Clearer search fields

Request: Searching is probably my biggest source of “user errors,” which suggests to me that the UI can be improved. For me, the very fast search in EF is one of its key features.

One issue is that if you set EF to search a particular field, there is no visual feedback of the field being searched. The next time I search, I usually assume I am doing an “Anywhere” search. I notice that in iTunes, when you select to search only on Albums, the search box label now says “Search on Albums”. This would seem easy to do in EF, as well.

Boolean searches would be nice, especially combining date fields. I’m sure that’s been discussed.

Third, sometimes I don’t notice that I have search text when I come back to EF after working in another application, and click on a different folder. The usual result is that zero or a few documents show up, and I realize something is wrong. Eventually I figure out the problem. I’m not sure how to improve the UI on this. Perhaps, under “relevant circumstances” highlight the search text in some way, such as color or flashing it once. This would be a subtle reminder. “Relevant circumstances” are something like: selecting a different folder more than 60 seconds after doing a search, while not changing or erasing the search text.

Fourth, I’m still tripped up by the non-use of children when searching parent folders. Only the exact folder selected is searched, not its children. Perhaps I have to experiment with Tags more, but I find them no substitute for folders.

Thanks, love the program. Maybe I will start using it for Mail archiving, as I find that Apple Mail is slowing down with a mere 500 messages. (Compared with Eudora, which handles 10 years of mail without difficulty.)

I don’t think that’s a valid assumption, since iTunes doesn’t use the OS’s standard toolbar, but I agree that it’s a good idea. I’ll see what I can do.

Currently you can do Boolean searches using the Anywhere content and tags. I’d like to expand this to more fields.

In 1.2.4 I added an indicator to tell you if the records list is empty because there are no search results. Also, the title bar tells you if a search is in effect. I’m not sure I like the flashing idea, but perhaps it would help to change the search field label, like in iTunes.

EagleFiler 1.3 shows the search scope in the search field’s label, so that you can see what you’re searching even though the search field itself is filled with the query.

EagleFiler 1.4 shows the records list in yellow if it’s empty due to a search that found no matches.