# Sort Violations for Quick Access

<p class="callout info">The Sort Violations for Quick Access feature allows administrators to customize the display order of ticket offence items by strategically adding spaces to the beginning of offence names. Its primary purpose is to reorder long lists of violations, ensuring the most frequently used offences appear at the top for quicker selection on both the admin interface and handheld enforcement devices. This article is intended for OPS-COM administrators responsible for configuring violation settings and optimizing field officer workflows.</p>

## Setup and Configuration

This feature leverages a built-in alphanumeric sorting behavior to enhance administrative and enforcement workflows.

**Admin Side:** Administrators must have the appropriate system role permissions enabled to access the violations configuration menus and edit ticket offence items.

## Using this Feature

The system automatically sorts lists alphanumerically. Because a space character comes before all alphanumeric characters in the standard ASCII character table, prefixing a violation name with one or more spaces forces it to appear higher in the sorted list.

**Example of Sorting with Spaces:**

- Zebra Offence (two spaces, sorts first)
- Test Offence (one space, sorts second)
- Apple Offence (no space, sorts third)
- Bottle Offence (no space, sorts fourth)

Administrators can use the following instructions to reorder their violation lists.

### Reordering Violations

1. Hover over **System Configuration**, click **Violations**, then **Manage Ticket Offence Items**.
2. Select the specific ticket category you wish to reorder from the drop-down menu to dis<span class="citation-909 citation-910 citation-end-910">play its associated violations.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="1"></sup></span><span class="citation-909 citation-end-909"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="2"></sup></span>
3. <span class="citation-907 citation-908 citation-end-908">Click on the specific violation you wish to modify to refresh the screen with its entry information.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="3"></sup></span><span class="citation-907 citation-end-907"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="4"></sup></span>
4. <span class="citation-905 citation-906">Add a single space to the very beginning of the </span>**<span class="citation-905 citation-906">Violation Type Description</span>**<span class="citation-905 citation-906 citation-end-906"> field.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="5"></sup></span><span class="citation-905 citation-end-905"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="6"></sup></span>
5. <span class="citation-903 citation-904">Click the </span>**<span class="citation-903 citation-904 citation-end-904">Save Violati<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="7"></sup></span><span class="citation-903 citation-end-903"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="8"></sup></span>on Type** button. The list will now display this modified item at the top.
6. Repeat the process for other violations in the category, using multiple spaces to define exact rankings. For example, add two spaces to make an item appear first, and one space to make an item appear second.

<p class="callout info">If two items have the exact same number of leading spaces, the system will revert to sorting them alphabetically based on the remaining characters in their descriptions.</p>

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## <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">Best Practices and Considerations</span>

- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Maintain sorting consistency:** **If you start using spaces to sort, apply the method consistently across all relevant lists.** If you sort one category of offences, consider sorting others to provide a uniform experience across the system.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Use minimal spaces:** **Use the fewest number of spaces necessary to achieve your desired order.** For example, if you only need one item at the very top, a single space is sufficient. If you need two items, give one item two spaces, and the other item one space.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Consider the handheld impact:** **Remember that this sorting method affects the display order on both the admin interface and handheld units.** Strategically sorting your most common violations directly improves the efficiency of your enforcement officers in the field by reducing scrolling.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Document your strategy:** **If multiple administrators manage ticket offence items, document your sorting strategy internally.** This maintains consistency and prevents accidental reordering by other staff members editing descriptions.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Avoid using wildcards:** **This sorting method relies on actual space characters, not wildcards or other special characters.** Characters like an asterisk or dash might not function as expected in standard sort orders and should be strictly avoided.</span>