How to use the search function on the forums

[Feinder]

Here ya go...

===

Search Term - Type whatever you're looking for. You don't need to check "less precise match" or "Advanced"

By Author - This narrows your search to checking that your search term by a single author.

Search In Forum - Don't forget to change this to the WitP forum (scroll down to the very bottom, and go up a little bit). If you select the top WitP forum "War in the Pacific, the struggle against Japan", it will search the main forum, and all the sub forums (AAR, support, etc). For "search messages in FAQ", leave this unchecked.

Options (this is where it gets confusing) -

Search Only - I change this to "Combine Topics and Replies" (this gives the most results)

Search Terms Found In - Change this to "Subject or Body" (again, this gives most results)

Time Filter - This defaults fine (within - all topics). You can increase the speed of your search by changing it to (within - 1 month : gives you results less than one month old). Or you can -exclude- newer results by changing this to (before - 3 months : gives you topics that are 3 months or OLDER).

Seach Terms Are - Leave this alone.

Return (top - 300) resutls that match (all words) minimum rank (0/1000) - This defaults fine. If you want fewer results reduce to (top 50) or whatever. If you change (any words), you can get some "unpredicatable" stuff. Leave the rank alone, it's fairly worthless anyway.

Sort By - I change this to "Post Date". By rank is subjective to whatever the forum thinks your search compairs to a thread (and frankly it sucks). USUALLY, I'm looking for, "What was that thread on <search term>..." and it's easiest to just get the most recent posts about it.


An Example: If you fill out the search form as follows (leave off quotes)

Search Term : "Mystery" (no boxes checked)

By Author : "Feinder"

Search in forum : "-- War in the Pacific - Stuggle Against Japan 1941 - 1945" (no box checked)

Options :
--Search only [Combine topics and replies]
--Search terms found in [Subject or body]
--Time Filter [within] [All topics]
--Search terms are [single-byte characters (e.g. Western)]
--Return top [300] results that match [all words] minimum rank: [0/1000]
--Sort result [by post date]


You get...

(Mostly) A list of my mystery ship posts (that's actually how I locate my last post, so I can see which Mystery Ship number we're on *grin*)

Can I suggest a sticky for this...

:^)

-F-

[Apollo11]

Hi all,

ORIGINAL: Feinder

Here ya go...

===

Search Term - Type whatever you're looking for. You don't need to check "less precise match" or "Advanced"

By Author - This narrows your search to checking that your search term by a single author.

Search In Forum - Don't forget to change this to the WitP forum (scroll down to the very bottom, and go up a little bit). If you select the top WitP forum "War in the Pacific, the struggle against Japan", it will search the main forum, and all the sub forums (AAR, support, etc). For "search messages in FAQ", leave this unchecked.

Options (this is where it gets confusing) -

Search Only - I change this to "Combine Topics and Replies" (this gives the most results)

Search Terms Found In - Change this to "Subject or Body" (again, this gives most results)

Time Filter - This defaults fine (within - all topics). You can increase the speed of your search by changing it to (within - 1 month : gives you results less than one month old). Or you can -exclude- newer results by changing this to (before - 3 months : gives you topics that are 3 months or OLDER).

Seach Terms Are - Leave this alone.

Return (top - 300) resutls that match (all words) minimum rank (0/1000) - This defaults fine. If you want fewer results reduce to (top 50) or whatever. If you change (any words), you can get some "unpredicatable" stuff. Leave the rank alone, it's fairly worthless anyway.

Sort By - I change this to "Post Date". By rank is subjective to whatever the forum thinks your search compairs to a thread (and frankly it sucks). USUALLY, I'm looking for, "What was that thread on <search term>..." and it's easiest to just get the most recent posts about it.


An Example: If you fill out the search form as follows (leave off quotes)

Search Term : "Mystery" (no boxes checked)

By Author : "Feinder"

Search in forum : "-- War in the Pacific - Stuggle Against Japan 1941 - 1945" (no box checked)

Options :
--Search only [Combine topics and replies]
--Search terms found in [Subject or body]
--Time Filter [within] [All topics]
--Search terms are [single-byte characters (e.g. Western)]
--Return top [300] results that match [all words] minimum rank: [0/1000]
--Sort result [by post date]


You get...

(Mostly) A list of my mystery ship posts (that's actually how I locate my last post, so I can see which Mystery Ship number we're on *grin*)

Can I suggest a sticky for this...

:^)

-F-

Nice although you forgot to mention the "wonderful" way search used to work before (read few years ago) when all you got were wrong hits (even now it behaves strangely many times - for example I am searching for one of my old posts and I know for certain that I used some phrase and yet search engine can't find it and I have to list all my messages and find it manually)...


Leo "Apollo11"

[VSWG]

ORIGINAL: Feinder

Search In Forum - Don't forget to change this to the WitP forum (scroll down to the very bottom, and go up a little bit). If you select the top WitP forum "War in the Pacific, the struggle against Japan", it will search the main forum, and all the sub forums (AAR, support, etc). For "search messages in FAQ", leave this unchecked.

If you select the "WitP forum" it will only search the Main WitP forum, without the sub-forums. So you would have to make separate searches for all sub-forums as well in order to cover all WitP threads. At least that's my experience, I had several searches for the same term result in different results for every (sub-)forum selected.

Anyway, great post, Feinder! A 'Must Read Thread' IMO... [;)]

[Oliver Heindorf]

just a post that I am glad that you guys (Feinder & Leo and helpful VSWG) are still here.

Oli