Search options more visible

[Steven van der Hoeven]

Since Acc 10 we now have some nice search features available:

-Exact vs flex search

-Literal vs grammatical search

Together with range, scope and bracketed words many powerful search options are available to the user.

 

Forgive me if I missed something, but all of these options are hidden by default.

And for range/scope/bracketed words you can expand with the + button, but for every new tab they are hidden by default.

 

How many times have I searched for something and found out that range was still set to new testament or scope was still set to chapter or search was still set to flex, etc.

Why is exact/flex or literal/grammatical hidden behind a magnifying glass together with search results? It looks like a temporary solution when those options became available.

Also, when one does a verse search in the new testament while range is set to old testament it still gives results. Shouldn't the range option be faded out when in the verse mode?

This could be more intuitive, especially for new users. I know window space is limited, but those search options are at the heart of the program.

 

Could there be an option in the future to have search options and previous searches staying visible, i.e. via the preferences menu? When comparing with my internet browser I may click a button to see a list of bookmarks / previously visitied sites. But I could also choose to let them stay visible in the browser. It's all fit to the purpose.

 

Regard as constructive feedback. I like the program as it is, but having said that I must admit I am already biased due to daily usage.

Thanks.

Edited October 5, 2013 by Steven van der Hoeven

[Joel Brown]

Hey Steven! I appreciate your feedback. However, I wanted to respond to a couple of your points:

 

We've been working hard in version 10 (and moving forward) to place visible/readily accessed functions in visible places, but to hide interface elements that aren't used regularly. This avoids clutter/visual distraction and decreases the learning curve. Specifically with the Flex/Exact and Grammatical/Literal searching, this isn't something that usually is going to be toggled regularly by the user, so putting it one menu away, rather than always taking up space in a segment/radio/checkbox, seemed to make a lot of sense. Plus, the visual feedback is always there: in your number of hits it reports either "x hits" for exact/grammatical searching, and "x flex hits" or "x literal hits" for flex/literal searching. So, it is just like a direct interface element, one click away and instant visual feedback.

 

For the search conditions (range, scope, etc.), this was also a deliberate decision to hide the popups when they aren't in effect. The vast majority of searches don't involve custom ranges, scopes, or bracket options, so why always show these to the user? The logic works very simply, if the choice isn't shown, the options is the default ([All Text], Verse Scope, inclusive bracketed words). So, if your condition isn't visible, it isn't possible that the range was still set to New Testament, or the scope set to Chapter. If it isn't visible, it defaults back.

 

Finally, you can have the options default to visible, if your Preferences -> Search Tabs are set to have new search tabs come with a non-default range or scope, like 'New Testament' or 'Chapter'.

 

And, remember that even if none are visible, you can always right click in the search area (not the entry box, though!) to directly add a Range or Scope to your search, without having to click the '+' first.

 

Thanks for your feedback!

[Steven van der Hoeven]

Joel, thanks for your reply.

[Darin Franklin]

I second Steven's suggestion to make the Flex/Exact setting visible. The Flex/Exact setting is not optional like Range, Scope, and Bracketed Words. For a word search, it is either in Flex mode or Exact mode (or Literal/Grammatical for Hebrew), but I cannot tell which mode it is in without clicking on the history list to see it. Also, when the Range, Scope, or Bracketed options are in effect, they are visible, but the Flex/Exact setting is always in effect, and it is invisible. I like the way that the Range, Scope, and Bracketed options work, but please make the Flex/Exact setting visible so that I know which mode I am in before doing a search.

 

Since Flex and Exact are modes of Word search, I think it makes sense to show this in the Verses/Words indicator on the left hand side of the search bar. The choices should be: Verses, Words (flex), Words (exact). For a Hebrew search: Verses, Words (literal), Words (grammatical). In texts that don't support this, then the choices should be: Verses, Words.

 

Finally, I would like a keyboard shortcut to toggle the Flex/Exact setting, like I can toggle Verses/Words with ⌘;. Maybe ⌘; should cycle through the available options: Verses, Words (flex), Words (exact).

 

[Joel Arnold]

Just coming back to this thread. It's great to see that this got implemented and I really like it. Just curious if there's a hotkey for toggling flex? Thanks!