Dolphin Search Toolbar useless ?

[Duncan]

Aaron Lewis posted on Sat, 14 Aug 2010 11:01:40 +0800 as excerpted:

> Can anyone tell me how to take use of search bar in dolphin ? I typed in
> some text to do filtering , never work ? And then i pressed enter button
> , try to search , nothing changes at all ?

You didn't mention the kde version you are running.  The following is 
based on the just released kde 4.5.0, but 4.4 at least should be similar, 
and if you're running earlier than that, I'd definitely recommend an 
upgrade, because 4.3 and earlier were MUCH buggier and less functional.  
4.3 is honestly /almost/ usable (but I'd still recommend at least 4.4), 
but before that, it was a real bug fest and I really hate to see anyone 
still stuck on it.  (Of course, if you're still using kde3 and are talking 
about dolphin for kde3, that's an /entirely/ different ball game.  I'm 
simply assuming that's not the case.)

There are three search/filter methods available in dolphin.  I'm not sure 
which one you're referring to, so I'll briefly describe all three, and if 
you (or other readers) weren't aware of the others, you will be now. =:^)  
FWIW, the dolphin handbook (which will launch with the F1 key pressed 
within dolphin, by default) mentions all three of these, plus some other 
tips, in section two, "Using Dolphin", under "Quick Tips".  You may want 
to refer to that for other tips.  The shortcuts mentioned here are the 
defaults, tho they're configurable, of course.

1)  Invoking kfind, KDE's find-files dialog.

In dolphin, Ctrl-F or the find file menu entry under tools does this, with 
the current folder already selected as the search domain. (This isn't a 
search bar so I doubt you meant this, but it's one of the three search 
methods, so I'm listing it.)

2)  Searching using Nepomuk/Strigi

This one's likely what you were referring to, as it's the search box/
toolbar labeled "search".  This one requires that nepomuk/strigi be 
enabled to function (see next paragraph, and I'm not sure, it might be new 
to 4.5, so not available in previous versions).  If they aren't active, 
that might explain why nothing happens.  You can toggle the visibility of 
this box/bar using the settings menu, under toolbars shown.  If you don't 
have nepomuk/strigi active, hiding it is probably desirable. 

You can check nepomuk/strigi configuration in kcontrol (system settings, 
but for the most part it's not system settings, but user and kde specific 
settings, so the kde3 name kcontrol is FAR more accurate, and far more 
googlable too, than the impossibly generic even if it /was/ accurate 
system settings label they use in kde4), workspace appearance and 
behavior, desktop search kcm (kcontrol module. Note that kcontrol is 
reorganized for 4.5, so if you're running an earlier version, you'll need 
to look around a bit for the module, but I believe it's still called 
desktop search.

What happens if nepomuk/strigi are active tho, is that clicking in the 
search box pops up an additional search options bar below it.  It's a one-
line bar with a few options by default, but clicking the "+" button adds a 
line with more options.  You can click the button several times to add 
even more options (each with the same choices, but since each line only 
allows one qualifier, you can add several, and set them such that each 
specifies a different search parameter), if desired.  There's a search 
button, a save search, and a close button, as well.

3)  Filtering the displayed files.

You also mentioned filtering, so perhaps this is the one you were talking 
about, especially if you're using a version before the nepomuk/strigi 
search option mentioned above.  Ctrl-I or the menu option show filter bar 
(under tools) controls whether this one is displayed.

This option isn't really a search per se, but rather, limits the files 
shown based on what's typed in the filter bar.  It's a literal "filename 
includes" without regex or wildcards of any sort, which is rather 
limiting, but I suppose less confusing to those who aren't familiar with 
either regex or shell style wildcards.  So you can type .mp3 for example, 
to show all the files in the current directory with mp3 in the name, 
instead of all files of every type.  Or type a simple . to display all 
files with a . in the name.

This one should be working.  If you typed in some text and the display 
didn't change immediately to limit the displayed files to those including 
the typed text... you're seeing a bug.  If you're running an older 
version, I'd encourage you to upgrade, or file a bug with your 
distribution.  If you're already running 4.5, please do file a bug.  (Of 
course, preferably do a search to see if a similar one has already been 
filed, before filing your own, as we want our devs aware of the problem, 
but working on fixing it, not on marking a hundred duplicates of the same 
bug as dups! =:^)

-- 
Duncan - List replies preferred.   No HTML msgs.
"Every nonfree program has a lord, a master --
and if you use the program, he is your master."  Richard Stallman

___________________________________________________
This message is from the kde mailing list.
Account management:  https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/kde.
Archives: http://lists.kde.org/.
More info: http://www.kde.org/faq.html.