Content Searches DAZ4.0 How to? Owl=Bowl, Hair=Chair
How to use the search window in DAZ 4.0 with the Content Manager tab? If I type in "Owl" (just got Ken Gilliland's owl in PA sale), the results window shows also items with bowl, likewise if I search for "hair" the results show "chair". How to weed this out?
Also, the check boxes don't seem to manage the filters if I only want the figure. Is there some way to tell from the icons which are models and which are not? I seem to get at least two icons of everything, and trial and error is my method of selecting, which is tedious.
The Smart Content is not very smart for. It can't find much. If I only want the figure for Genesis, I have to travel down a tiny font path ever to the right and then get the icon to click on. Why doesn't it just show up in the first place? I realize the other items not in the Smart Content is probably due to not getting all the metadata in, but I don't care if I could just "find" the darn thing I wanted . ie, "owl figure" for owl, and then "owl" mats, and then "owl poses". Since I cannot tell if its a pose or a mat from the icon, could it just spell it out for me, I don't need the pictures, as in the 3.0 version. Or, (she asks hopefully) is there a way just to show text and not icons? Even tho the text is so darn itty bitty, and hard to read, I feel it might be more useful for quicker selection of desired item.
I'm prepared to admit I don't know this program very well.
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Comments
If you type in you will only get HAIR and not CHAIR.
There is a dropdown box at the end of the tab to select either File or Database, I usually use File.
Do you have the file extensions showing? Hair textures will usually be PZ2 for Poser file types, and CR2 or PP2 for figures. Some are also HR2 Poser files as well.
In the latest version, DS 4.5, there is a label on the icons now which says Material or Actor etc.
EDIT:
Here is the documentation page which may help : http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/public/software/dazstudio/4/referenceguide/interface/panes/content_library/navigation_search_bar/start
And a video here : http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/public/software/dazstudio/4/userguide/finding_loading_and_organizing_content/videos/content_library_basics/start
And a load of links here to which may also help a bit.
http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/?do=googlecustomsearch&id=content+library
@ JimmyC_2009 Wow! Thank you very much for the speedy reply and so much help right up front. I did use the both the file and database searches, but I had to set the "show file extensions" -found that in Edit/Preferences if anyone else new needs to know. So now they show which helps alot. I still find only .ds and .pz2 searching files for space-bar owl. I'll go check out your links.
Ok, thought I'd post a follow-up on my learning experience, and still in DAZ4.0.
A huge factor in trying to find something in the Search function is to DELETE Genesis first. The program is automatically looking for Genesis related stuff as it is auto created when opening and autohighlighted.
Sheesh! Then ANIMALs and other things will appear as option in the Smart Window list (after categorizing). But, I was looking for Ursus Arctos or "bear" which is what it is. Darn program will only find it as "grizzly". Isn't that annoying! This was a recent purchase so presumeably the download had been updated already. Or not. Sigh.
Typing a space in the search term box before my text, for example "[space]owl" or "[space]hair sometimes works and sometimes does not. I could not find any mention of the use of the space bar in DAZ or in other searches. It may be well known in certain programs that I am not familiar with. After exiting again from DAZ4.0, and re-opening, 3 times, the space bar does help filter away "bowl" from "owl" initially. But it seems like the search thing gets tired and stops working after a while. I used the "hair" example, I realize there are other ways to find hair, but I wanted to find non-DAZ products in my other runtime. The problem with that is I have the Carnival poses loaded, so every instance of a pose with a chair is listed under the "hair" search, as well as chairs no matter how I had the filter boxes checked. The space bar sometimes works, sometimes doesnt.
I went ahead and installed some metadata for recent purchases, such as the pelicans. A very odd thing happened. It seemed like the "Smart Content" could not find the pelicans product but it could find the owls. I read somewhere the metadata is queued up for a while? what triggers that?
I also did some manual Categories for some old animals such as the Hippocampus and the Sea Turtle. They don't show up in Smart Content, but now I can find them as Figures through the Category tree which weeds out the other file formats. Yes, I also made one Real World, and the other Fantasy, but that was incidental.
And that brings up 2 more interesting things. I had asked earlier if there was a way to just see Text and not Icons in the Content Library panel. Doh! Yes. The third part of the Content Library window pane has 2 icons for veiw as list as well as view as thumbnails. That makes it easier to visually scan for a .cr2. I grab it and Categorize it, and then the program seems 'smarter' and finds it better when I search again. Also the categorized item shows up obviously in the Categories tree.
No where could I find an option to search on a file format as a filter. I did find, as I mentioned before, the Edit/Preferences "show file extensions". in the Content Library window pane, either in thumbnail or in list mode.
In looking through most of the documentations links that were thoughtfully provided, I did not find any actual instructions or tips for Searching within the search box. No space bar, no file extension option, no other hints like boolean searches or using upper case letters, etc. or don't search over 3 times per item. Notthing about it where I looked. Of course, if I know the name of the product, it usually finds it, but what if I only know it is an animal I bought a while ago? Some of those installations just had PS numbers.
That brings up Smart Content, which still is odd. Some animals have loaded, others have not. When it comes to clothes, it did a neat thing. I found a pair of gloves in an icon. Right clicked and chose show in Content Library--the associated garments and props showed up in the Content Libarary pane! (Buck---skin, doncha see?) That was useful indeed! Just the models, not the materials. I havent tried it under "surfaces tab" yet. I'm fatigued!
I figured learning with the animal models gave me an advantage towards finding them. Clothes come in all kinds of names, and abbreviations so a cow or a turtle...or a bear could not be too many different things, right? Mammoth is spelled "Mammuth".... I'm taking a break!
Thank you for posting all of your findings, it will be a big help for others I'm sure (me too!)
I had forgotten to mention the 'Show in Mapped Folder', and 'Browse to File Location' which are extremely useful too, and I use them a lot.