Common words issue in search

Created Wed, 29 Jun 2011 02:47:35 +0000 by jbogusz

jbogusz

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 02:47:35 +0000

It seems the search phrases I use always end up being solely composed of common words. No matter what I search for, no results are attempted. Things such as "avr\interrupt.h" seem to be made up of three common words: avr, interrupt and h. Could the results be capped at, say, the first 50 found? Quotes around that phrase didn't help either. I realize going through the current number of posts by hand is manageable. But I really see these boards (ChipKIT and forum) taking off. Just my $.02.

hairymnstr

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 10:17:48 +0000

Unfortunately the forum search in phpBB is terrible, nothing to do with the way this site is set up just seems that way anywhere it is used. You can use Google for a good set of search results just add "site:chipkit.org/forum" as the first search term (note no space before or after the colon) and all results will be from this form e.g.

site:chipkit.org/forum timer

cobbj

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 16:21:01 +0000

I figured that issue out just yesterday trying to search for the term "USB"... sorry I didn't realize it was that bad. The google trick works for this site (and all others!) but yes, the no space after the colon is tantamount.

I'll see if there are any suggestions on making search function within the forum better - it is actually nice the way it displays results on pages, so if I can find a way to fix it up a bit I will :)

jbogusz

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 18:56:52 +0000

Thanks for the search tip. I bet it will be useful for everyone. Maybe deleting and recreating the search index will help? This seems to be a common problem as hairymnstr said.

Darth Maker

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 05:33:03 +0000

You can disable the common word filter in phpBB. PM, and I can probably hook you up with someone who has already done it.

Also, I personally am not a fan of this particular style. I like the stretched to screen type of layout better, such as this: [url]http://www.phpbb.com/styles/demo/3.0/?style_id=24[/url] Though you would definitely want more readable colors. Grey and light gray don't have enough contrast. I am a big fan of the colors and style of the Sixense forum here: [url]http://www.sixense.com/forum/phpBB3/index.php[/url] I don't know how many people agree, but I find dark grey background with white letters the most readable.

ron.dunn

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 05:56:35 +0000

I posted a link to a whole bunch of suggestions to fix the search function:

http://www.chipkit.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=237#p1193

I do like your suggestion to change the default skin for the forum. I switched to 'prosilver' from the default 'polyethylene'. Much better.

cobbj

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:03:44 +0000

I've been playing with the search features - I've turned off the "common words" block totally, and re-indexed the boards. Let me know if ya'll run into any issues with the current settings.