Re: LYNX-DEV url problem

[Al Gilman]

  From: Laura Eaves <address@hidden>
  Subject: LYNX-DEV url problem

  I tried the following link:
        gopher://dewey.lib.ncsu.edu/7waissrc%3A/.wais/jargon.src
  (Computer jargon dictionary)
  I got a prompt for a database query.  I typed in 'spam' and got
  a page that said "Gopher Menu" at the top, but nothing else on the page.
  At the bottom was a message to type S or s to search.  I typed s and it
  gave me my original query to edit.
  
  Is there something wrong here? I would think there would be
  instructions for using this datbase.

A. the site is unhelpful.

I went there with a Gopher client.  While the process was a tiny bit
more comprehensible, most of the trouble is what is at NCSU.

There is no information in the WAIS database that is retrieved when
you search with "spam" as the clue.

There are no links to an explanation of the Gopher/WAIS user interface
on the Gopher menus that lead to this search.

For example, when I exercised the link to search the dictionary
(in the Gopher client) and then took the proffered "help" option,
here is what I got:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

                   Internet Gopher Information Client v2.1.3

                      Search this gopher (jughead): jargon

      1.  Raymond, Eric/Jargon file/
      2.  The on-line hacker jargon file/
      3.  Jargon FillssssssssssssssForm Helpsssssssssssssssk
 -->  4.  Computer jx                                      x
lsssssssssssssssssssx  ^G      : Cancel                    xssssssssssssssssss
x                   x  Tab, ^N : Move to next field        x
x Words to search fox  ^P      : Move to previous field    x
x                   x  ^F      : Display next page         x
x spam              x  ^B      : Display previous page     x
x                   x  ^-      : Help (^/ or ^7 may work)  x
x [Help: ^-]  [Cancex  Enter   : Accept                    x
msssssssssssssssssssx                                      xssssssssssssssssss
                    x           [Cancel: ^G] [OK: Enter]   x
                    mssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssj


------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(the x's j's k's and m's are line-drawing characters in the original)

This is help for Gopher forms, not help for WAIS search.

The site is just not that well set up.

B. What Lynx does is a bit curious.

I went there with a g)o command.  When Lynx executed the g)o
it returned in the status line the message that "this is a 
searchable index, use s or S to search" without clearing the
screen.  Now, that prior screenful might be relevant when one
exercises such an URL with a click (RET or right-arrow,...).
But in the case of the g)o processing it is not relevant and
having it hanging around is potentially confusing.

The Gopher server did return an error message explaining it had
found nothing that the Gopher client displayed and Lynx did not.
So there is room to expand the Gopher gateway.

C. Editorial

With all the vigorous competition between WWW-interfaced search
engines going on today, what is the priority of cleaning up this
access path?

--
Al Gilman

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