (As a side note, regular expression searches can also match multiple lines.)
In the GtkSourceView source code, there is an example of how to use the search and replace API: see the tests/test-search.c file. It is a mini application for the search and replace, with a basic user interface.