I suppose this feature is to prevent overloading the server with requests? (or some derivative thereof) But am I the only one that finds it slightly annoying? Often times, I do a search and bam 1200 results. SO I think alright I need to narrow the subject, or search titles only, and then I have to wait, wait, wait. Often I want to check New Posts, and then do this search. Could this be reduced to something in the range of 15seconds, which would still reduce the repetitive search spam, yet not be quite the hindrance? QUALIFIERS: I suppose, that 9 out of 10 don't see this as a problem. I am most likely in the minority. I surf the net, like most wives describe a husbands remote control usage. Flip, flip, flip, how does he know if the show is any good, he doesn't stay there long enough and about the time I start to like a show he changes the channel again, too quote my Mother and most of wives I hear talk. Me, I don't watch TV (I do watch streaming shows, on demand about an hour a day though. I am not demanding a change. I am not claiming that this is a major turn off that will cause me to lead a revolt of trainboard supporters to boycott (not that I even have the faintest notion that I have enough clout with enough individuals to achieve such a thing, even though I have an extensive friends list that does nothing, ) I am just remarking about it. Curious if I am right 9 in 10 think I am loco. But if I can effect (affect?) a change, yippeee!!!! :tb-err: :tb-biggrin: :tb-wacky: Really need a smiley with a question mark on his head. (A change I may lead a revolt over)
The search program here leaves a lot to be desired. At times, it acts like it's paralized. Quite often I can go to Oogle Google and get the information I need quicker and with far less hassles. It would be great to see this upgraded but it takes cold hard cash to get the job done. Let's pony up and see what we can do to help Charlie. All things come in time.
I'm not liking the 30 second thing either.. I find it very annoying.. but in reality it probably won't change anytime soon so I put up with it.
It's software and we have no way to intervene. One thing which is very helpful, is being sure to spell correctly. Not just search terms, but whenever you post. It's difficult for a search to turn up Amtrak, when someone spells it Amtrack. Boxcab E50
Not "often," but at least a dozen times, I have gone to get my daily trainboard fix, gone to the entry page "www.trainboard.com" and clicked "24 hours of trainboard." The first thing I get is the dread "30 second search" feature and telling me I have been too pushy or something. I don't say it happens "often," but it has been a BUNCH of times.
It's a vBulletin default setting, designed for forums on a shared hosting environment. It is to cut down on concurrent connections to the database. Many hosting companies have a limit of 200 concurrent connections to the database at one time. I'll explain why this is set this way, and Trainboard has it's own server, so this is not the reason why here.... You are logged in, that is one connection, you run a search, that is a second connection, you are sending a PM at the same time, that is 3 connections, all at the same time...
Omitting short search strings. While on the subject of searches, I find it highly annoying that any string shorter than four characters will be omitted. So if I want to search for example "PRR" I'm out of luck.
Yes, and its also important to title any new thread appropriately. "I have a Question!" will cause the search skip over your thread. "Kato XYZ Shell Removal?" will peg that item for the search engine. The question mark will show it's a question. Another helpful tool is the tag cloud. Instead of searching for "Thunder Ridge" I just click the 'Progress Thread' tag and scroll down. My thread is usually about mid page. Same goes for a lot of other popular topics like sound decoders, logging, and painting. As more and more items are appropriately tagged, this way of searching will grow more and more dense. But it is a work around.
Agreed, and searches for NCE, SD9, GP7, FTA, etc. will be ignored. One of the reasons for being a member here is Trainboard's vast database of useful answers from those in the know. If I'm unable to get the answers that I seek, however, I quickly go searching elsewhere. Many times I need an answer in a pinch - such as when installing a decoder with a hot iron at the ready! This is my favorite forum, and it's a shame that such information is out of reach.
Hmm, I just raised both of these issues in the "Upgrade Coming" thread, unaware of this topic. It appears that maybe they are trying to improve things as it looks like 3 or more chars will now work. Still doesn't help me with "BN", but it's progress.
We'll try 15 seconds for a while and see if this has any negative impact. The default setting (as noted) is 30 seconds. Charlie
Charlie, I like the 15 second change you apparently just made. It comes in handy those times when I accidentally double click "New posts" and get a screen telling me to wait between searches but no results. Thank you! Adam
