Re: Super Search discouraged?

[jdporter]

Besides what ysth said, there's also the fact that the site FAQ (which you can reach by clicking the Need Help?? link near the top of every page) has a section on Searching PerlMonks, wherein you would learn about Super Search, if you didn't already know about it.
Should the Need Help?? link be more prominent?

If you haven't perused the PerlMonks FAQ... well, there's no time like the present.

There's also a Super Search link included in the "menu" of links at the top right of every page.

Also, if you go to your Nodelet Settings and add the Find Nodes nodelet, you'll find a Super Search link in that nodelet, as well.

[naikonta]

This got me thinking if in some way the Super Search can be implemented as nodelet so one is opt to put it permanently on the side bar via Nodelet Settings.

[jdporter]

That's not such a good idea. The content of Super Search (the page) is pretty huge. If we put it in a nodelet, it would be by far the largest nodelet around. Nodelets are supposed to be small. Besides, Super Search is never more than a single mouse click away.

Looking at it from another angle, there's nothing in the content of Super Search (the page) that requires special handling on the server side; it's just a generic form. That means you could easily make your own "mini-SuperSearch" form in your Free Nodelet, with just the fields you want. See below for an example.

[jdporter]

In response to a suggestion that there should be a Super Search nodelet, I offer the following: a customizable mini-SuperSearch form for your Free Nodelet.

This is just an example. You can (and should) decide for yourself which fields you want to hard-code (using inputs of type hidden), and which fields you want to let yourself enter values for. (The remainder will get their defaults as defined by Super Search.)

<form method="post" action="?"
    enctype="application/x-www-form-urlencoded">
<input type="hidden" name="node" value="3989" />
Author:<input type="text" name="a" size=20 value="`author_title`"/><!-
+-"-->
<br/>
Title:<input type="text" name="HIT" size=20 value="`title`"/><!--"-->
Sep:<input type="text" name="HIS" size=2 value=" " />
<br/>
Search only in/under `root_type_title`:
<input name="`root_ss_type`" value="1" type="checkbox">
<br/>
Replies:
<input name="re" value="A" type="radio" /> All
<input name="re" value="S" type="radio" checked="checked" /> Section
<input name="re" value="N" type="radio" /> None
<br/>
<input type="submit" name="go" value="Search" />
</form>

This is pretty cool, because it uses Free Nodelet macros to determine the type of the current thread's root node (replies are simply type 'note', regardless of section) . The mini Super Search form is pre-loaded with that and other relevant values from the current node: the author and the title. You can delete/edit these values as you like before clicking the submit button. If you decide you need more flexibility than this (or than you can hack in your Free Nodelet), then... you know where to find it. :-)

For extra coolness, use the Fake a Nodelet technique to make your Mini Super Search look like a genuine nodelet!