Demonstrate Search Proficiency

[Patrick King]

Originally Posted by Steven Gotz

Perhaps using quotes should be more common, but even though I know to use them, I imagine many people do not.

Steven, You've just proven the premise on my original post: some education on the Search feature available on this forum would be helpful, especially for new members.

That way they won't get Million Dollar Baby from a search on film look because they didn't know they should've used quotation marks around the term film look to return only those posts with the full term (i.e. both words in exactly that order, film, then look). Failing to put the term in quotes will return posts that had either term, obviously not what they were looking for (or it will return the error message Keith listed because the single word look is too common to use as a filter.).

[Lorinda Norton]

Gee whiz, Keith; of all the threads for you to use for your example!!! That's an inside joke, of sorts, and I've been meaning to throw some static Mr. Hudson's way about it. ;)

And dear, well-meaning Patrick--you really got into it this time! LOL! :)

Even with Dylan's exasperated tone in his hilarious movie, ("USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION!!") I haven't noticed anyone sounding mean when directing folks--newbies or otherwise--to use the search. I tell people, and often post a link to get them started, but I thought I was nice about it. If it's coming across as impatient, I'll stop.

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=48604

[Chris Hurd]

Hi Lorinda, hopefully we'll always come across as being patient no matter how exasperating it seems, and we'll save "how it really feels" for those off-the-record golden moments such as Dylan's classic video.

[Mike Teutsch]

I am not proficient with search terms and procedures, and it is something I should work on, but this is the problem I've had. I have tried, for example, to find a specific post that I wanted to look at again, and typed in a phrase that I knew was in it. But, the search engine kicks it back and eliminates the very common words, and then I get hundreds of hits. This makes trying to find what you want nearly impossible.

If we are suggesting changes, I know that a spell checker would be extremely helpful to some. I am a pretty good speller and like my posts to be fairly error free. Many larger posts I write here, are actually typed in WORD, then copied and pasted. I know that many do not care about spelling, capitalization, or even grammar, but some do. It may even be a big help to some whose first language is not English. We have so many members who speak a different language.

Just my two cents.

Mike

[Patrick King]

Lorinda,

Its true: No good deed goes unpunished.

I've got to quit this thread though or Chris is going to double my subscription fee based on my post-count just trying to explain myself here. I think I'll go search on "Search"; it may misunderstand me, but it won't punish me for doing it.

[K. Forman]

"Gee whiz, Keith; of all the threads for you to use for your example!!! "

Wherever there is chaos, wherever there is confusion... Capt. Quirk is there! Usually just to make it worse ;)