Server Version#: 1.25.3.5409
Player Version#: 4.74.1
I don’t want this post to come off negatively as i’m sure everyone has put a lot of time and effort into the new search and from my quick testing it’s quite good and I really love the fact it keeps a recent search history and caches the result when changing page - that’s amazing, huge props!
It also makes life a lot more easier for the casual Plex user by simplifying the searching experience which I am assuming is the main focus of the new search, so that imo is knocked out of the park!
My post is more from a media management perspective and less as a user.
The negatives for me that I have noticed are:
Cannot open search results in a new page (drop-down results only).
Cannot right click or middle-mouse-button click on each result to open in a separate browser tab.
Search results are merged together and quite limited maybe due to drop-down size.
An example use case - Australian Survivor for some reason has created 3 different entries in my library this week (even though all my shows are using Plex’s new metadata agent).
So the task is to merge them into one, I have found I need to unmatch all and then manually match, that way they form as one show. Simply refreshing metadata does not fix it.
The old Plex web would be simple:
Search for Australian Survivor, hit enter (results are displayed on a new page and no drop-down)
Click the 3 dots on each result and then Unmatch > Match
Done
With the new Plex Web search, it now becomes a much longer process and more page loading:
Search for Australian Survivor
Click on entry #1
Once loaded, Unmatch > Match
Click search bar (I like that it keeps a history and caches the results!)
It has went from a quick 3 step process to over 10 and additional page loading - this may not seem like a big deal but when this task has to be repeated for multiple shows/movies, it becomes incredibly time consuming when managing the server.
I have a couple suggestions:
Bring back the old search results page when hitting enter.
Allow us to open the results from the new drop-down in new tabs - Although i’m not sure how this would work with the multiple sources.
Again i’d like to give huge props to the team behind the new search and I hope this post doesn’t come across as being negative but instead to provide feedback that hopefully can be considered for future implementation.
Thank you @RealJerk for your thorough and constructive feedback! We really appreciate it! We are planning on further improvements in search. However, I can’t provide any ETA for when.
@RealJerk - an excellent explanation and examples to why the new search is not ideal for maintenance purposes. I rarely use the search function except in maintenance, and I didn’t realize how often that was until the last few days.
As you say, everything maintenance related is one or two more clicks, and with the results not being left clickable or selectable, it becomes frustrating quickly… Any solution to give us back the old search results page with the options needed for selecting, editing, etc for maintenance would be appreciated.
Let me know if there are any logs etc I can provide to help.
Is there a way to revert this and display the results as they were before, without the results being collapsed together, and a full browsable page? It’s very small and hard for people to read, even when the results are correct.
I would like to add my dissatisfaction with the new search on Web. I have two large music libraries, and with the old search, I would enter a term, hit return, and the results from both libraries would appear. Now I have to choose which library to search. This is REALLY annoying. Is there any way to revert back to the old search? I know I can use the desktop app, which I’m doing, but for various reasons I prefer the Web (one less window open).
So:
Is there any way to return to the prior way searching was done?
Is there any way in the new search to search all libraries with result on the results screen, not in the search dropdown?
Also, the search results don’t show which library the results are from. This is a HUGE step backwards. Plex folks, maybe it would be a good ide to post stories boards and stories on what you are thinking before you spend the time changing well used features so you can getting stakeholder feedback before coding.
Sorry, one more question. I’m running PMS 1.25.5.5492
Is 1.25.4.5487 the prior version? I run on Ubuntu Linux, BTW. Is there any reason I should not install 1.25.4.5487 so that I can restore proper search functionality?
I really hope the Plex devs restore the prior search capabilities, and then add new capabilities to make search better, rather then remove capability. Until then, if I can roll back the functionality, that would be best. If I have to rollback the entire server, then so be it. Any downside to rolling back the server?
Ahh, makes sense. Thanks.
Also, please either clear the text in the search after the search (the history is there, so it can be reselected, or when clicking in the search field, auto select all the text to the next search can be easily entered.
But most import, please bring back the workflow: enter text, hit return, get all results in page.
Glad to hear the results page will be coming back. I want to speak to another use case where not having it is incredibly debilitating, just to further advocate for its usefulness.
I keep many versions of a lot of titles in my library - director’s/extended cuts, fan edits, 35mm/open matte preservations, HD and UHD, etc. In my library, I keep these all as separate items. I like being able to see at a glance how many versions of a film I have, and it’s much easier to choose which version to watch than the “play version” interface.
When I add a new version to my library (or after renaming all my files and rebuilding my library, which is my current situation), I have to filter by duplicates, click the ellipses, and select “Split Apart”. From there, I would previously be able to simply search for the title, and manually change metadata in the search results page.
Without the results page, I either have to scroll in my (very sizable) library until I get to the title, or (as I am currently doing) manually navigate to the search results page URL (appending the query to the URL).
I understand there is “no ETA”, but from a management standpoint, if you implement the new search in the actual server interface before adding the results page back in, you’re going to cripple usability for a lot of people.
Jut wanted to make sure as many use cases have been presented as possible. The results page is central to how I, and many others, manage libraries.
The current search functionality is broken from a user experience perspective. I hope full page search results are being fat tracked. When can we expect an ETA?
Chiming in here with an additional grievance with the new search. I think it’s important to vocalize these things.
As mentioned above, I have multiple versions of a number of movies in my collection. For example, I have 15 versions of Star Wars: A New Hope (fan edits, 35mm reproductions/preservations, etc.). Despite having these all split apart in my collection, the new search groups them all together with a “+15”.
Then when I click on it, it gives me a window with even less information than the “play version” window. And I split my versions apart to specifically avoid dealing with the ambiguous “play version” interface. Seriously, look at this screenshot. This isn’t even remotely useful from a UI perspective.
I really, really hope the results page re-integration is being fast tracked. If you give us the regressed search in the Server interface, that will likely drive me to another solution, despite the time and money I’ve put into Plex to date. This isn’t functionally useful in any way.
I really do hope Plex can prioritise bringing back the old search page, as others have pointed out including most recently @jonnyatlas there are quite a few scenarios that are now broken.
