# 60 seconds between searches? For reals? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 28, 2018, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727 "2018-07-28T11:58:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/21 "2018-12-08T04:35:16Z")
… 15 seconds, and we are still here … ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/22 "2018-12-08T06:35:41Z")
Well, now searches just come up with blank pages, whether I’m on mobile or a PC. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/23 "2018-12-08T06:51:29Z")
Thanks again for the reduction in search delay. Now: _ **Please remove the prohibition against “too short” words.** _ Skies are not always blue; short words are not always common. (And even if they were, you already have the 500-hit throttle.) ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/24 "2018-12-10T00:29:34Z")
I’m not seeing any problems with the vB search engine; it brought stuff up fine for me today. You will always get better results searching with Google; here’s how to use it on the SDMB: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=638051](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=638051) As for changing the search criteria so that it works on searches of less than three letters … no can do. The smaller the search criteria, the more oomph it takes from the system and we’re just not that robust to do these small letter searches. Sorry. Jenny your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/25 "2018-12-10T01:16:57Z")
Am I allowed to ask what kind of hardware/system is being used? ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/26 "2018-12-10T01:54:41Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Thanks again for the reduction in search delay. Now: _ **Please remove the prohibition against “too short” words.** _ Skies are not always blue; short words are not always common. (And even if they were, you already have the 500-hit throttle.) It’s not a prohibition, it’s an old vB database issue. It doesn’t set those words for cross reference because some of them are so common they would blow up the database. Don’t know if that’s fixed in later versions. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/27 "2018-12-10T03:58:14Z")
I must say… me, and other DBA’s (Database Administers) are rolling our eyes. Sorry to seem condescending but queries against a database that has proper indexes are the cheapest actions that can be taken. Inserts and deletes can be more expensive because relational integrity has to be checked. But queries are absolutely straight forward and are not a big deal. If they are a big deal… just add the proper indexes and everything is just fine. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/28 "2018-12-10T05:47:41Z")
Why does anyone use the lame native search function here? Just use the Google site search. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/29 "2018-12-10T09:49:19Z")
Since the Search ends after 500 hits anyway, if there are 500+ hits then searching for a 3-letter word should be FASTER than searching for a 10-letter word. But I see now that 4-letter searches (but not 3-letter) are now allowed. Is that new? > [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Why does anyone use the lame native search function here? Just use the Google site search. How do I search for **Tim R. Mortiss** mentioning ‘witchcraft’ WITHOUT getting results where you posted in a thread with ‘witchcraft’ but didn’t mention it yourself? The how-to guide for searching seems to concede the impossibility: “Note that its not possible to find all posts by QED that mention gas.” \*\*\*Most of the searches I do have this form. * * * ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/30 "2018-12-10T14:22:35Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > It’s not a prohibition, it’s an old vB database issue. It doesn’t set those words for cross reference because some of them are so common they would blow up the database. Don’t know if that’s fixed in later versions. It’s not fixed in this version. And we’re not scheduled for an upgrade anytime soon that I’m aware of. Does it work in Google at all? Jenny your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/31 "2018-12-10T14:33:06Z")
> [@K364](#): > > I must say… me, and other DBA’s (Database Administers) are rolling our eyes. Sorry to seem condescending but queries against a database that has proper indexes are the cheapest actions that can be taken. Inserts and deletes can be more expensive because relational integrity has to be checked. But queries are absolutely straight forward and are not a big deal. If they are a big deal… just add the proper indexes and everything is just fine. Well, I don’t know shit about database administration but this particular problem is something I’ve heard about vB search a long time ago. In fact, looking now, it seems that blocking the short words was a patch because it was messing things up. > [@](#): > > **Invalid (Too Short) Search Keyword Remover** > This product removes keywords that are too short and allows a forum search to continue with the remaining valid keywords. > > Normally, if the user searches for a word or words that are shorter than the minimum word length, the search crashes and burns with a not-so-user-friendly warning that they need to enter longer keywords. How is the user supposed to know that instead of searching for “racetrack in phoenix” they must leave out the “in” for it to work? This mod allows the user to search for “racetrack in phoenix” and the word “in” is automatically removed and a note is displayed telling the user what was done. > **[Integration with vBulletin - Invalid (Too Short) Search Keyword Remover -...](https://www.vbulletin.org/forum/showthread.php?t=157133)** > > Integration with vBulletin - Invalid (Too Short) Search Keyword Remover vBulletin 3.6 Add-ons But if you are just rolling your eyes at my explanation of the mechanics of it, that is fair enough because like I said, I’m pretty clueless about it. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/32 "2018-12-10T16:01:54Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > Am I allowed to ask what kind of hardware/system is being used? You’re allowed to ask. You may not be allowed to know the answer. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/33 "2018-12-10T18:12:02Z")
We use a hosting service, so I don’t know if anyone here actually knows what hardware we’re running on. It’s probably a safe bet that we’re on some sort of server farm, maybe as a virtual machine of some sort. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/34 "2018-12-10T18:25:29Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Since the Search ends after 500 hits anyway, if there are 500+ hits then searching for a 3-letter word should be FASTER than searching for a 10-letter word. But I see now that 4-letter searches (but not 3-letter) are now allowed. Is that new? > > How do I search for **Tim R. Mortiss** mentioning ‘witchcraft’ WITHOUT getting results where you posted in a thread with ‘witchcraft’ but didn’t mention it yourself? The how-to guide for searching seems to concede the impossibility: “Note that its not possible to find all posts by QED that mention gas.” \*\*\*Most of the searches I do have this form. > > * * * I’ll concede that point. Not that I’ve ever done that type of a search, but I could see the value of it. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/35 "2018-12-10T18:29:10Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Why does anyone use the lame native search function here? Just use the Google site search. 1. Did you see that link Tuba Diva posted? For those of us not programmers, it’s a nightmare of complexity. > [@](#): > > ``` > SDMB: site:boards.straightdope.com > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com > ATMB: site:boards.straightdope.com +"About This Message Board" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"About This Message Board" > CCC: site:boards.straightdope.com +"Comments on Cecil's Columns" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"Comments on Cecil's Columns" > CSR: site:boards.straightdope.com +"Comments on Staff Reports" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"Comments on Staff Reports" > GQ: site:boards.straightdope.com +"General Questions" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"General Questions" > GD: site:boards.straightdope.com +"Great Debates" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"Great Debates" > CS: site:boards.straightdope.com +"Cafe Society" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"Cafe Society" > TGR: site:boards.straightdope.com +"The Game Room" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"The Game Room" > IMHO: site:boards.straightdope.com +"In My Humble Opinion" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"In My Humble Opinion" > MPSIMS: site:boards.straightdope.com +"Mundane Pointless Stuff I Must Share" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"Mundane Pointless Stuff I Must Share" > The Pit: site:boards.straightdope.com +"The BBQ Pit" > http://www.google.com/search?q=site:boards.straightdope.com %2B"The BBQ Pit" > > ``` 1. I use it mostly for “new posts.” 2. I love the 15 second rule. I never have a problem now. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/36 "2018-12-12T16:19:48Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > > [@snfaulkner](#): > > > > Am I allowed to ask what kind of hardware/system is being used? > > You’re allowed to ask. You may not be allowed to know the answer. Well, technically, he can know then answer, but then… ::cocks pistol:: ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/37 "2018-12-12T19:49:50Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > Am I allowed to ask what kind of hardware/system is being used? Hamsters. Isn’t that in the FAQ? ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2018, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727/38 "2018-12-13T00:31:13Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > 1. I love the 15 second rule. I never have a problem now. I concur wholeheartedly. Kudos! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/60-seconds-between-searches-for-reals/818727.md?page=1)