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Bug 152987 - help system lacks search function
help system lacks search function
Status: RESOLVED OBSOLETE
Product: GIMP-manual
Classification: Other
Component: General
unspecified
Other All
: Low enhancement
: ---
Assigned To: Róman Joost
GIMP Bugs
: 652707 704708 724557 729035 (view as bug list)
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
 
Reported: 2004-09-18 10:21 UTC by postmodern
Modified: 2018-05-24 10:25 UTC
See Also:
GNOME target: ---
GNOME version: ---



Description postmodern 2004-09-18 10:21:07 UTC
The help system needs a search function so that users can quickly query
information. Possibly find-as-you-type also.
Comment 1 Sven Neumann 2004-09-18 11:29:03 UTC
Would probably be nice but I don't think it's worth the effort. We should simply
link to Google Search instead.
Comment 2 Róman Joost 2006-01-10 14:02:58 UTC
I added a Google Search form on the top of our project page at: http://docs.gimp.org. Though not as good as a search functionality for the help browser, but better than nothing. Hope Google reindexes our pages ASAP, because the current search results link to old pages.
Comment 3 Sven Neumann 2007-01-28 11:38:44 UTC
At some point it would be nice to have this functionality in the help browser plug-in. But to make that possible, we would probably have to add some sort of index to the user manual.
Comment 4 cobberas63 2011-05-21 23:30:19 UTC
Could you please make the help system available as a PDF, so that it's searchable?
Comment 5 Michael Schumacher 2011-06-16 10:22:24 UTC
*** Bug 652707 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 6 Dave 2011-06-25 04:38:20 UTC
I'd like to add my support for the implementation of a search feature.

Why?

Recently I have just begun assisting a relatively new Linux user with the GIMP, who in this case is very familiar with *cough* Photoshop.

I prefer a 'hands off approach' as much as possible, as I feel it's best for the person I'm helping.

A situation occured whereby the 'student' as it were, needed to access the Help Browser for the first time. 

They commented on the lack of a search feature (the first item they looked for), and that the lack of such is not quote, "not user friendly at all".

The 'problem' was then further excacerbated by the fact that the order of the items in the Help browser are not in a logical sequence, thus requiring additional time to find the necessary information. Not to mention causing a degree of frustration with the student.

They appear in the following order, from top to bottom.

Bibliography
(Index)
III. Function Reference
Preface
II. How do I Become a GIMP Wizard?
A. GIMP History
B. Reporting Bugs and Requesting Enhancements
C. GNU Free Documentation License
I. Getting Started.

As opposed to a more ordered and rational sequence, such as

Preface
I. Getting Started
II. How do I Become a GIMP Wizard?
III. Function Reference
Appendices (suggestion)
A. GIMP History
B. Reporting Bugs and Requesting Enhancements
C. GNU Free Documentation License
Bibliography
(Index)

Further with regard to Sven Nuemanns comment "Would probably be nice but I don't think it's worth the effort. We should simply link to Google Search instead."

I would like to say that an 'accessable', Help Browser, is vital to people new to any application, not just the GIMP.

Also that providing a link to Google Search, will not be as useful to people in,

a) low bandwidth environments or,
b) working from a laptop while in transit, i.e. on a train

Cheers.
Comment 7 Ulf-D. Ehlert 2011-06-28 18:31:17 UTC
(In reply to comment #6)
> I'd like to add my support for the implementation of a search feature.

If you have a working solution, just add a patch (or an tar 
archive, or what ever ...) as attachment.

> The 'problem' was then further excacerbated by the fact that the order of the
> items in the Help browser are not in a logical sequence, [...]

Yes, this is an (old) bug in GIMP's helpbrowser code. I have
noticed it too (hmm, some years ago, I think...) and have created 
a simple patch to fix it -- but I forgot to file a bug report and
to provide the bug fix. :-|
I'll do it ... ah, soon.
Comment 8 Marco Ciampa 2013-11-04 07:45:33 UTC
*** Bug 704708 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 9 andré 2014-01-25 00:00:06 UTC
(I'm using Gimp 2.8 on Mageia / Linux, the current version.)
The lack of a search function is a serious weakness of Gimp.
Even though I am fairly familiar with Gimp, I ran into a problem recently that totally blocked me, and took a few days to solve.
I later discovered that a page in the help manual had the solution.  Unfortunately, it wasn't in the index at the end, so I had to try searching blindly on the internet before encountering someone on IRC who, after almost half an hour of discussion, zoned in on my problem, and quickly provided the solution.  (The symptoms were obscure.)
An adequate search function in Gimp would have produced the solution (after a few tries with different key words) in less than 5 minutes.

If I weren't already fairly familiar with Gimp, I would have dumped Gimp for almost anything else.

Most of the problems I encounter are actually bugs in Gimp, but many have workarounds in the help file.
An adequate search would help identify such bugs, and hopefully lead to fixing them.
Others are largely a matter of confusing terminology.  A search function (combined with a somewhat improved glossary) would solve these.

There are a number of other issues in Gimp for which it took considerable time to find how to solve, usually due to a lack of a search function.
Many may be a matter of undocumented configuration options, a lack much easier to notice with an adequate search function.)

As for the solution in general terms :
1) search for all occurences of entered word(s) in the titles of each section, as well as the glossaries.
2) sort and display the titles for selection
3) display the section selected, leaving the selection list available for other selections.

More or less how most help search functions in applications seem to work.
(Sorry, but I'm not aware of the specific routines available.)

BTW, the priority should be "High", or at least "Normal".
It is important to avoid being blocked in using Gimp, there is no easy workaround, and it would be frequently used (if available).
All factors that say it should be more important than "Normal", and most certainly not "low".
Comment 10 Róman Joost 2014-02-19 04:21:27 UTC
*** Bug 724557 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 11 Róman Joost 2015-01-08 10:42:12 UTC
*** Bug 729035 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 12 Michael Schumacher 2017-02-28 20:44:30 UTC
qa contact change to bugs@gimp.org
Comment 13 GNOME Infrastructure Team 2018-05-24 10:25:46 UTC
-- GitLab Migration Automatic Message --

This bug has been migrated to GNOME's GitLab instance and has been closed from further activity.

You can subscribe and participate further through the new bug through this link to our GitLab instance: https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp-help-2/issues/3.