Search for several interests at once

[enigel]

Title:
Search for several interests at once

Area:
Search

Summary:
The interest search should be capable of searching for more than one interest at a time. For example, "slash, icons" should return users and communities interested in both "slash" and "icons".

Description:
This is something that I've needed and wanted for years on that Other Blogging Platform, and never got implemented.

Problem: As the DW community grows, and there are more and more communities and users, searching for an interest could return hundreds of results - very hard to go through them and find what you really wanted.

Often the desired results really lie at the intersection of two popular interests, but there's no way to restrict it like that.

Solution: searching by "interest 1, interest 2" should return communities and users who list both "interest 1" and "interest 2".

Alternatively, there could be an option to "Search within these results" after the initial search for "interest 1".

Of course, a full boolean interest search would be the niftiest thing ever, but my suggestion is just a simple additive search for now.

Problems: there could be database problems that I'm not aware of (databases are not my best area of expertise), but unless it would really crash the site and there's no way to optimise it I don't think there should be any drawbacks.

Poll #2640 Search for several interests at once

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 62

View Respondents

This suggestion:

View Answers

Should be implemented as-is.
51 (82.3%)

Should be implemented with changes. (please comment)
11 (17.7%)

Shouldn't be implemented.
0 (0.0%)

(I have no opinion)
0 (0.0%)

(Other: please comment)
0 (0.0%)

Comments

[aedifica]

I like "search within these results."

[vass]

Yes! Yes please! I've been wanting this for years.

[aurora_novarum]

+1

(or an alternative: allowing search of Interest 1 "&" Interest 2)

[saekhwa]

+1

[susanreads]

+1

[jumpuphigh]

+1

[snakeling]

I wouldn't want to see this feature implemented with a comma, because right now, the comma means OR when you use it in a tag page URL like http://snakeling.dreamwidth.org/?tag=misc:knitting,misc:culture:poetry.

My first vote would go to boolean. Even if only AND and OR were implemented, it would already be awesome.

If we have to use punctuation or something, I'd prefer to use &&, which is unlikely to be used inside a tag already (and could be tied in to a full boolean search if added later *g*).

[jadelennox]

Search limits, not just on interests, but on all searches. Or (she says, dreaming big) facets. Mmm, facets. So if you get an interest search for "Doctor Who", the breakout facets could be geography, other interests, communities or users, etc.

Possibly as a paid user feature? Faceted searching as a paid feature -- man, I would pay for it. On the other hand, I am a search nerd. (See icon.)

I'm not sure how we would implement that. Bring in Lucene and SolR?

Possibly I should stop dreaming this big.

[finch]

+1

[aedifica]

That is an excellent icon. *grin*

[kerravonsen]

+1

[ratcreature]

Yes, I second that the preference that is shouldn't be a comma for AND.

[gchick]

+1 to facets and paid feature. Hell, I'm a seed account, and I'd find an excuse to pay again!

[kyrielle]

Search within these results, or AND, or && or the like. Not a comma please. Full boolean would be great. Search within would probably be easier/saner.

[briarwood]

+1 Boolean searching would be fab!