title: Regex: another case of "Matching all strings EXCEPT a specific series of strings
body: <p>This question is similar to many other questions about regex I found on this and other sites online. However the solutions did not work when trying to implement them. It is properly due to my own ignorance that it did not work but I would like to get help with the following:</p>
  
  <p><strong>WHAT I AM TRYING TO DO:</strong></p>
  
  <p>I am working on importing data into our new database. Most of the conversion was done a few month ago and now I need to convert all new data. </p>
  
  <p><strong>GENERAL INFORMATION ON ENVIRONMENT:</strong></p>
  
  <p>To convert one specific field correctly I need to use regular expressions. The field in the new database can hold any of the following 3 values:</p>
  
  <pre><code>- Kid
  - No Mail
  - Household
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>However the column in the source file has a lot more values which I want to ignore.</p>
  
  <p>The import program has a feature to create "Dictionaries" which can be applied to a specific field to translate the imported value to a standard value in the database. This is great to fix common typos etc.</p>
  
  <p>The dictionary is very simple. You have a list of correct values and each correct value can have a number of incorrect values.</p>
  
  <p>For example:</p>
  
  <pre><code>    CORRECT VALUE           IMPORT VALUES
      Kid                     kid
                              kids
                              Child
                              Minor
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>In the Import value list you can also enter regular expressions.</p>
  
  <p><strong>PROBLEM TO SOLVE:</strong></p>
  
  <p>Here is is a sample of the dictionary file:</p>
  
  <pre><code>     CORRECT VALUE LIST     IMPORT VALUE
    -  Kid                    Kid
                              KID
  
    -  No Mail                No Mail
                              NO MAIL
  
    -  Household              HH
  
    -  OTHER                Regex expression to match: Anything else
  </code></pre>
  
  <p><strong>EXAMPLES:</strong></p>
  
  <p>Input Value:   </p>
  
  <ul>
  <li><code>KID</code>          converts to       <code>Kid</code></li>
  <li><code>HH</code>           converts to       <code>Household</code></li>
  <li><code>John</code>         converts to       <code>OTHER</code></li>
  <li><code>Do Not Call</code>  converts to       <code>OTHER</code></li>
  <li><code>NO MAIL</code>      converts to       <code>No Mail</code></li>
  <li><code>ABCD</code>         converts to       <code>OTHER</code></li>
  </ul>
  
  <p><strong>WHAT I HAVE DONE SO FAR:</strong></p>
  
  <p>This is what I have found online and adapted to my case:</p>
  
  <p>Formula found on codinghorror.com:</p>
  
  <p><code>(?!kid|KID|Kid\b)\b\w+</code>          - This works for 'KID' but fails
                                            when I add anything 
                                            else for some reason</p>
  
  <p>Formula found on stackoverflow.com:</p>
  
  <p><code>^(?!kid$).*</code>                     - Matches everything -even 'Kid'</p>
  
  <p><code>^((?!kid).)*$</code>                   - Same</p>
  
  <p>This is the first time I have to use regex and I just need to have a little help to get started on it.</p>
  
  <p>So any help or pointer you can give me is appreciated.</p>
  
  <p>Thanks!</p>