# \[X\] Filter MISSING
**URL:** https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208
**Category:** No Bugs
**Created:** [August 7, 2017, 8:39am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208 "2017-08-07T08:39:33Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@chrisjj](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/chrisjj)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 8:39am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/1 "2017-08-07T08:39:33Z")
Florian
Just to let you know, in:
> [@](#):
>
> MISSING
> Returns all files where tag field named is missing.
>
> PRESENT
> Returns all files where tag field named is present.
I think (in program and docs) MISSING should be ABSENT. Perhaps this is a translation error.
---
### Author:  [@ohrenkino](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/ohrenkino)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 10:28am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/2 "2017-08-07T10:28:40Z")
> [@chrisjj](#):
>
> Florian
> Just to let you know, in:
> I think (in program and docs) MISSING should be ABSENT. Perhaps this is a translation error.
Looking at a translation web site, the original German "fehlen" leads to the following suggestions:
[http://dict.leo.org/englisch-deutsch/fehlen](http://dict.leo.org/englisch-deutsch/fehlen)
which delivers more or less only "absent", "missing", "lacking".
Checking "absent" [http://dict.leo.org/englisch-deutsch/absent](http://dict.leo.org/englisch-deutsch/absent)
transports the connotation of "is not there but should better be" like in "absent-minded" or "absent without leave" which (as far as I understand it) implies some kind of bad intention.
"Missing" ([missing - LEO: Übersetzung im Englisch ⇔ Deutsch Wörterbuch](http://dict.leo.org/englisch-deutsch/missing)) has the connotation of "not there" but this time without any deliberation but more or less accidental.
I am not sure if this is also the case in English.
A check on wordhippo for the opposite of "PRESENT" offers "absent".
[https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-oppos...of/present.html](https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-opposite-of/present.html)
and also the reverse check of the opposite of "absent" offers "present" - but only as second best choice.
If you check the opposite of MISSING on the same site
[https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-oppos...of/missing.html](https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-opposite-of/missing.html)
the first choice is "present".
So, what made you reconsider the function (almost) 8 years after its initial introduction?
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### Author:  [@chrisjj](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/chrisjj)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 11:28am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/3 "2017-08-07T11:28:43Z")
> [@ohrenkino](#):
>
> So, what made you reconsider the function (almost) 8 years after its initial introduction?
I didn't reconsider. This is the first time I've come to use ABSENT.
I've used PRESENT, so today when I needed the opposite, I tried NOT PRESENT and then ABSENT.
In British English, the word for NOT PRESENT is ABSENT [https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=define+absent](https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=define+absent)
To be MISSING the thing has the be absent _and expected_. [https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=define+missing](https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=define+missing)
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### Author:  [@poster](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/poster)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 12:22pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/4 "2017-08-07T12:22:28Z")
> [@chrisjj](#):
>
> I've used PRESENT, so today when I needed the opposite, I tried NOT PRESENT
NOT PRESENT
would have worked.
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### Author:  [@chrisjj](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/chrisjj)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 1:00pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/5 "2017-08-07T13:00:45Z")
> [@poster](#):
>
> NOT PRESENT
> would have worked.
Yes - in Mp3tag. Thanks.
I guess the reason I didn't try that is that its English meaning is definitely not what I wanted Mp3tag to do.
In English, NOT PRESENT refers to all fields that are not .
So is very different from NOT PRESENT (or _NOT ( PRESENT)_ ) , which refers to only the specified field.
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### Author:  [@ohrenkino](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/ohrenkino)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 4:24pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/6 "2017-08-07T16:24:17Z")
> [@chrisjj](#):
>
> ...So is very different from NOT PRESENT (or _NOT ( PRESENT)_ ) , which refers to only the specified field.
It is fairly astounding that you did not use the "NOT" in the correct fashion as we discussed that at length in
[/t/14752/1](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/14752/1)
That thread also referenced the help on filters so that the keywords for the existence or non-existence of fields should not have been such a new topic.
Considering the length of time that this feature has been around I would consider it a customary feature. Changing to other keywords would probably cause more hickups than good.
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### Author:  [@chrisjj](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/chrisjj)
#### Post date: [August 7, 2017, 4:55pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/7 "2017-08-07T16:55:54Z")
> [@ohrenkino](#):
>
> It is fairly astounding that you did not use the "NOT" in the correct fashion as we discussed
Four years ago 🙂
NOT wasn't useful to me then and I've has no use for it since ... except now as reported here.
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### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [August 17, 2017, 1:57pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/8 "2017-08-17T13:57:43Z")
> [@chrisjj](#):
>
> I think (in program and docs) MISSING should be ABSENT. Perhaps this is a translation error.
Back in the days where I've implemented the filter query syntax, I was inspired by foobar2000's query syntax (which also uses MISSING). I wasn't aware of the subtle differences between those two words, so thanks for pointing.
> [@chrisjj](#):
>
> In English, NOT PRESENT refers to all fields that are not .
>
> So is very different from NOT PRESENT (or _NOT ( PRESENT)_ ) , which refers to only the specified field.
I think comparing the query language to English gives a little too much honor to this very limited language. It has a [documented syntax](https://docs.mp3tag.de/filter) which serves as a reference.
> [@ohrenkino](#):
>
> Changing to other keywords would probably cause more hickups than good.
Yes, and I don't consider this a bug. However, I'll add ABSENT as a synonym with the next release. This way all of us that are used to use MISSING can use it — and ABSENT also works.
Kind regards
– Florian
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### Author:  [@chrisjj](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/chrisjj)
#### Post date: [August 17, 2017, 10:24pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/9 "2017-08-17T22:24:38Z")
> [@Florian](#):
>
> I think comparing the query language to English gives a little too much honor to this very limited language.
Accepted, but I think Mp3tag's choosing to use English words invites the user to think they might operate as do like English words, esp. since the extra typing of e.g. AND over & is worth having only if English is somehow better.
> [@Florian](#):
>
> .. I'll add ABSENT as a synonym with the next release. This way all of us that are used to use MISSING can use it — and ABSENT also works.
Thanks.
An idea for future: Allow English-like locating of NOT e.g.
NOT TITLE IS Yesterday
TITLE IS NOT Yesterday
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### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [August 18, 2017, 8:15am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/10 "2017-08-18T08:15:33Z")
> [@chrisjj](#):
>
> An idea for future: Allow English-like locating of NOT
NOT likely to happen.
Kind regards
– Florian
---
### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [December 28, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/x-filter-missing/19208/11 "2018-12-28T18:52:43Z")
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