Search algorithm?

[eadams Profile]

Two questions:

1. I am having trouble trying to figure out how the gallery search works. I created a local test effect called Test eve cartoon with blotchy frame and expected to be able to find it in the Effects Gallery if I enter "Test eve" in the search field. Instead, I get page 1 of 369 pages and none of the effects (at least on the first couple of pages) have "Test" or "eve" in their names. I can only find my local effect if I search for the entire name. Is there a reason for this?

2. Is it possible to display only local effects?

[admin]

Yes, currently the search algorithm only searches for the entire name. You're not the first person to want to search on substrings, so it's something we may add in the future. If you want to be able to find it using other words you have to tag it with those other words. There is a quicker way to find effects you've created which doesn't involve loading the gallery, and that's hovering over the Favorites button on the right, where you should see all effects you've uploaded.

Tony

[eadams Profile]

Thank you for the tip about tagging the effect. Is it possible to change the name of a published local effect or add tags after publishing?

[admin]

The name is currently fixed at the time of creation, but you can add tags to any effect at any point. To add a tag you must have enabled the ratings in the settings menu. Then to tag an effect, hover over where it says Rate on the left of the stars in the effect controls. That will create a button where you can add a tag.

Tony

[eadams Profile]

Great! It wasn't obvious to me that clicking on the word Rate would let me enter a tag, but it works perfectly! Thank you!

[eadams Profile]

I have been successful in adding tags to local effects that I have published, but not on effects published by others in the public library. I can hover over a public effect in the gallery and click on the words "Rate effect" to make the dialog box appear that lets me tag the effect, but when I search the gallery for the tag I entered I get zero search results.

Is it at all possible to add searchable (local) tags to public effects?

[admin]

Ratings and tags only take affect after they have been processed by our server, which is why they don't appear immediately. You have to Update Galleries, then they get processed, which may take some time, then you need to download the result by doing Update Galleries.

Tony

[eadams Profile]

Hmmm... it sounds like the tags I give a public effect in this way will be stored on the server and will be available to all. I was hoping that the tags that I give a public effect would be stored locally only to be used by me. I think this would be a handy feature to have, especially since users may want to tag effects in their own mother tongue. Also, my tagging may not make sense to other users, even in English. I hope there will be another version of SPE upcoming and that the search capability will be changed to be more usable.

[admin]

Hi eadams,

The tags you give are not really that visible, and there's no limit to how many can be added. So feel free to tag things with whatever you like in whatever language you like, and rest assured that unless people are searching on those specific tags, it's not going to make any difference to them. It's actually a good thing to have as many tags as possible. Even if they don't make sense to most people, if anyone else thinks the way you, then they are going to delighted to discover effects tagged using unusual words!

Tony

[eadams Profile]

Tony wrote: Ratings and tags only take affect after they have been processed by our server, which is why they don't appear immediately. You have to Update Galleries, then they get processed, which may take some time, then you need to download the result by doing Update Galleries.

I still haven't been able to add my own tags to public effects. I understand that tags I add have to be uploaded to the server (via Update Galleries) and then I need to update my gallery (via Update Galleries) to be able to see the changes made on the server.

However, when I add a tag an effect by clicking on the words Rate Effect on the pop-up window that appears when I hover over an effect in the gallery and entering a tag in the Tag this effect dialog box, I am unable to update the Gallery because this option is greyed out in the File menu.

Sometimes, the Update Galleries option is available to me, but (maybe by coincidence) it never seems to be available when I come across a public effect that I would like to tag. The result is, I am unable to find the effects I like again.

I am enclosing a screenshot of how I am adding tags to the effects. Perhaps I am doing something wrong.

screenshot effect gallery tagging.JPG (89.93 KiB) Viewed 9344 times