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Search Tools?

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Gary Lewis

Search Tools?

Administrator

Folks, we have multiple search tools on the site, and they are confusing as well as take up real estate on the page. So I'd like to know which ones you use, and towards that end I've created a poll. You can vote for up to three, so if you use all three vote for all of them.

But, if you have a preference tell me that in a post. Or suggestions. Or questions.

And here are the three different ones:

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Dad's: '81 F150 Ranger XLT 4x4: Down for restomod: Full-roller "stroked 351M" w/Trick Flow heads & intake, EEC-V SEFI/E4OD/3.50 gears w/Kevlar clutches
Blue: 2015 F150 Platinum 4x4 SuperCrew wearing Blue Jeans & sporting a 3.5L EB & Max Tow
Big Blue: 1985 F250HD 4x4: 460/ZF5/3.55's, D60 w/Ox locker & 10.25 Sterling/Trutrac, Blue Top & Borgeson, & EEC-V MAF/SEFI

86 1/2 Brutus

Re: Search Tools?

All i have is this, it dosent say anything about the different searches

Nick and George
1986 1/2 F150 XLT Lariat 4X2 300 Six - C6 - 3:08 in a 8.8 - Fully Loaded - 8 Foot Box
Owned since new

kramttocs

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Gary added the red text in his screenshot as a way to give us all common identifiers for reference.
The searches are there in your screenshot - just not labeled

Scott
'Camano' 1986 F250 Supercab XLT Lariat 460/C6
'Chanute' 1980 F350 C&C 400/NP 435 - Gin Pole

But there ain't nothin' wrong with the radio

Rembrant

Re: Search Tools?

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

I use the main search on the forum once in a while which I guess is the Nabble one? I was not aware of the others to be honest until you pointed them out.

1994 F150 4x2 Flareside. 5.0 w/MAF, 4R70W, stock.
1984 F150 4X2 Flareside. Mild 302 w/ 5spd. Sold.
1980 F150 4X4 Flareside. 300i6 w/ 5spd. Sold in 2021.
1980 F100 4X2 Flareside. 351w/2bbl w/NP435. Sold in 1995

ArdWrknTrk

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

No option for "other"?

If I use one of the search bars here on the forum, I use the advanced Nabble search, but usually Google it like Scott.

Jim,
Lil'Red is a '87 F250 HD, 4.10's, 1356 4x4, Zf-5, 3G, PMGR, Saginaw PS, desmogged with a Holley 80508 and Performer intake.
Too much other stuff to mention.

Ford F834

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

I use “search forum” and “search documentation” respectively... but I did not realize they were separate engines/search tools. I just picked which area I wanted to search in. I may have used the general weebly search once or twice not realizing it was separate from the others, but I can’t remember. I wouldn’t miss it.

SHORT BED 4-DOOR DIESEL: 1986 F350 4x4 under construction-- 7.3 IDIT ZF5+GVOD

STRAIGHT SIX 4X4: 1981 F150 2wd to 4x4-- 300 I6 close ratio diesel T19, hydroboost brakes, Saginaw steering

BIG F: 1995 F-Superduty under construction— converting to 6.9L IDI diesel ZF5+DNE2

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Jim - Are you suggesting that we have a search function that searches outside of the forum and the website?

Jonathan - Before you dismiss the Weebly search I'd recommend you do some comparisons. I just learned something I didn't know - Freefind apparently doesn't search the whole of the web page and Weebly does. At least that's what it looks like to me.

I searched for "LRC" using both Freefind and Weebly. Freefind said "No pages were found that match your query." But Weebly said it found LRC on the 3G Conversion page. At first blush I didn't see it, but by using the browser search function of Control F I was able to find two instances of LRC on the Choosing An Alternator tab.

So apparently Freefind doesn't look on the various tabs but Weebly does.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Ford F834

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Thanks Gary, I have no idea how each works, I simply picked the search bar based on where I wanted to search. Does Weebly search the forum or documentation or both?

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Weebly searches the web site, which means everything but the forum. (The forum is actually hosted on the Nabble web site and is just "embedded" on the Weebly site so it looks like it is actually on the site.) And it apparently searches it more thoroughly than the Freefind one does. But, there are confusing results with both, so I really need to sit down and test them more.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Ok, I've been playing with the search engines and I'm not too impressed. The Weebly one in the top right does drill down and find things that the Freefind, in the top left, doesn't. But, it doesn't support the ability to use quotes to force it to find specific phrases.

Let me explain that with an example. If I search for LRC the Freefind search doesn't find it but the Weebly one does. Yippee! But, if I want to find load response control, which is what LRC stands for and is included on the same page, I'd put quotes around that phrase, like "load response control". However, I get lots of responses and it turns out that it found results for all three words, not just that phrase.

With more research I've found that there is a feature for search engines where you can limit it to a specific URL. It is called "site", and I used this search: site:garysgaragemahal.com lrc. And that found lots of results on both the forum as well as in the rest of the web site.

So, I'm now researching how to create a search function that incorporates the "site" limit. And it looks like that may be a possibility. The only downside is that the free version brings adverts, but there's a "paid" version that costs $5/1000 searches, so that may be a reasonable possibility.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

kramttocs

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

The site argument sounds promising! Like clicking the 'more results from...' link in google to add the site argument to the query. Very handy.

I don't see that it returns forum results though, at least in google directly but glad that you are finding an engine that is. Having a search that does both will be nice.

Scott
'Camano' 1986 F250 Supercab XLT Lariat 460/C6
'Chanute' 1980 F350 C&C 400/NP 435 - Gin Pole

But there ain't nothin' wrong with the radio

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Here are some of the results from my site search for LRC. The first is from our 3G page in Documentation, but the next three are from the forum. Unfortunately it appears to take you to the page and not the post the results are in, so you have to do a Cntl F to find the post - or read.

But, it is finding things in both the forum as well as the rest of the site. I tried Dad's Truck and it found 26 pages worth!

So give it a try and see what you think, please.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

kramttocs

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Aha - my issue was using www which because the forum is using 'forum.' it wasn't returning those results.

Using just garysgaragemahal.com works great and gives the mixed results one would expect. I like this option for the weebly search if you can make it work.

Scott
'Camano' 1986 F250 Supercab XLT Lariat 460/C6
'Chanute' 1980 F350 C&C 400/NP 435 - Gin Pole

But there ain't nothin' wrong with the radio

Ford F834

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

Thanks for the explanation/demonstration Gary. I will give the Weebly search a try now that I know the difference.

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

This post was updated on .

Ok guys, I've done some more work and have some results. I used the Nabble search function, the "site" function w/in a Google search, and a free Google search function I created, all to find "LRC":

Nabble: 45 instances across 14 different threads. And if you click on the link you are taken to the post in which LRC was used. But, note that Weebly only searches the forum so it didn't find the instance in the 3G Conversion page that Google found.

Google search via "site": 20 instances across 9 threads and the one page in documentation. And if you click on the link you are taken to the page within the thread where LRC was mentioned but not the post.

Custom Google Search: 7 instances across 6 threads and the one page in documentation. And again, clicking the link takes you to the page in the thread, not the post.

To me the results are pretty telling. The Google searches are far less complete and harder to use, so I don't see a reason to spend more time trying to implement a custom Google search. But am I missing something?

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

kramttocs

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Weebly or Nabble?

I didn't think Weebly searched the forum.

Scott
'Camano' 1986 F250 Supercab XLT Lariat 460/C6
'Chanute' 1980 F350 C&C 400/NP 435 - Gin Pole

But there ain't nothin' wrong with the radio

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Nabble. I edited the post. Thanks!

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

kramttocs

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

Thanks. No argument that the Nabble one works great for the forum and per the poll results, appears that it's the most used option. Indicating that most viewers get to the doc pages using methods other than the site's built in search (direct links in forum posts, navigation, or google search results).

Considering that searching for lrc in Freefind doesn't return anything, doesn't bode well for it surviving

Can Weebly use the 'site' feature when building its index?

Scott
'Camano' 1986 F250 Supercab XLT Lariat 460/C6
'Chanute' 1980 F350 C&C 400/NP 435 - Gin Pole

But there ain't nothin' wrong with the radio

Gary Lewis

Re: Search Tools?

Administrator

I tried "site:garysgaragemahal.com LRC" in the Weebly search and the results I got were strange. Twenty results, none of which should have LRC. So I think the answer is NO!

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

swampedout

Re: Search Tools?

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

I use the forum search bar on the top of the website often. I love the site and use it frequently, so this is just constructive criticism from a non-tech savvy individual.
When I search for keywords, the results list every post in a thread with those words. For instance, I just searched "brake line" and had to scroll thru every post in a thread entitled "brake line fasteners" before I found relevant information. Is there a way to condense results so I see only threads, not individual posts?

Sam
1984 F250. 460. C6. 4x4.
MSD Ignition. Airbag rear suspension
Whole buncha problems