Given the current search requirement of a minimimum three-character text, how can one search for foreign names (like Chinese names)? A salient example is when one searches the name of a dancer who use their Chinese names (ex: Yue, Li, etc.) professionally. So if the dancer's name is, say, Yue Li, the search engine issues an error message that at least one of the words contains three or less characters. Using wildcards broadens the search result, which may prove inefficient if too many hits are found; and in the example 'Yue Li', the system finds error with the second word which only contains two characters.

Are there advanced search filters such "Search using exact phrase typed" or "Search using all words (not necessarily in the order typed)"?

Searches for less than three characters can return thousands of hits and can use system resources too heavily, since most of the words are common, like "of" and "to," and "in" that appear in almost every post. Like most resource considerations, it is a trade-off.

There is a thread in this forum called Help and Search. While the instructions were written on the last version of the software, they should be helpful. The "Advanced Search Help" link will show options for specifying the search criteria.

The search engine in this discussion board can be improved by adding a feature that allows for an exact phrase search. Using the example, Yue Li, if an advanced search filter allows for an exact phrase search, then the engine will be able to search for "Yue Li" rather than the existing "Yue" + "Li". Google (Internet) offers a number of ways to filter search results through its advanced search, as do many intranet search engines.

agnes, have you tried More Options? It takes a couple clicks to get there, but it also offers Advanced Usage tips -- using "+" and wildcards, e.g.

I agree, it's really frustrating to search for a two-letter term, where you can't even add the *.

If you follow the "Advanced Usage Help" link, you will see that this is the last option.