A Desperate Plea

[goodhealthgourmet]

i BEG of you...can you PLEASE change the default setting for search results so that they're listed in order of Relevance, as opposed to putting the newest ones first? i honestly don't mind helping out my fellow CHers, but i'm getting really tired of having to explain the issue and tell people how to tweak it every time i'm asked how in the world i was able to pull up results they didn't find when they searched.

[HillJ]

ghg, you could always try letting fellow CH's find their own way in the search world....at the very least take a few days off :)

[goodhealthgourmet]

LOL :) i could, but i get so *frustrated* when i see people posting claims that there are no threads about topics that i know have been covered ad nauseum!

[HillJ]

ghg, It's nice of you to go the x-tra CH-mile but perhaps not at the expense of your own CH frustration or enjoyment. ;0-)

[capeanne]

Really we are grown ups and none of us wants to be a burden ......and then to feel REALLY bad when we have benefited from your advice and realize we are seriously frustrating you . Ignore it and we will get over it

[goodhealthgourmet]

no, no, that's not what i meant! it's obviously not as though someone's holding a gun to my head & making me help my fellow Chers - if i didn't want to do it, i wouldn't. my frustration lies with the site/function design, because i just don't think it should be so tricky for everyone to find the info they seek when i *know* the threads are there because i've seen them. once someone does a search and doesn't get the results they're looking for, they logically assume the info doesn't exist. so they post a query...and then i see it, and say, "But wait, i *know* i've seen recent threads about that." so i do a search, find the info, post it...and so it goes.

it's a vicious cycle ;)

[capeanne]

where is a good place for a mod lock post re " how to search" The top of every board ?

[goodhealthgourmet]

i was thinking something even more simple.

you know the copy below the search bar that reads "Results will be limited to the last year and sorted newest first."? maybe just expand on that with something along the lines of "So if a search doesn't return the results you were looking for, try adjusting those parameters."

i don't know, just some sort of helpful hint.

[HillJ]

Wonderful suggestions, all. And, many CH's have felt as you have but it remains a fixable challenge for the CH team. ghg, you deserve to enjoy your community membership first and foremost. Sure, it's your choice to be helpful but you already give so much in the Home Cooking Boards. Do you really want to be the go to gal for searchable content?

[goodhealthgourmet]

if i see someone who needs help and i know i can help them, i can never resist the urge to jump in and offer assistance. i've always been like that - it's not always to my *own* benefit, but i can't help it :) besides, when it happens here, i always figure that if it gets a new CHer involved in a previously discussed topic, we may all benefit & come away with something new. and perhaps that person will pay it forward and help another CHer (or even me!) if they have the chance.

but maybe from now on i'll just start linking to searches instead of taking the time to copy & paste all the links...

[HillJ]

Thanks for your generosity, ghg.

[Jacquilynne]

Sorting in that order is meant to help people find the most recent threads when they're searching for information on restaurants, which are quite common searches.

Home Cooking is very different, since it's less time-dependent, but changing the defaults board by board isn't really an option.

People can also use the global site search which defaults to by relevance.

[goodhealthgourmet]

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/636560

at least twice a day recently. seriously.

PLEASE....?

[lynnlato]

I agree. The search feature is no bueno. I rarely use it anymore b/c its like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Just not user friendly anymore. :(

[Servorg]

I gotta say I find it pretty darn good for me lately. I do quite a lot of search on the LA board and I can usually find what I'm looking for without too much trouble. Lots of times when I run into a problem it's because I am entering a term that is common and I either misremember some other part of the post or can't fine tune my approach enough. Search engines aren't the Oracle @ Delphi. I really think the CH search function is back in fighting shape.

[MMRuth]

Have you tried using the advanced search options? Unfortunately there isn't a direct link to them, but if you just click on "search" without even entering a search term, it will take you to advanced search and you can proceed from there. I'm glad the search by user and search by title functions are working again too.

[lynnlato]

Yes, I have, and that works out better. But its an extra step that wasn't necessary before. I too think the default setting for search results should be relevance.