Searching the Forum

[Roger]

I have problems finding informative posts after reading them. The Search function doesn't help much, because there are hundreds of returns unless you can recall an unusual word to find.

 

[LogicalConclusion]

I don't know how to help with the search function bit, but maybe going forward you could hit the "watch" button on such threads? That's what I do, anyway, to keep stuff saved for when I want it later :)

 

[jake3d]

If you live alone and nobody will search your computer, use bookmarks in your web browser. It's "the old-fashioned way" but it works very well.

 

[Roger]

Thanks

 

[Superfluous]

Is there something specific you're currently looking for or just general advice on how to search better?

 

[Superfluous]

I'll assume you're just looking for general advice on how to best use the search function here. You can skip the preamble if you like and just check the last part with the tips.

I've been involved with IT most of my working life in various capacities, most recently Web development (backend systems mostly) so I have a good understanding of how data is stored and retrieved (apologies for the clumsy phrasing, but there are certain words I can't use for security reasons, ie. the post won't save).

I can easily see what information is sent to the server when a search is posted. What I can't see is the code behind the search algorithm. I have done some brief testing though and can derive some basics. I'm willing to do more testing if required and if I have the time available. You would need to provide some examples of what you want to search for in order for me to better assist you.

Each post is stored on the server as a character string (sequence of characters). Punctuation, spaces, carriage returns, etc. are included as part of the character string. Depending on how complex the search algorithm is, punctuation may or may not be ignored (apostophes for example - haven't tested). Also consider that both British and American English is used here, and the search algorithm may not cater for both possible spellings, in which case separate searches may be required for words such as favourite and favorite (as an example).

So, here's some tips:

1. Use the 'advanced search' option for better results. There aren't many options, but it will help to provide better results
2. Unless you're sure the post you are searching for is recent, always search by Relevance and not Date
3. When entering keywords, If you can think of a specific phrase (combination of 2 or more words) that may be commonly used in the posts you're looking for, then enclose this phrase with double quotes. Example: entering the keywords 'test' and 'search' will return all posts containing the words 'test' and 'search', but entering the keywords as "test search" will return posts where these 2 words are together with a space between them.
4. If you're entering separate keywords, do not include common (the, in...) or short words - the exception being if they are part of a phrase as described in 3 above. The search algorithm does not imply that there will be spaces around the keywords you are searching, so if you enter the word 'test', then posts with the words testing, tested, tests, attest, etc. will be returned as results

It's getting late here so I hope this helps. If I can think of anything to add, I'll post more tomorrow.