# Re: search is broken **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [March 18, 2008, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744 "2008-03-18T04:55:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![spayced](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc29f/32.png) [@spayced](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spayced)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/1 "2008-03-18T04:55:37Z")
You don’t have to make your own search. It turns out Google has already made one! Users can still search the strait dope by using the ‘site:’ tag on google search. The syntax is “site:siteyouwanttosearch.com termyourelookingfor” For example putting “site:straightdope.com cats” into google will search only inside the domain [straightdope.com](http://straightdope.com) for the term ‘cats.’ It works quite well, gl. ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/2 "2008-03-18T05:17:32Z")
I thought that the Google search spiders weren’t supposed to crawl the boards for search indexing. Also, when I try this, searching for my own username, I don’t get any hits at all, even though I’m sure I’ve posted once or twice. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/3 "2008-03-18T11:14:54Z")
I entered the following search on google: \*\*[site:boards.straightdope.com democrats](http://www.google.com/search?num=100&hl=en&safe=off&rlz=1T4DKUS_enUS212US212&q=+site%3Aboards.straightdope.com+democrats&btnG=Search) \*\* It got no hits. Case closed. ---
**Author:** ![gardentraveler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gardentraveler/32/3576_2.png) [@gardentraveler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gardentraveler)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/4 "2008-03-18T11:19:10Z")
When you enter: site:straightdope.com cats, the results all come from the main page (column, mailbag), not from the boards. ---
**Author:** ![BJMoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@BJMoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BJMoose)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/5 "2008-03-18T16:01:40Z")
Reminds me of something: when the Board signed up with GoogleAds, I thought TPTB said Google’s crawlbots would then be allowed to roam the forums. Obviously, that hasn’t happened. Was my impression mistaken, or was there a change of plan? I’d search for the thread on the subject, but . . . . ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/6 "2008-03-18T16:29:23Z")
[QUOTE=BJMoose] Was my impression mistaken, or was there a change of plan? [/QUOTE] You were mistaken. There was never a proposal to open the boards to bots. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/7 "2008-03-18T16:47:31Z")
[QUOTE=BJMoose] Reminds me of something: when the Board signed up with GoogleAds, I thought TPTB said Google’s crawlbots would then be allowed to roam the forums. Obviously, that hasn’t happened. Was my impression mistaken, or was there a change of plan? I’d search for the thread on the subject, but . . . . [/QUOTE] As I recall, the googlebots did crawl and archive the threads, but of course the dopers went into a tizzy not unlike the recent brouhaha over banner ads. TPTB apologized and made Google stop. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/8 "2008-03-18T18:07:44Z")
[QUOTE=Inner Stickler] As I recall, the googlebots did crawl and archive the threads, but of course the dopers went into a tizzy not unlike the recent brouhaha over banner ads. TPTB apologized and made Google stop. [/QUOTE] I don’t much care one way or the other but what is the problem with it? Does it slow down the board more? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/9 "2008-03-18T18:20:28Z")
[QUOTE=Loach] I don’t much care one way or the other but what is the problem with it? Does it slow down the board more? [/QUOTE] As I recall, there was a belief it slowed the boards down and some posters felt it violated their privacy. I don’t quite appreciate it, but they did not want their posts to be that public. I think in the end that it has hurt the board as Google is the #1 portal to the web at this point and most of the SDMB content is invisible. A little shows up in places through sites like [boardreader.com](http://boardreader.com) ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/10 "2008-03-18T18:31:37Z")
[QUOTE=Loach] I don’t much care one way or the other but what is the problem with it? Does it slow down the board more? [/QUOTE] A perk of membership is supposed to be access to searching the archive. The googlebots made searching via google possible and upset everyone who wanted the search to stay members-only. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2008, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-search-is-broken/441744/11 "2008-03-19T23:01:14Z")
[QUOTE=Fear Itself] I entered the following search on google: \*\*[site:boards.straightdope.com democrats](http://www.google.com/search?num=100&hl=en&safe=off&rlz=1T4DKUS_enUS212US212&q=+site%3Aboards.straightdope.com+democrats&btnG=Search) \*\* It got no hits. Case closed. [/QUOTE] I searched [BoardReader](http://boardreader.com/index.php?a=a&x=1) for democrats and got [1600 hits](http://boardreader.com/s/democrats.html?d=1197936000&b=0&extended_search=1&q1=democrats&dateSwitch=1197936000&from=12%2F18%2F2007&st=straightdope.com). Remember to put **[straightdope.com](http://straightdope.com)** in the site/domain field.