Logan Posted February 10, 2015 Posted February 10, 2015 When clicking the search box in the upper right it defaults to "all content" instead of auto-selecting the application you're in (ie: Marketplace -> files, bug tracker -> bugs) etc. It creates an extra step. More often than not when I'm in the marketplace (downloads) I'm interested in searching for a specific file, I don't seem to think to change the content type before hitting search, so after it returns results I have to select "Files" from the left. But it would still require an extra step even if I did change the content type before results are returned. I would prefer it to default to searching in the application I'm in and save a few clicks curious what everyone else thinks?
~sullengirl~ Posted February 10, 2015 Posted February 10, 2015 I prefer it like this, default in all content. Last one with app you are in was not really useful. Awful rather.
Management Charles Posted February 11, 2015 Management Posted February 11, 2015 We are considering making the change to make search default to the area you are in with some clear indication to the user what is happening.
Logan Posted February 11, 2015 Author Posted February 11, 2015 Good to know, thanks! Hope to see the change. I think it makes most sense if using a "global search box" that it can automatically step down to being more specific depending on which part of the forum you are using, and from there providing options to search more globally if necessary.I feel it could also be confusing to not so savvy users who try to search within an application and end up seeing forum topics instead, who may not know to change the content type.
Joel R Posted February 11, 2015 Posted February 11, 2015 When clicking the search box in the upper right it defaults to "all content" instead of auto-selecting the application you're in (ie: Marketplace -> files, bug tracker -> bugs) etc. It creates an extra step. More often than not when I'm in the marketplace (downloads) I'm interested in searching for a specific file, I don't seem to think to change the content type before hitting search, so after it returns results I have to select "Files" from the left. But it would still require an extra step even if I did change the content type before results are returned. I would prefer it to default to searching in the application I'm in and save a few clicks curious what everyone else thinks? Some thoughts, in no particular order: 1. I think maybe the search itself needs to be more refined so that appropriate search results appear higher in the list, but the whole point of the search is to find things that we can't easily find ourselves. More importantly, the point of origination may have nothing to do with the desired result of destination. How is the website supposed to know that you're looking for a specific file in IP.Downloads, and not reviews or discussion of the file in IP.Forums? You would be imposing an artificial constraint on all users of your board to save yourself one click. I don't know, maybe if you're the only one on your board then your clicks might be the only ones that count? In general though, I would think it would be better form to leave it as all results and then let users narrow the results down afterwards once they see all potential results. 2. My biggest problem with the search in IP.Board 3x is the ridiculous amount of compartmentalization, like I am offering five mini websites with related content but on five separate domains. My members couldn't actually find any of the related content in any consistent manner since everything was walled off from each other. Search is compartmentalized by apps; tags are compartmentalized by apps; attachments are compartmentalized by apps. There's no content discovery across apps and that's an area that needs continued improvement. If you want content discovery within apps you've always had the option to filter your search results, both before searching and after searching. That's appropriate for users who are comfortable with the divisions and structure of your website, but for general visitors who aren't accustomed to Forums / Blogs / Downloads / Articles / Database1 / Database2, they're not savvy enough to understand that you've pre-filtered their results. All they're going to see is "0 content found" or irrelevant content, and by that time, they've move on. Search is going to need to adapt to the suite. It shouldn't be the suite be broken up to adapt to search.
Logan Posted February 12, 2015 Author Posted February 12, 2015 All good suggestions. I think the search still needs some changes for sure, I don't think it's at all as intuitive to use as it could be. Eager to see what happens!
Management Charles Posted February 12, 2015 Management Posted February 12, 2015 All good suggestions. I think the search still needs some changes for sure, I don't think it's at all as intuitive to use as it could be. Eager to see what happens! Yes we agree The technology is very good in IPS4 but now we have to make it result in more human-friendly responses.
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