• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Could the Search box be made more obvious?

Brunneria

Brunneria

Guru
Retired Moderator
Messages
21,884
Location
Lincolnshire
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi @Administrator and @Giverny

I have dithered about asking this question for a while, because it is a bit like opening a can of worms, but here goes:

Could the Search box be made more obvious?
- For the people who would prefer to search for an answer to their question, rather than stick their neck out by opening a thread.

When I was a newbie here, I delayed posting, and delayed asking questions because I didn't want to appear an idiot. Perfectly normal, human reaction. And one that puts a heck of a lot of people off posting. But I didn't start using the Search function til I had been here a while.

Another perfectly normal, human reaction when first diagnosed is PANIC and a scrabbly search for information... including asking questions. So we get a lot of people starting threads off with questions and everybody deserves an answer. There are several kind, generous posters who devote chunks of their day to fielding these questions, and I admire them deeply. I try to chip in sometimes myself, but I can't help thinking that if the Search Box was more prominent it might reduce the repetition a bit.

The reality is that nearly every question has been asked before.
Last week we had 3 'tell me about fasting' threads opened on the same day.

I would hate to discourage questions, but some of them might be re-directed by a BIG Search Sign.
 
Whilst it may help to make the search box more obvious, I think people are in a state of shock and panic when they are newly diagnosed and the last thing on their mind is looking for a search box to see if anyone has posed their question before on the forum.

It may help some if mentioning the search box is included in @daisy1's basic information post?
 
catherinecherub said:
I think people are in a state of shock and panic when they are newly diagnosed and the last thing on their mind is looking for a search box to see if anyone has posed their question before on the forum.
?
Click to expand...

I agree.

But then I think 'they found the forum, so they must know how to search. And be in a fit state to do it.'
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I'm with @Brunneria on this. There is one heck of a lot of real estate available to expand / lengthen that search box, increase text, colour it differently (to make it prominent) and see how that goes.

Trouble is, some new people don't look no matter what you do. If they did, we wouldn't be worn down with repetitive questions despite their (and our) good intentions.
 
It's easy to search ... but only if you know what to search for. A newly diagnosed member, in a panic, is unlikely to have any notion of what to search for. Reading round the forums as a first step, before asking questions, is more useful in my opinion. The search box comes in to its own when we have gained a little knowledge and know better what to look for, or to find a buried thread you remember reading and want to read again. Also, most of the answers to newbies' questions are on the main website. How many newbies read that I wonder?
 
Add to that that the search engine is not as well optimised as a google search is an dyou can start to see why people don't use it so much!
 
catherinecherub said:
Whilst it may help to make the search box more obvious, I think people are in a state of shock and panic when they are newly diagnosed and the last thing on their mind is looking for a search box to see if anyone has posed their question before on the forum.

It may help some if mentioning the search box is included in @daisy1's basic information post?
Click to expand...

How about something at the end of the sign-up page, after completion. It could say something like:

Are you looking for something in particular? If so, use our Search facility (then a box or hyperlink to the advanced search page)?

Obviously, there would need to be an option of something like, "No thanks. I'd just like to have a look around", then after selecting that option it could land on the Forum Home page?

Just a suggestion that wouldn't be potentially massive code change?
 
Brunneria said:
Hi @Administrator and @Giverny

I have dithered about asking this question for a while, because it is a bit like opening a can of worms, but here goes:

Could the Search box be made more obvious?
- For the people who would prefer to search for an answer to their question, rather than stick their neck out by opening a thread.

When I was a newbie here, I delayed posting, and delayed asking questions because I didn't want to appear an idiot. Perfectly normal, human reaction. And one that puts a heck of a lot of people off posting. But I didn't start using the Search function til I had been here a while.

Another perfectly normal, human reaction when first diagnosed is PANIC and a scrabbly search for information... including asking questions. So we get a lot of people starting threads off with questions and everybody deserves an answer. There are several kind, generous posters who devote chunks of their day to fielding these questions, and I admire them deeply. I try to chip in sometimes myself, but I can't help thinking that if the Search Box was more prominent it might reduce the repetition a bit.

The reality is that nearly every question has been asked before.
Last week we had 3 'tell me about fasting' threads opened on the same day.

I would hate to discourage questions, but some of them might be re-directed by a BIG Search Sign.
Click to expand...

Good idea - certainly worth a try. It's on the to-do list.
The forum is being updated on test servers (as a new framework has just been finished by Giv). We'll make the search area more obvious as soon as that update has been made!

tim2000s said:
Add to that that the search engine is not as well optimised as a google search is an dyou can start to see why people don't use it so much!
Click to expand...

Maybe we could replace it with the Google Search used for the site? That's literally searching the whole website via Google?

britishpub said:
You could make it fill the whole screen, and it still would not be used.
Click to expand...

Good point - let's see what happens! :)
 
I think sometimes new members and newly diagnosed are so spooked by their diagnosis they ask a question for emotional support as much as for information.
 
Back
Top