Tips on searching

[zonianbrat]

I was reading some of the posts that have been taking place and things appear to be getting pretty nasty around here. I personally really like this forum i am on it throughout the day at work and sometimes at night when i a at home.. I understand people getting irritated because newer members like myself ask questions that have been asked before. Please remember that we are new and have not seen some of these questions answered before. I realize there is a search function and i do use it. but sometimes it does not answer that questions that i have specifically. So if i have made anybody mad for the questions that i have asked in the past sorry. The last thing i want to do is make any of you mad. I really like talking about my truck with other people who share the same joys of owning a pathy. Alll of you given me good advice and i would like to keep it that way. If i am not using the search function correctly i am open to somebody telling me how to use it to its full potential. So all in all i hope to keep talking to you guys on this forum. Oh and thanks for the tips for far I owe you guys a beer for sure...

[94extreme]

you're welcome and enjoy. at least you try.. that's all we ask for. check this thread out for some ideas how to search:

 

http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=7202&hl=

[vengeful]

There's a thread with a lot of great suggestions on how to use the search function in the New Members forum....

 

Link: http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=7202

 

However, the search function can only be as good as the posts it is searching. Keyworks are KEY! If everyone on the forums adopted these following suggestions, the search function's capabilities would drastically improve, and we wouldn't be getting 10 tire posts a week, for example.

 

1.) Title your thread properly. Use keywords in your title that are related to your post. If your post is about a Starter Problem, don't title it "Big Problem - need help fast!" As a matter of fact, adding "Help!" or "Need Help Fast!" to your title is pointless, because this is one of the fastest, most helpful boards out there. You can drop that part, and that will allow you more space in your title to more accurately describe your thread. Here's an example of a good title. "1993 No Start Issue - Starter? Ignition?" That title tells readers the year of your truck, what is going on, and what you think it may be and that you're looking for help and input from the other members of the board. Also, then when someone 3 months down the road searches for "No Start Issue," your thread, which already probably has all of his questions answered, will come up right on top. Also, try to spell the words in your title correctly, the search function won't come up with Satrter when you search for Starter. Also, titles such as "New Member with Questions!" in The Garage will come up empty in the search.

 

2.) If a subject has been covered, and there's a thread about it that has been inactive for a few weeks at least, and it's related to your problem, but your specific questions haven't been answered, go ahead and post your questions IN THAT THREAD.

 

3.) Don't cross post. That is a sure-fire way to get both of your threads locked.

 

4.) Be sure to post it in the correct forum! The 2005+ forum won't be of much help if you have a problem with your WD21.

 

5.) Be sure there is some way for people to know what your Pathy is, whether it be in your sig, or in the first couple lines of your post. Most people here have a very wide, general knowledge of Pathfinders, but there are specifics to each model that are different between an XE, SE, and LE and a 4x4 and a 2WD. Also, be sure to mention whether it's an Auto or Manual. There are quite a few differences, especially if your question is mechanical or drivetrain related.

 

6.) DON'T TYPE IN ALL CAPS. It's very hard to read, and most people (myself included) will just skip over your post. Most of the regular members here read every post eventually; you do not need to needlessly draw attention to your post by putting 15 exclamation marks at the end of your title, or making your title in all caps.

 

7.) Yes, as has been said a bazillion times, please do search before posting. However, you don't need to spend 3 hours searching the forums for what you're looking for. If you haven't found what you're looking for in the first several pages of search results, and you've gone through the first 3 pages of General Forums, The Garage, and the corresponding Model Year forums and haven't found something related, go ahead and post a new thread with your question.

 

8.) As always, the moderators and admins are always here to help you. If you have a problem, question or concern, feel free to contact any of us via PM.

 

9.) Most importantly, do not air dirty laundry in public. Yes, that includes you Luker!

[headpeace]

I'll second that, when I came around I'm sure I asked shiite that had already been asked and answered, but I still got great advice thanks to this forum, its always new to a noobie, Search is a great tool, I still use it as often as possible, sometimes with great rewards sometimes not. Either way 99.9% of the people here do actually try to help, I won't comment on why this thread even started, but this is a great place for info on our pathy's

[zonianbrat]

Awesome that is what i needed I will take all the advice and try to keep this forum going smoothly. thanks.

[5523Pathfinder]

It really suprises me how some people can get so upset about helping other people. I joined this forum about 2 1/2 months ago and I have really enjoyed it. I work at a dealership and I get asked the same questions over and over all the time. But, I enjoy people getting excited about thier nissans. I searched different forums for almost a year before I modified my pathy. Then its been almost a year since then that i joined a few forums to help pass on knowledge. I am more that happy to give anyone any information that I know or have heard about. I believe thats what we all have in common, we want to help people who are enjoying the same stuff we are. Ok, I threw in my two cents, sorry if I cause any trouble with any questions or answers I have put up. Thanks for listening guys!

[Slick]

I agree with all of the above. We all have one thing (at least) in common as to why we're all here, and this is the BEST site around.

The search function is a little funky, even i struggle with it sometimes as i try to find old topics and stuff, but that's where the poho thread or a quick pm to a mod or other member comes in handy. if you KNOW it's been flogged like a dead horse but can't find it, chances are, ask someone in a pm or in the poho or related topic if they can help find it....

i am lazy, hate using search, but will when i know it's been covered and the issue answered before......... and when all else fails........ ASK! -bounce- -bounce-

 

i think the particular issue you were "referring" to zonian in your first post here was because that particular person just kept posting new topics which had been recently flogged to death, and a quick search would have pulled up many answers for him, but he chose just to keep posting new topics, and waiting for the suppliers of answers to type it all out again... several times..... which can be very irritating sometimes.. we want to help..... but not answer the same thing 10 times in 2 months. And then when certain comments are made all you get for your troubles is a deleted topic or abuse.

We are all here, equal, and on common ground, and strive to keep it friendly... tempers do flare sometimes, but this is like a big family..... with 2,000+ members, sometimes the kids will argue

[zonianbrat]

I agree with all of the above. We all have one thing (at least) in common as to why we're all here, and this is the BEST site around.

The search function is a little funky, even i struggle with it sometimes as i try to find old topics and stuff, but that's where the poho thread or a quick pm to a mod or other member comes in handy. if you KNOW it's been flogged like a dead horse but can't find it, chances are, ask someone in a pm or in the poho or related topic if they can help find it....

i am lazy, hate using search, but will when i know it's been covered and the issue answered before......... and when all else fails........ ASK! -bounce- -bounce-

 

i think the particular issue you were "referring" to zonian in your first post here was because that particular person just kept posting new topics which had been recently flogged to death, and a quick search would have pulled up many answers for him, but he chose just to keep posting new topics, and waiting for the suppliers of answers to type it all out again... several times..... which can be very irritating sometimes.. we want to help..... but not answer the same thing 10 times in 2 months. And then when certain comments are made all you get for your troubles is a deleted topic or abuse.

We are all here, equal, and on common ground, and strive to keep it friendly... tempers do flare sometimes, but this is like a big family..... with 2,000+ members, sometimes the kids will argue

I think you nailed it right on the head slick. I understand what you are saying about beating something to death. Heck after venge taught me about refining the search i searched a couple of things that were on my mind and bingo it worked like a charm. I am glad we got all this worked out and hopefully there will be no more hatred going on.. i mean what is the point??? btw i dig your truck slick.. the bumper makes it look mean I want one for my r-50...maybe one day first skidplates then sliders....

[Spolar93]

its not that established members dont like answering easy questions, its just when one member repeatly asks questions over and over again about things that are easily answered by 5 minutes witht the search feature. this is an incredible database full of information that hasnt been tapped to its full potential by many members. use it first, and then ask your question.

 

9/10 youre gonna find the answer, and then you can add to that topic and give feedback on the method, or add problems or advice and build on it.

[88pathoffroad]

OK, I shall reiterate on how to use the search feature of this board, then. There is more than one option available to you and by using the search feature correctly you can find most anything you want.

 

1. Click "Search" at the top of the forum.

 

2. Click "More Options" near the bottom of the main text box.

 

3. Enter keywords for what you're looking for on the line at the top-left. If you want performance and gas-mileage tips, try two searches. One for "gas mileage" and one for "engine performance" or "performance". That way if there is a single post about each subject but not any with BOTH in it, you will still get answers one way or another. The only way the search can find things for you is if you can define what you're looking for properly, so check your spelling and make sure you can remember exactly what you need to search for.

 

4. If you remember a certain person posting something that you wanted to read again and you want to search for that, you can enter that user's name onto the "Filter By Member Name" line. That will search through all posts made by that person and return results with any of your keywords in them.

 

5. If there is a specific forum section you want to search in, select it from the menu beneath the keywords line. Otherwise, select "All Forums". Leave the "Search in Child Forums..." button alone, it should be ticked already.

 

6. Choose how far back you want to search using the drop-down menu on the right.

 

7. Choose how you want to sort your results using the drop-down menu.

 

8. Choose how you would like to view the search results, either as the topic of a thread only or as the actual typed text of the person who said it IN that post.

 

9. Click "Search" and stand back! Here you go!!

 

10. Read results, click on threads and start reading.

 

There's more on how to use wildcards and quotes and other symbols to search more accurately, click on the "Advanced Usage Help" and you will get a pop-up window with more options. That's about it. Have fun.

[Precise1]

All good info, but it boggles the mind that it has to be explained... Just play with it a bit and read the help info... It's not rocket science !! Don't people self teach anymore ??

 

B

[dagwoodzz]

My only gripe is I wish you could search all forums with the exception of Off-Topic. I find a lot of my searches will find 2 or 3 topics relative to my search, but about 30 off-topic political debates.

 

Oh well, when searching you get out of it what you put into it. I'm happy