searchintro modification - show users what the minimum word length is

[imported_Tungsten]

This is an embarassingly simple template modification but one that has proven useful on my site. What it does is simply tell the user what the minimum character length for a search term is before they ever submit a search query.

It reduces frustration that arises when a user searches for something under the administrator-defined search length only to be told that their search is under the minumum requirement.

Anyway, here it is...


Open your searchintro template and make the following changes

Change this...
<b>Advanced query:</b>
Join words with AND, OR and NOT to control your search in more detail.<br>
Add asterisks (*) to use wild cards in your search
(<i>*bullet*</i> matches <i>vBulletin</i> etc.)
</smallfont></td>

To this...
<b>Advanced query:</b>
Join words with AND, OR and NOT to control your search in more detail.<br>
Add asterisks (*) to use wild cards in your search
(<i>*bullet*</i> matches <i>vBulletin</i> etc.)
<br><br>
Searches must use words of <b>$minsearchlength characters</b> or longer.
</smallfont></td>


Screen shots would be pointless as this is just a simple text add-on in the search screen. :) Apologies if this has already been suggested by someone else here. I did a cursory search of my own and didn't see anything like this listed.

[Tony G]

May be simple, but it's a useful modification. :)