DU Search...

[targetpractice]

I'm not sure if this is the correct forum for such a query, but...

I really do not find the DU Search feature to be very useful at all. I have never found posts that I am seeking, and I've tried finding my own posts without success... Plus, the results are not sortable by common attributes like date, relevance, poster, etc.

Am I alone with this opinion?

Search is such an important feature of any web site.... I feel DU's search should work as expected.

Disclosure: I am usability professional by trade and I admit that I am very impatient when it comes to features that are not immediately intuitively obvious when tried.

[newcriminal]

1. I love the search on here. Are you going to the advanced search?

[targetpractice]

6. Hah! Nope...

As I said in my post, I'm REALLY impatient with user interfaces...

I was completely focused on the upper righthand search box with the "DU/Web" drop-down menu and "Search" button.

I now see that there is a search button with a magnifying glass icon that behaves very differently from the other search option in the heading.

Now that you folks have pointed it out... I'm better off... But, the DU header design is pretty weak in my opinion... Two ways to get to search that behave differently is not good design.

Thanks for the help!

[Ptah]

2. Re: I have never found posts that I am seeking, and I've tried finding my own posts without success.

Are you not getting any results searching for your username?

I just did a simple search for threads you were in and I found eighty-one active threads.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. My dear targetpractice...

When you get to which field to choose, be sure to choose AUTHOR. You have to scroll down in that place to find it.

I had never done that, and after I found out, I got a lot more successful!

[targetpractice]

7. Thanks!

I was pretty focused on the search field in the upper right-hand corner.... Once I started using that clearly labeled "Search" feature... I (probably like many other naive users) would stop looking elsewhere.

You have pointed out that there is a "better" search option amongst the eleven (11) icons in the DU header... Until tonight... If I close my eyes... I could probably only name the "My DU" and "Post" icons in the header.

Thanks for your help... I'm not dumb, but users tend to discover features and stick to them...

I didn't realize there was a better search option other than the search field in the right of the header.


Now... Don't get me started about how horrible the "unrecommend" feature is from a usability perspective!

[Robeson]

4. It's a must tool for exposing trolls. Works like a charm.

[targetpractice]

5. Are calling me a troll?

I have an extreme case of ADD, and I want my user interfaces to be intuitive and discoverable.

But, I am not a troll.

[Kali]

8. the DU google search sucks (in my opinion)

but the DU simple and advanced searches work pretty well. The archives go back further than it would appear - you have to fool around with the date choices as you go along, but it works.

[targetpractice]

9. Yup... I was using the DU Google search while blissfully unaware of the other option.

Silly me.