WeRelate:Suggestions/Suggestions for improvements to Search

Suggestions for improvements to Search

From discussion at Watercooler -- provide an option to make the results display more compact, allowing 100 - 200 page titles for search display page. This would allow the equivalent of browsing. --GayelKnott 22:32, 10 May 2013 (EDT)

done

Search with jokers, % one letter (character) and * for more letters.

done (one-letter match is a ? instead of a %)

Search by surname at birth, baptisms, marry, death or buried with the exclusion of countries. --Lidewij 11:12, 11 May 2013 (EDT)

done

Set up the "What links here" pages so that Persons and Families are arranged with surnames and givens in alphabetical order--and, if possible, adding birth and death years. Personally I could do without the Person and Family Numbers, but others may depend on them.

done

Now that I understand what faceting is, I like it. Surnames with wildcard possibilities; given names; birthplaces, deathplaces, marriageplaces to country and state/province (or county in UK); breakdown by centuries or half centuries or even quarter centuries--all come to mind. --goldenoldie 16:52, 12 May 2013 (EDT)

Concerning the act of searching (not the results of searching): after I have entered my place to search, I move the cursor over to hit the search button. BUT, the drop down window pops up and hides the search button. The drop down isn't offering just what I am looking for but it does keep me from hitting that search button. So either the drop down menu or the search button should be moved so that don't take up the same real estate spot. Just a little thing to make life at WeRelate easier! --janiejac 13:52, 17 May 2013 (EDT)

Fix the Browse feature so it does not disappear when you return to a previously opened page. --Jhamstra 21:28, 28 May 2013 (EDT)

I'm unable to reproduce this problem

When displaying the results of any Search provide the ability to specify the Sort order (eg by clicking at the top of a column in compact mode). Sort options should include Place, Surname, Given Name, Birth Date, Death Date, etc. This is very important when a search yields thousands of hits (eg in my Wilson family tree). Basically we should be able to sort results by any facet that we can search. --Jhamstra 21:29, 28 May 2013 (EDT)

This is implied by some of the above, but I thought I would make it explicit and add a reason. Add searching by married name, and include married names when using the browse links at the left side of the page. I find that some users are adding married names as alternative names on pages so that they show up in the browse feature. This is not only redundant data entry, but causes more work (or confusion when the work is not done) when removing incorrect marriages.--DataAnalyst 22:57, 23 November 2014 (UTC)

I'm one of those users who is adding married names. It may be (slightly) redundant, but I'm only adding it when I'm working on a page for some other reason. I don't see it causing a great deal of work when removing incorrect marriages. Having said that, if there is a consensus, either way, among the frequent users of WR, I'll conform.--jaques1724 00:43, 24 November 2014 (UTC)

Would this be optional? Or would you want this behavior on all searches?

--Dallan 00:24, 21 June 2015 (UTC)

Good question. Personally, I think in the search window, search by married name should be optional. But I am not sure what the default should be (yes or no). And I did not write the original request, so maybe someone else wants to reply.--DataAnalyst 03:06, 22 June 2015 (UTC)

This suggestion has been implemented:

• Countries can be excluded by entering "-country" in the Keywords field
• What-links-here list is ordered alphabetically (titles are ordered alphabetically within namespaces, but the namespaces themselves are not ordered alphabetically)
• The search button is no longer covered by the place-dropdown
• A woman's husband's last name is matched (lower-priority) in searches. So Jane Doe married to John Smith will be returned (lower-priority) in searches for Jane Smith.
• Searches for people include facets on: Surname, Given name, Country and State, and Birth Century and Decade

--Dallan 21:29, 4 November 2015 (UTC)