[JENA-169] Add a search box to the Jena website

• Type: Improvement
• Status: Closed
• Priority: Minor
• Resolution: Won't Do
• Component/s: Web site
• Assignee: Unassigned
• Reporter: Paolo Castagna
• Created: 25/Nov/11 11:08
• Updated: 05/Mar/22 12:32
• Resolved: 05/Mar/22 12:32

Description

It would be good to have a search box on the Jena website.

With Google users can use "site:" to restrict a query to a specific website, for example: "something site:incubator.apache.org/jena".
However, this is limited to a single website, you cannot use site: more than once.
We could make this easier for people having:

<form action="http://www.google.com/search" method="get">
<input value="incubator.apache.org/jena" name="sitesearch" type="hidden"/>
<input size="20" name="q" id="query" type="text" value="..." onclick="if(this.value == '...')

{this.value = ''}

"/>
<input name="Search" value="Search" type="submit"/>
</form>

Another option (IMHO more interesting) is to use Google Customised Search: http://www.google.com/cse/
For example: http://www.google.co.uk/cse/home?cx=009507611290970701536:-nmuokitb-0

You can then configure the websites you want to be used for a search, in this case (for example):
http://incubator.apache.org/jena/*
http://openjena.org/*
http://markmail.org/*
http://svn.apache.org/repos/asf/incubator/jena/Experimental/*
http://svn.apache.org/repos/asf/incubator/jena/Scratch/*
http://svn.apache.org/repos/asf/incubator/jena/Jena2/*
https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/JENA-*
...

You can have this on your website:

<div id="cse" style="width: 100%;">Loading</div>
<script src="http://www.google.co.uk/jsapi" type="text/javascript"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
google.load('search', '1',

{language : 'en'}

);
google.setOnLoadCallback(function()

{ var customSearchControl = new google.search.CustomSearchControl( '009507611290970701536:-nmuokitb-0'); customSearchControl.setResultSetSize(google.search.Search.FILTERED_CSE_RESULTSET); customSearchControl.draw('cse'); }

, true);
</script>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="http://www.google.com/cse/style/look/default.css" type="text/css" />

Some useful (old!) quotes from Jakob Nielsen on "search":

"Search is an important part of any big website. When users want to search, they typically scan the homepage looking for "the little box where I can type," so your search should be a box. [Make your search box at least 25 characters wide,] so it can accommodate multiple words without obscuring parts of the user's query.

(Update: Based on more recent findings, my recommendation is now to make the search box 27 characters wide. This and other new guidelines are covered in my tutorial on Fundamental Guidelines for Web Usability at the annual Usability Week conference.)"
– http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20020512.html (2002)

"This is a small point, but there's no reason to label the search box if there's a "Search" button right next to it. Interaction design's less is more principle tells us that extra elements in a dialogue distract users from the salient points and reduce their ability to understand an interface."
– http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20031110.html (2003)

Jakob Nielsen put the search box on to bottom right corner on his website. I find that a good choice, but I am not sure it fits in the current layout.
If that is not possible, having the search box elsewhere IMHO is better than not having it.