The examples below illustrate how to code search forms that perform search queries against the Google Search Appliance and the campus directory.
To perform web searches only
Form actions should point to a centrally-hosted script (searchgate.php) that determines the type of search being performed and directs the query to the appropriate applianceSearch queries are sent to https://search.uci.edu/
The following inputs are accepted:
| Name | Accepted values | Description |
|---|---|---|
| q | Text string | (required) The search query |
| type | "Web" or "People" | (optional) Indicates the type of search to perform. Searches with type "Web" are routed to the campus search appliance. Searches with type "People" are routed to the campus directory. If no type or a type other than "Web" or "People" is indicated, the search is treated as type "Web". |
| domain | Text string | (optional) Restricts search results to a defined UCI web property. Do not include protocol (use only "communications.uci.edu", not "https://communications.uci.edu"). Applies only to web searches; has no impact on directory searches. |
Code Examples
The below are examples only and are not prescriptive. Feel free to experiment with different form markup.
To perform web searches only
This example uses minimal markup for a web-only search form.
| Code Block |
|---|
<form action="https://websearch.communications.uci.edu/php/searchgate.php" method="get"> <input name="collection" type="hidden" value="uci_full"/> <label for="search-text">Search</label> <input id="search-text" name="q" placeholder="Search..." type="text"/> <button name="type" type="submit" value="Web">Web<>Go</button> </form> |
Adding an option to search the campus directory
Here we add a second button with a value of "People".
| Code Block |
|---|
<form action="https://web.communicationssearch.uci.edu/php/searchgate.php" method="get"> <input name="collection" type="hidden" value="uci_full"/> <label for="search-text">Search</label> <input id="search-text" name="q" placeholder="Search..." type="text"/> <button name="type" type="submit" value="Web">Web</button> <button name="type" type="submit" value="People">People</button> </form> |
Styling the search form
...
Restricting search results to a specified domain
The following example restricts search results to the Communications website by adding a hidden input that supples the site domain.
| Code Block |
|---|
<form action="https://websearch.communications.uci.edu/php/searchgate.php" class="form-inline" method="get"> <input name="collection" type="hidden" value="uci_full"> <label class="sr-only" for="search-text">Search</label> <input class="form-control" id="search-text" name="q" placeholder="Search..." type="text"> <div class="btn-group"/> <button class="btn btn-default" name="type" type="submit" value="Web">Web<>Go</button> <button class="btn btn-default" <input name="typedomain" type="submithidden" value="People">People</button> </div> </communications.uci.edu"> </form> |
Accessibility considerations
All non-hidden form inputs must be labeled. In the above examples, this is accomplished by including a <label> element and associating it with the <input> by using the <input>'s id attribute value as the <label>'s for attribute value. However, this isn't the only way to label a form control; alternate methods are described on the W3C website: Labeling Controls.
Setting search scope
In the above examples, <input name="collection" type="hidden" value="uci_full"/> instructs the GSA to search against all UCI sites via value="uci_full". If you want to restrict the search results returned by the GSA (e.g., search only your site), change the value of this attribute to your desired GSA collection. If you don't know what a GSA collection is or which one to use, then you likely don't have one configured. Contact Todd or Jim to get one set up.