OK well sitting here this morning reading through all the duplicate topics of same/similar issues that all could have been solved with a simple search of the forums or a trip to the tutorials section, I began to wonder how many people have actually ever used the forum search at all, and why or why not people are/are not using search. I understand that some people may be new to forums, others just plain lazy, but hopefully this thread can enlighten me So simply vote here on the option that suits you and be honest! Also post here on why/why not you use/dont use search.
I always search before I create a new topic. I know how annoying it must get to be asked the same thing over and over again. Sometimes I may miss what I'm looking for in the search and ask the same question, but I always try at least once to find it on my own first.
I use the search function alot, especially if I want to back track to a thread or post that was made ages ago. It really is useful for those who aren't that lazy. But I do have some problems with using it though. Say I remembered only a bit or a part of what a poster said on a thread & want to quote it, I sometimes don't get quite the adequate results I've been looking for. As an example, there was this instance I wanted to add an animated image of this guy kicking an old lady in the face, to a post I was typing on how the Admin-moderator heirarchy worked. I don't remember which thread it was on, but did remembered a part of what one of the posters said on that thread. I think it was you Almo or winterreise saying this phrase "this is how the admin moderator member relationship worked", so I typed exactly that in the search bar & got nothing, I redid my search using avanced search options & still didn't get any results, so I just abandoned my post instead. Bottomline, it is useful, but you've got to be very specific with your searches otherwise you won't find exactly what it is you're looking for. Oh & I know you're pissed Almo that's why you posted this thread & poll, but this really cracked me up: "No, Search? Whats that?"
Actually its 9am here and im about to head off to uni, so yeah im pretty drunk (no not yet, though it is student night in town tonight so I wont be sober for long). Back on topic, yeah I agree that sometimes it doesnt find what you want, though after playing around with different keywords for a while you can eventually find what you want.
Sad to say I still couldn't locate that post with the animated image, anyway atleast now I can ask you guys directly for a link to it. As I see it, a whopping 80% of people not using the search function are just people who are very new to the site who have problems who don't know exactly how to put to words how they feel at the moment, hence multiple topics with the same content but different title headings or new guys who have an idea but didn't think there were others before him who thought of it before him, take for example this guy on Forum Games & jokes: https://www.romulation.org/forum/index.php/topic,12432.0.html I know his thread focuses on "funny pictures", but thinking about it, the "Post a Random Pictures" thread also contain photos that are somewhat hilarious as well, plus the later is already well established. Another: https://www.romulation.org/forum/index.php/topic,11754.0.html There were two other older threads with exactly the same theme. Probably this guy thought he was the first guy to have problems wth zombies & needed help, hence he posted this thread before checking to see if there were other survivors before him. And with denizens of zombies chasing you to take you out to lunch, would you really have the time to go see if there were others before you? ;D Sorry for the unwarranted lame wise crack though. Most likely before I joined RomUlation loony, when I arrived here you already had that excerpt from IRC you're still using & I didn't see that image 'til that post I was referring to.
What if you make the search button really big with really strong striking colours so people easily notices it. Or how about placing a message below it like, "I can help you find whatever topic you're looking for". Or how about an animated search helper like Microsoft Office's helpful (annoying) clippy?
I always search. If I need to. I don't post technical problems, except rarely for Computer related issues. Although I do get annoyed at the many duplicate topics about various technical problems. But I've been handling it well. Almo, if you get pissed about the duplicates, just don't go into Technical Help Oh Cahos, I'm sure that was Reider. Or Winterreise.
lol im pretty sure he meant pissed as in drunk, not as in angry but I could be wrong. Also im one of those people who just clicks the "show unread topics since last visit" link so I cant help but notice them.
I was thinking more in the lines of annoyed or getting frustrated, with a little bit of intoxicated added into the mix. And I think I know how you are when you're really enraged Almo, one of your threads on the rants section gave me a clear picture of how you are when you really get pissed, really scary.
