3 Letter Searches

Chris Messineo

Chris Messineo

Veteran
I love the search function of dvxuser. There is so much great information hidden in these forums.

However, if you've ever tried to search for a "jib", the "g35", or some other 3 letter item you are out of luck.

Any chance of allowing 3 letter searches?

Chris
 
I asked this question a while back, and was told that the reason for the minimum letter requirement was to save bandwidth.

I too find this annoying, however -- it seems that almost all of the major products and terms we talk about here are three characters or less:

HVX
DVX
P2
DV
DVI
AVI
MXF
MOV
WMV
HD
HDV
LCD

...and the list goes on and on...
 
The 3 letter thing, the 60 second wait time, and now the random character string you have to enter....That last one was a killer for me. Searching here has always been kind of a pain but I can't use it any more.

I totally understand the reasons, but it doesn't change the fact that the search feature is now a major drag.
 
If it wasn't for spammers and bad kids on the internet there wouldn't be any image verification thing in forms.
 
I normally don't mind the 60 second wait, I just wish they didn't have it when it returns nothing.

For example, you mean to search for "kinoflo" but you misspell it "kinoflow", now you get no results and you have to wait a minute before you can fix your typo.

BTW, I don't want any of this to sound like complaining. DVXUser is my absolute favorite site on the net, just wanted to see if there was a way to make search a little more usable.
 
A lot of respectable forums (high traffic) on the internet have the 'wait' limit. Others are 60 secs, others 15 secs, others 30 secs.
 
If you type:


onboard camera mic


the search function will refuse to look for mic, making your search "onboard camera" therefore limiting you to search posts that use the phrase microphone.
 
Jared Meyer said:
The 3 letter thing, the 60 second wait time, and now the random character string you have to enter....That last one was a killer for me.
Click to expand...

Just so you know, it only asks you to type in the image verification thing if you aren't logged in. Not so bad.

I know there is a way to use Google to search within the site (without leaving it, either). Perhaps something like that would use less bandwidth than using the database search here.
 
TwistedLincoln said:
Just so you know, it only asks you to type in the image verification thing if you aren't logged in. Not so bad.
Click to expand...


Ohhhh... THAT's what you guys are talking about.
I was about to ask...

While the 3 letter search limitation can definitely be an issue - the verification can be easily sidestepped by just being logged in all the time, like Lincoln said.

As far as the search limits go - my pet peeve for years now has not been so much with the search - but with the fact that many people use abbreviations or irrelevant titles in their subject lines. It becomes difficult to search when people use the word 'mic' - knowing that the search function does not allow for 3 letter searches.

None of this would be an issue if our subject headings were relevant and clear.
Of course this wouldn't be the same place without a post entitled "HELP ME!!!!" every couple of days. Or my personal favorite, "Is this a scam?"
:)
 
That's correct that the security question is only asked when you arn't logged in.

And Google's site search is a handy tool; however unfotunatly it can't directly search the database, it can only search the output pages that Google's own 'bots have crawled and indexed.

- Mikko
 
So, I guess the moral of the story is for people to start taking a bit more time in their postings and not abbreviating so much. I know we have all done it. So, we can't really complain about not being able to get results.... Including every 3 letter word people search for (as I learned) would place tremendous loads on the server and would slow the site down for everyone. Imagine if someone does a search for DVX.... My goddd... :)

You just have to learn to be creative in your searches... Sometimes an alternative search for terms that might help to bring up relevant threads, rather than the specific term you are looking for can help. Google helps... practice helps. It's not perfect, but it is effective, and it is what it is... I used to hate it too, but it's not soo bad once you get used to it.

So, everyone do each other a favor and take an extra 10 seconds when you post and don't abbreviate :thumbsup: That'll be the day.

Later,
Jason
 
thank goodness we can still entertain ourselves by searching for vulgar four letter words. :Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)
 
The question is, if people would start using the search funtion more if it would be easier to use. Instead of posting stupid new threads that have been posted million times.
 
TC: "LMAO" is still good though. :)

And Nomis, you are absoloutly correct. It's a catch 22 situation. And that's why we really dsicourage cross posting and usign the search to continue old threads.


Do you have any idea how many threads come up if you search for "use the search noob!" ? :grin:

- Mikko
 
Nomis said:
The question is, if people would start using the search funtion more if it would be easier to use. Instead of posting stupid new threads that have been posted million times.
Click to expand...

Amen to that. There should be a DVXUser contest to have users guess the number of times these questions have been asked:

* Will the HVX record HD to tape?
* Why are P2 cards so expensive?
* Can I plug in a compact-flash to PCMCIA adapter into my HVX and record to that?
* Why can't I record direct to a USB drive with the HVX?
* What's the best camera?
* Should I buy my camera from (insert crooklyn scam shop name)?
* What's that clunk?

:happy:
 
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