Default searches in Wiley Online Library and how not to help

We recently bought some oBooks from Wiley (do other companies call online ebooks obooks?).

One of these is “Enabling learning in nursing and midwifery practice” – a popular text with our users (in paper form – look forward to seeing if they use the oBook).

Sorting out the linking for this item I tried to retrieve it on Wiley Online Library.

I searched for – enabling learning nursing – seems a fair search to me.

Result – “No results found for: enabling learning nursing.”

A search for – enabling learning – works fine.

A search for – enabling learning in – works fine to.

Clearly this is an issue.  Being a helpful customer I report this via the online form spelling out the series of search strings, location of search and so on.

Response – “Please send us screen shots”

This is not a hard to replicate fault – I have replicated it several times to check it really was an issue before logging it.  I click the link to update the enquiry – it fails.

I start a new enquiry (I am a helpful and determined customer) including the reference from last time and spend quality time preparing a document that includes all the screen shots you might want to see.

Response – ” Thank you for your reply and screen shots to 120117-000375

You may use the “Advanced Search” functions to search for the journal you are interested of.

Attached is the User Guide for your reference in using Advanced Search function.

Hope this information helps.”

So a report that your main front page search function is at some level broken draws the suggestion I need to read the manual and /or use an alternative search option?  Of course the link to respond to the enquiry fails so I cannot easily continue the discussion but why bother?

Google instant and search confidence

This post is an excuse to give props to a lovely, visual analysis of Google Instant and its early impact on how people search. The author found that nine out of the eleven sites analysed had increases in usage of 6-7+ word terms. The data bore this out- there were decreases in shorter, 2-3 word search phrases.

Does having several similar phrases flash up as soon as you enter text into Google (the purpose of Google Instant) act as a prompt or encouragement to lengthen your search phrase? I think it does, simply for the reason that I find it comforting to know that a series of word exists as a bona fide phrase and that I’m not typing in a bunch of gibberish (which does occasionally happen). I bet some people find it annoying and will plead with Google to give us an option to turn it off. Seriously- if it starts to maybe seem a bit irritating at this point (which it does to me), it will be agony after a few months. I realise it can’t be avoided by using the search bar embedded in Safari at least…

Speaking of presumed pleading- Gmail now gives us the option to not show emails as threads. Good news for some, but I’ve gotten used to it.