Roadkiller
Well-Known Member
The search tool available on the 405th discussion boards is an important tool that is not being used enough, nor to it's fullest capability.
What follows is a very basic tutorial on how to use the search function, and a few basic tips that should help the average user make it a bit easier to find the information they want. Click on the thumbnails to see detailed pictures.
1. The Search function is located in the upper right portion of the boards. You type the term you are looking for into the box circled in red. Throughout this tutorial we will assume I am working on a foam costume build and am looking for information about how a band saw could be used to cut the foam. Thus, I will type band saw into the search box.
2. The results screen appears. Note that the actual term the boards searched for is simply the word "band" as indicated in the red circle (more on that in a minute). As you scroll down the results from the search, you will see at the red arrow the first thread that looks promising. However, with other searches, it's possible the first promising thread could be a long way into the results. Is there a way to ensure the search looks for everything I am looking for?
3. This picture shows what happens when I enter the term I am looking for enclosed in quotation marks, like so: "band saw". Note that the circle shows that the complete term was used as the search instruction, and at the arrow, our most promising thread is now the first result.
4. I can open the most promising thread as usual, and start reading from the beginning, hoping to find what I am looking for. However, to help, the forum has a 'search thread' function available as shown in the read circle.
5. It is used in the same manner as the regular search funtion. Click and then enter the term you are looking for, as shown:
6. You can see in this picture that the entire term I was searching for was utilized as the search parameter, and a list of actual posts containing that term will appear. Click on the active link as shown by the arrow and you will be taken directly to the topic.
There is so much information on the 405th that it is almost impossible to remember where everything is, learning to exploit the search function will greatly aid in tracking down what you need. The search function is capable of much more, but utilizing these techniques will resolve most of your search problems.
What follows is a very basic tutorial on how to use the search function, and a few basic tips that should help the average user make it a bit easier to find the information they want. Click on the thumbnails to see detailed pictures.
1. The Search function is located in the upper right portion of the boards. You type the term you are looking for into the box circled in red. Throughout this tutorial we will assume I am working on a foam costume build and am looking for information about how a band saw could be used to cut the foam. Thus, I will type band saw into the search box.
2. The results screen appears. Note that the actual term the boards searched for is simply the word "band" as indicated in the red circle (more on that in a minute). As you scroll down the results from the search, you will see at the red arrow the first thread that looks promising. However, with other searches, it's possible the first promising thread could be a long way into the results. Is there a way to ensure the search looks for everything I am looking for?
3. This picture shows what happens when I enter the term I am looking for enclosed in quotation marks, like so: "band saw". Note that the circle shows that the complete term was used as the search instruction, and at the arrow, our most promising thread is now the first result.
4. I can open the most promising thread as usual, and start reading from the beginning, hoping to find what I am looking for. However, to help, the forum has a 'search thread' function available as shown in the read circle.
5. It is used in the same manner as the regular search funtion. Click and then enter the term you are looking for, as shown:
6. You can see in this picture that the entire term I was searching for was utilized as the search parameter, and a list of actual posts containing that term will appear. Click on the active link as shown by the arrow and you will be taken directly to the topic.
There is so much information on the 405th that it is almost impossible to remember where everything is, learning to exploit the search function will greatly aid in tracking down what you need. The search function is capable of much more, but utilizing these techniques will resolve most of your search problems.
