Search suntax is one of the biggest barriers of entry for new users and easily discouraging with how technical it can get - mostly for people who can be classified as tech-illiterate or otherwise just don't have the grip of stuff like that.
Making a simple UI that would allow choosing traits and interests to be used for finding profiles, chats and roleplays, constructing and sending query automatically after that, would be of a great benefit to the site and decrease amount of people that check the site, even make profiles, and then have no idea how to move around it.
meta info
endorsement points: 221
created: 08 February 15 at 03:45 PM (build: 2/8/2015 12:32 AM beta)
closed: 12 March 15 at 04:20 AM (build: 3/12/2015 3:52 AM beta)
Being less than tech savvy, let me be sure I understand. This would be a whole page dedicated to searching where characters clicked boxes for interests, genders, etc that they desired at a given moment, and the program would then pull up those with similar interests and/or who are interested in the active character?
You have that little search-box in Profiles section, for example. I would propose adding a link under it, "Use assisted search" or something like that, and it redirects you to a new page, which gives you. "Search for profiles with traits" and then list of selected and "Add" button. The same for interests. You select them, then click a button saying "Search" and you get results as if you put that whole 'find' query in the searchbox we currently have
Earlier on I was considering having a page with a bunch of buttons like you would have on profile creation/edit/etc. which you click, and then automatically auto-fills in a giant search box above with the equivalent searching syntax. This would allow you to slowly learn the syntax to use it without viewing the searching page.
Ah yeah! This idea is still one of the things I feel extremely strongly about.
While this idea wouldn't really kill the need for an actual UI (especially for complex searches), I think it'd help a lot for people who just jump at it and try to type things in.
Implemented for profiles. It would not be hard to make one for roleplays or others given the framework laid out here.
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