PlantFiles search

It's not there. LOL

First, click on the "Search Plants" button.

Then go to the line "This is an advanced search. If it confuses you, you may like our generalized search" and click on the "generalized search" phrase.

Then, you'll get the search you desire. Bookmark it for future use to save clicks. ;)

That's my whole point, TuttiFrutti - but thanks anyway. :-) Before the change, the single input field for the generalized search was conveniently displayed on the home page of PF. All we had to do was click on the PF tab, and it was there. Now, it's hidden on another screen a couple of steps away, and it's as if we're being "trained" to use the advanced search exclusively. What's more, if we don't find that the advanced search suits every search we do as well as the generalized search does, it's because the advanced search "confuses" us. Rrrrrrr. lol

Does the generalized search slow down the server perhaps? That kind of reasoning would be easier for me to understand, than trying to dissuade us from using it simply for our own good. JMHO.

I've found that for some of my searches the generalized one is much more convenient, and for others, the advanced search is. Could we please have the input field for the generalized search returned to the home page of PF? It was sooooo convenient.

Shannon

Shannon, Dave can confirm this, but yes - I think the general search does slow the server down - see my post above that explains the difference between the fields that it must look through with a general vs. field-specific search.

All searches now require one extra click to take you to the page where both options are presented. (It's an equal-opportunity inconvenience whether you use the advanced or general search - if that's any comfort ;o)

In regard to the nifty new search (hint hint), it would be nice to have a "Clear Search" button to the right of the "Search" button for those of us doing searches on a myriad of plants that may be totally unrelated.

You see, I did learn a little while ago that there were no "prickly lettuce" entries in the lycopersicon genus. LOL ;)

Donna

Donna, I'd agree about the "Clear Search" button.......I had some funny results as I played with the word "Kent" after intentionally causing a No return found situation. It first picked up 2 returns when I tried again, not including what I was looking for. By refreshing the page I was able to get it to bring up 3 returns including what I was looking for. Not earthshaking and keep in mind that I am sometimes easily confused. :-)

Just an idea... why not take the CLICK HERE TO SEARCH FOR PLANTS off of that main page and add the two green bar searches on there, one for ADVANCED SEARCH, one for GENERAL SEARCH. That way one click would be killed. :)

Ah; thanks for the info about the server, Terry.

I also got a bit confused when I had to do a "quick" search. I tried the new advanced search and it kept coming up empty...but the plant had just been in the newsletter this morning so I knew it was there and what the plant was called. I finally (after getting a little expasperated) found the simple search, tried it again and, "bingo!!"

I know you're trying to be innovative and I applaud the effort, but never underestimate the power of KISS (keep it simple :o) But I also love this site so much, I guess I'll adapt.

lmelling, what were you trying to locate?

I've noticed today that the 'red x'/'green checkmark' column is not showing up when I enter my search criteria. Has this been temporarily disabled?

Donna

Yes, I disabled it because it was crashing some people's browsers. :( I got several reports, including one from Terry.

Dave

My browser was crashing and I never associated it with that...I knew I was in PF when it happened..but figured it was Mozilla.

Yikes! I really really liked that feature, too. :) While I never experienced a browser crash (I'm using Mozilla 1.0.2), I doubt I use the search as heavily as our PF Admins.

Thanks for the update, Dave.

TRouble with plant file search lately.. have searched for 3 Mammillaria species in a row tonight... all I made sure were spelled correctly. The search machine claimed there was no such plants, yet when I tried to add them, they were all already in the plantfiles... what gives?

I've come up with several instances in the last week when a search yielded No results, but I know the plant is in the database. Haven't been able to nail down exactly how/when it happens, but seems to happen when I try a search with no results, or misspell a word, or use the search page several times it misfires if the first search has No results. It's like the form needs to be cleared to be able to pick up on the plant you are searching for.

If you experience a false "no results" message, please be sure to note what plant you were searching for - and how you spelled it. I'd be happy to re-trace your steps and see if I can troubleshoot it.

It's done the same thing to me too, Terry, I search, it doesn't pop the plant up, I go to add the plant, and when I do it tells me "This plant already exists right here" and then the link. If you can see what plants I tried to add that were already there, you can see which ones weren't showing up for me.

I'll make a note the next time it happens.

Please do. I haven't personally encountered this problem, so I'm curious to see what is happening...

I had it happen the other day on either a daylily or lilium cultivar. Can't remember which one but it was one I added to my Journal in the last few days (which has been a lot lately). I'll note it the next time it happens to me as well.

I just ran across a PF Search problem. Not the same one mentioned above though.

I thought that our old search included a search of the synonym for genus/species/cultivar, if I'm wrong about that then disregard this post.

I typed in "Ratibida" in the Genus field and "columnaris" in the species field and got 'No Results Found'. But when I removed the species of columnaris I then selected from the list of Genus the entry for Ratibida columnifera. One of the species synonyms is Ratibida columnaris....the entry I originally typed in.

Somewhere recently on one of the threads inquiring about the search, Dave answered my question saying that at this point in time the synonyms are not included in the search.

Happenstance is correct. The new search does not include synonyms (but it's on Dave's todo's to expand the search to include synonym fields. If you use the old general search, it wil bring up synonym entries.

Thanks, Candy & Terry. I'll go to the old search whenever I strike out on the new one.

Terry, I have searched for a number of AGaves now, and many don't show up as being in the plant files with the new search, but readily show up with the 'old-fashioned' general search. Not sure what the problem is... i made sure I spelled the names correctly, but the search kept saying no such plant existed in the data base, even after the general search went right to it... any thoughts?

Can you give me an example or two? (I'll need to know what you put in each field to replicate the problem...)

Edited to say a screen shot would be helpful too - showing the completed search fields and the search results (or lack thereof)

This message was edited Apr 18, 2005 7:31 AM

Morning!

Terry and/or Dave here's an example of some odd results in using the two different searches....

The plant I was looking for was Echeveria fasciculata.
An entry results (1 among 9) using the new search:
Species: fasciculata
http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=fasciculata&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

Not much info there so I went to Google and the books.....not much there either, so thinking it might be an old synonym I used the DG generalized seach and came up with 9 results. As might be expected 1 result was included in the generalized search that had "fasciculata" as part of a synonym, but the entry for Echeveria fasciculata was not a result in the generalized search.
http://davesgarden.com/pf/search.php?search_text=fasciculata&Search=Search

Not earth shattering and not something to spend a lot of time on.....I did find it one way or another, but perhaps something to be looked at. As pb said, " I knew it was there!"

So in this case, the entry was in the new search tool results, but not the old/general search funciton, correct? (Just trying to get the facts straight.)

This entry is relatively new: http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/100369/index.html
and I'm wondering if the general search indexing isn't working properly?

That is correct Terry.

Both new and old brought up 9 results.

The difference being that the new one brought up E. fasciculata, the old one did not.

At a glance it would appear that each search resulted in the same 9 entries, but on closer examination the old search brought up a synonym containing fasciculata and not E. fasciculata as one of the 9 results.

Terry, I tried to use the 'new' search several times to look up Erythrina species... and it kept saying there was no such genus, yet the generalized search picked it up over and over without a problem. I asked for E caffra, which the generalized search immediately found (recognized the synonym, I guess... which I still debate- according to my references E caffra is the correct name... but whatever). THen I asked it to find Erythrina atitlanensis and again it said there was no such plant. THen I just asked it to find ANY Erythrina.. and still it came up with nothing. I also asked it to look for Pericallis species, and again, nothing (general search found it immediately).

A search for Erythrina: http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Erythrina&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

A search for Erythrina atitlanensis: http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Erythrina&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=atitlanensis&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

Ertyhrina caffra would come up empty with the new search.

Pericallis: http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Pericallis&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

But I'm not sure why you weren't able to get these other searches to work, although if there's an extra space before or after the word, that will throw it off. Slight misspellings should nudge it to prompt you for possible correct spellings -

Erthyrina (missing a "y"): http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=erthryina&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

Pericalis (missing an "l"): http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Pericalis+&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

I hope Dave can soon get the new search to include the synonym fields in the results, and if it can also be more forgiving for extra spaces, that would be a good thing, too.

It finally did it again. I searched for
common name Daylily

Cultivar DELIRIOUS
It said it didn't exist. I went to add it, and it said, Here it is.

I made screenshots if you want them Terry. I did go back a few minutes ago and tried the general search, and it did come up.

Sure, post the screen shots.


Here's what I got when I put Delirious in the cultivar field (all other fields blank): http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?search_type%5Bcommon%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&search_type%5Bfamily%5D=contains&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&search_type%5Bgenus%5D=contains&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=&search_type%5Bspecies%5D=contains&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&search_type%5Bcultivar%5D=contains&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=delirious&search_type%5Bhybridizer%5D=contains&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&Search=Search

I see why it probably didn't show up for you - check out the common name: daylilies (plural) rather than daylily.

I'll edit it tomorrow after you've had a chance to see what I see ;o)

The screen you linked to is the same screen I got on the general search.

Here are the screen shots. I did have daylily in the common name area, not plural...

First

http://www.melissasgarden.us/DELIRIOUS.jpg

Second
http://www.melissasgarden.us/DELIRIOUS2.jpg

Third
http://www.melissasgarden.us/DELIRIOUS3.jpg

Melissa -

Try this search and see what Terry is referring to......it took me a minute to figure it out too. :-)

Common Name: "daylilies"
Cultivar: "DELIRIOUS"

The reason it doesn't show up when you search with "daylily" in the common name field is because the entry has "daylilies" (that's the plural Terry meant) in the common name field.

This message was edited Jun 14, 2006 11:14 AM

Sorry - that wasn't clear. (Thanks, Mystic!) The entry contains the common name "daylilies" so if you searched for common name "daylily" and cultivar "delirious", it wouldn't pull up. (I also confirmed it's the only "daylilies" in PlantFiles, a good thing since that means there is only one entry to edit!!!)