Finding authors in these postings

The Search facility gives you the chance to find postings on subject material, is there a similar operation for finding an author?

Regards

Brian

Hi Brian

I just clicked on your "1391 forum posts" and saw a list of all the subjects you have posted on.

Brian

EDIT:  Unfortunately this requires me to first find one of your posts, so not that good a solution.

Edited By Brian G on 20/02/2018 09:18:58

You could try using google site search, if you know the name and part of the content of the posting.

1. Go to Google.com.
2. Enter "site:www.model-engineer.co.uk" search term into the search box.
3. Refine your search.

For example:

site:www.model-engineer.co.uk copper

brings up the recent topic "Broken tap in a copper boiler" amongst many others. You'll have to be quick, though, as I believe the facility is being completely withdrawn on 1st April 2018 and is alledgedly unsupported right now.

John H

Hello Brian and John,

I am looking for the solution for when you know the individual has written something, but you can't remember what it was, all you know is the name of the author.

So I'm afraid your suggestions are not what I'm looking for. Thank you all the same

Brian

If I recall correctly what is being withdrawn is the ability to have a google search box on a designated website that only returns search results for that particular site and no others.

The option for 'site:uri' + search term within google itself will remain

The search term Martin gave works in Bing as well Brian. Second link in "site: www.model-engineer.co.uk "Brian Wood" brought up the same page as clicking under your name. Interestingly the same thing didn't happen with my name, although individual postings appeared. I expect this is because nobody had ever searched for my postings, so there hadn't been a page to crawl.

It is definitely a workable solution even if you only remember part of the name, as clicking on the link to any of a member's postings brings up a forum page with links to "x forum posts" and "y photos".

Brian

Hello Brian,

Please bear with me, I am only a simple soul when it comes to such things! I fail to see why I can't look for an author who posts on our forum without having to ask for that information by way of the material they have posted to do so.

So just for me please, in words on one syllable, what do I need to do to say, find me?

Regards

Brian

- Go to the Model Engineer Home Page
- Scroll about 1/3 of the way down to "Search the Model Engineer Website"
- Enter "Brian Wood" in the search box
- Make sure "only search the Model Engineer website" box is checked.
- Click on "Google Search"

Thank you Bandersnatch,

Only partial success really for my specific request I'm afraid, I would like to send a Personal Message to the individual who I am quite sure has posted things here on the Forum pages. Since I can't remember what topics he posted on I am stuck in my quest.

The route you have outlined, which works of course, means a long winded approach via the magazine Editor to see if my target he would be amenable to contact by some means like snail mail. It puts Neil to trouble and takes any immediacy out of the chance of a contact

Thank you for the trouble you have taken, all the way from Canada too!

Kind regards

Brian

With this software there is no easy way to do it as you can on other forums where they have a list of members and a way to view their posts, make contact etc.

Not sure I really follow, Brian. If the search turns up any one of their postings, then if you go to that message and click on the "Message member" just below the message, doesn't that do what you want it to?

And if you are looking for a particular message from from that member, if, again, you go to any one of their postings and click on the "xxx Forum Posts" bit under their name, it will give you a complete listing of their messages.

If they have posted a lot, that list might be extensive, in which case it might be better to include in the original search (as in my previous post) some indication(s) of the topic in addition to the name. For example:

Brian Wood Authors

plus any other terms that might narrow the search... and see if you can get to the thread you are looking for more directly.

Hello Bandersnatch,

Jason [thank you] has confirmed my suspicions, the software for this forum is not configured appropriately.

It will happily find a posting using the keywords " Gears made of putty" as a silly example but it is incapable of telling me who put the posting out on the forum in the first place, and that was the specific search result I was seeking. If I put Bandersnatch into the keywords now, it is unable to provide any information.

So, thank you again for your interest and suggestions. Time for us to retire hurt I feel and do something more productive.

Pity though

Brian

From discussions with Brian I can't find the person as a member unless they use a nick name that we don't know about so would have been very hard to find though his name does crop up as a contributor to MEW

.

"they use a nick name that we don't know about"

... would appear to be the only rational explanation. E&OE

MichaelG.

.

At the risk of labouring this, Brian

If I put the word Bandersnatch into the search box on the home page [*]

as Bandersnatch explained; it returns an exhaustive list.

MichaelG.

.

[*] Home Page = http://www.model-engineer.co.uk

Edited By Michael Gilligan on 21/02/2018 13:07:31

Edited By Brian Wood on 21/02/2018 14:08:02

Final word (some hope).

The search box on the main page will help you find all POSTS by a forum member, they don't have to be published in the magazines.

Once you have found a post you can PM the individual.

Neil

Ah, not so fast Moriarty!

Putting Neil Wyatt into the keywords on the main forum page finds Neil's thread on 63 tooth gearing for mini lathes

Putting my name in and I am not found, neither is JasonB [with the spelling that way too] and he has a vast number of postings like you

So, is this a special condition that applies only to the Head Honcho?!!!

Or, as I suspect in my ignorance, I am using the wrong box or something. Heading off now for the darkened room!

Regards Brian

Hello Michael,

Oh yes, that is the box I filled in and with almost 1400 posts it can't find me, nor Jason with over 12,000 posts

Now this might just be a glitch with my computer, I can attach photos to items I am selling, but try and do the same to a posting and the magic send button is off screen somewhere.

I think it is definitely time to fill the grave now!

Kind regards

Brian

Edited By Brian Wood on 21/02/2018 15:58:56