Not sure how you are you are reading the file, but once you have your line defined in a variable, this might work. It worked for me based on the sample you gave.
Yes, PowerShell can return the unique 8th element from each row.
@simms7400’s files, rows, and unique makes me think that the source file is CSV; and the formatting and mixed nature of sample data provided makes this file appear thus:
Really? The OP didn’t even posted enough information to make a meaningful suggestion at all!?!?! Why can’t you wait until the OP answered the questions and actually explained what the challange is?
Hi, thank you very much! So when reading on line, I was seeing feedback that Get-Content is rather slow with large files and stream reader is preffered? I can’t speak to that as I’m not well versed in PS, but what are your thoughts on that?
I"m running your logic now and its been 30 minutes and still chugging along. Will let you know how I make out! Thank you!
@simms7400, I answered your original post, with a proof, based from what I’d read. Many approaches may be considered for the solution. Loosely—the future behavior of a system can be determined by an observation of its current state (Richard C. Tolman). However, it’s a rare thing to know all the items and events that constitute the system. This creates a demand to have sufficient detail in a problem to be solved. In the end, it’s only possible to choose what best fits the current situation while anticipating that future conditions will favor those choices.
I hope that you have fun exploring and making discoveries along the way! Somewhere, I have some pithy statement from some important person saying that there is no such thing as an expected discovery because such a thing is nonsensical. And so… adventure!