Should searching a sub-site make all search boxes go to the subsite?

February 28, 2015 9:36 AM

Here's how I inevitably search Ask Metafilter:

1. Click on "AskMeFi".
2. Type a search in the search box.
3. Realize I want to search for something else.
4. Type a search in the top right (original) search box.
5. Realize I've searched MetaFilter because I used the wrong box.

I'd like it if, after a sub-site search, all the search boxes on the results page defaulted to the original sub-site. Is this a niche personal problem, or do other folks think this might be cool and useful?

posted by Going To Maine to Feature Requests at 9:36 AM (13 comments total)

Thanks for the suggestion, we'll give this some thought. Typically we'd like the header and footer search fields to behave consistently wherever you use it. I can see that it's a hassle to type your search into the wrong field, but I'm not sure it's worth shifting around the confusion with an inconsistency like that.
posted by pb (staff) at 9:43 AM on February 28, 2015

Hum. Well, two other options (just to keep on sticking my oar in) would be:

• Have a dropdown on the search box itself and then just change the setting based on the sub-site searched.
• Have a dedicated search landing page for each subsite, with color scheme adjusted accordingly

But I wouldn't say that I've put a lot of thought into the usability ramifications of these choices.posted by Going To Maine at 9:50 AM on February 28, 2015

Have a dedicated search landing page for each subsite, with color scheme adjusted accordingly.

We do this for Popular and About pages in the modern theme. I think that would work better than changing the search behavior or adding a menu in the limited space available.

You would still run into this wrong search form problem when you select "all sites". So even subsite results pages wouldn't eliminate it completely.
posted by pb (staff) at 9:59 AM on February 28, 2015

Have a dedicated search landing page for each subsite, with color scheme adjusted accordingly

That's how I'd expect it to work (or at least switch the style on the landing page appropriately). Doing a search in AskMeFi gives you a results page that defaults to results in AskMeFi, but with a MetaFilter-blue background. It would seem logical for search results from each subsite to use that subsite's theme.

As for the top-right search box... if it's going to do something different from the search box above the results, then that's a usability problem, because there's nothing to explain the difference. As it is, the top-right search on the results page defaults to MetaFilter proper, while the one above the search results reflects the subsite where the original search was performed. If they're going to be different, then that really needs to be presented in a usable way. Colour is used very effectively on the site to differentiate the various subsites, so maybe the most obvious solution would be:

(1) Colour the results page to match the subsite being searched
and
(2) Make all search boxes search the subsite implied by the background colour of the page.
posted by pipeski at 10:00 AM on February 28, 2015 [13 favorites]

This happens to me constantly. Not a huge problem, obviously, but if it was an easy fix, it would definitely improve my site experience.
posted by pretentious illiterate at 11:54 AM on February 28, 2015 [1 favorite]

Yes, not a huge deal, but what Going to Maine describes is something that happens to me relatively frequently too. I like pipeski's solutions.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 12:17 PM on February 28, 2015 [1 favorite]

I like pipeski's solution as well.
posted by arcticseal at 12:20 PM on February 28, 2015 [1 favorite]

(1) Colour the results page to match the subsite being searched
and
(2) Make all search boxes search the subsite implied by the background colour of the page.

and, (3) for the "Search all sites" problem mentioned by pb, have a brand-new color landing page just for "all sites" searches, on which subsequent searches remain set at "all sites".
posted by beagle at 2:51 PM on February 28, 2015

I appreciate the background color suggestion, but a lot of people prefer to read MetaFilter with a white background. Even before the modern theme, a larger than you might think number of people used the plain theme. I think changing the background color for search results pages only is a non-starter.

That doesn't mean we can't move search results to the various subsites and have the pages pick up the subsite's themes there. I just don't think we can keep the existing search in place and change the background colors for people.
posted by pb (staff) at 2:57 PM on February 28, 2015

I think changing the background color for search results pages only is a non-starter.

Agreed. I could see some interesting changes happening with search to make it more intuitive, but changing themes isn't the way to go about it. White background 4 lyfe!
posted by jessamyn (retired) at 6:22 AM on March 1, 2015

If I were in charge, I would solve this problem by removing the top right search option on the search landing page. The search bar in the body of the landing page already respects your entry point and filters your results appropriately. My guess is that this is the desired behavior for the overwhelming majority of re-searchers.

If there's only one way to search, there won't be any need to think of a solution to distinguish between the search field that works as you expect and the one that doesn't.
posted by Kwine at 7:02 AM on March 1, 2015 [2 favorites]

A problem that goes hand-in-hand with this is that the logical progression is:

1) Search AskMetafilter using the search box at the top of AskMetafilter.
2) Scroll through results and see that your question hasn't been asked before, decide to post it.
3) Click "New Post," begin typing.

At which point you've just started composing a post that will show up on the front page of Metafilter, rather that a question that will appear in AskMetafilter. If you're not paying attention, or if you're not an every-day user, it's a really easy mistake to make.
posted by mudpuppie at 8:52 AM on March 1, 2015 [3 favorites]

I think changing the background color for search results pages only is a non-starter.

Agreed, I think we're just talking about the header colors.
posted by beagle at 4:47 AM on March 2, 2015