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Search Service: Difference between revisions
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== Background == | == Background == | ||
=== Basic Issues === | |||
There are a couple of basic usability issues with the Firefox search box: it is not necessarily obvious to an IE user what it does (aside from the search engine logo) and how to use it, and it is often too narrow for the sort of queries that users type in. | |||
=== Back Ends === | |||
Firefox 1.0 and 1.5 feature several different systems for performing internet searches: | Firefox 1.0 and 1.5 feature several different systems for performing internet searches: | ||
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These individual solutions have their pros and cons. The toolbar is useful but has some peripheral usability bugs, the search plugins are stored in the application directory and there is no easy way for the user to manage the engines they have installed. | These individual solutions have their pros and cons. The toolbar is useful but has some peripheral usability bugs, the search plugins are stored in the application directory and there is no easy way for the user to manage the engines they have installed. | ||
All of these search systems use different back ends making them difficult to configure when engine queries or parameters change, and configuration for business reasons is somewhat tricky. Adding new engines with subsequent releases is somewhat simple though, since each engine that shows up in the toolbar menu is a separate file. | All of these search systems use different back ends making them difficult to configure when engine queries or parameters change, and configuration for business reasons is somewhat tricky. Adding new engines with subsequent releases is somewhat simple though, since each engine that shows up in the toolbar menu is a separate file. | ||
=== Keywords === | |||
The Smart Keyword feature is basically undiscoverable, despite its extreme utility. | |||
== Use Cases == | == Use Cases == | ||