Configuring search settings

Edit Distance

Edit distance is defined as an insertion, deletion, substitution, or transposition of characters. Also known as Fuzzy Searches, this field controls the tolerance of the search engine for misspelled search keywords.

If the keyword is administrator, for example, then a strict setting would require that a user spell the word correctly.

A balanced setting allows for spelling variations of up to one edit distance. Using the same example, administrator might be spelled this way:

• adminstrator: Has a missing letter “i” in the sixth position
• sadministrator: Has the letter “s” at the beginning
• administratro: The last two letters, r and o, have been transposed or switched positions.

These keyword matches are one edit distance away.

A lenient setting allows for spelling variations of up to two distances.

Using the same keyword, administrator might be spelled this way: administratior, administratier, and similar variations.

The edit distance setting allows for flexibility in handling spelling errors or character variations when searching for keywords. Setting the control to a more lenient setting would allow the search engine to return the correct entries even for misspelled keyword searches.

To specify the edit distance, drag the slider towards Strict, the middle (for Balanced), or Lenient. The edit distance that you select determines strict, balanced, or lenient spell-checking.

Phrase Slop

Phrase slop is the number of positions by which two terms can be apart in order to match the specified phrase. This field controls the tolerance of the search engine for variations in sequence of words within a search phrase that results to a match.

If the keyword is "Jamaican singer", for example, then the query would work this way:

• Example 1: Singer Bob Marley was a legendary Jamaican reggae artist.

  In this sentence, there are three words between "singer" and "Jamaican" (excluding was, a) to match the search. The two keywords can also be transposed.

• Example 2: While Jamaican Bob took the initial lead in the race, Marley, who is also a singer, finally won it.

  In this sentence, there are six words between “Jamaican” and “singer” (excluding the, in, who) to match the search.

• Example 3: Bob Marley, who is an international and cultural icon, influenced singers across the world.

  This does not match the search because the keyword “Jamaican” is missing.

• Example 4: Jamaican Bob Marley signed with CBS records in London and embarked on a UK tour with soul artist Johnny Nash.

  This does not match the search because the keyword “singer” is missing.

To specify the phrase slop value, drag the slider towards Strict or Lenient. The phrase slop value Lenient yields more flexibility in search strings.

This function is useful when there are minimal results returned in cases where the search query is misspelled.

For example, if a user searches for "striped sweeter," then the product listing includes a "Did you mean striped sweater?" link that, when clicked, generates results for striped sweater.

In the Relevancy Setting Parameter section, select a relevancy setting parameter to configure the ranking of searchable fields. Fields that you place higher in the list have greater influence in the score of the item.

For example, if Item Name is placed higher than Item Description, then an item with a search hit on the item name has a higher score compared to an item with a hit on the item description field.

In the Relevancy Setting Parameter (QOE) section, rearrange the order of the predefined attributes, which include Item Number, Alias Item Number, Item UPC, and Item EAN. These attributes are then used as reference in displaying the sequence of search suggestions in the quick order entry form.

Replicated aliases such as EAN and UPC should have keys ItemEAN or ProductEAN, and ItemUPC or ProductUPC respectively and are mapped in Application Setup > Application Details > Ordering > International Code. Use this parameter to include the replicated aliases successfully in the search. Keys with substrings EAN and UPC are grouped accordingly. The rest of the keys are still included in the search but their weight are disregarded and are displayed last on the list.

For example, if Item Number is placed higher than Item UPC, then the display of suggestions is based on the Item Number. Tags and existing rules do not affect search suggestions.