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Search Iphone..er lack of

W

wjbnyc

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 11, 2007
6
0
I found there is no search function on an iphone.
I transfered my 4 years of calendar dates from my old PDA. But i have no way to find a persons name, or part of a note i made, or part of an address, or ANYTHING.
during the keynote by Jobs... he skipped iCal...hmmmmm.
It is hard to enter new items, you can't have a home and work calendar, and you have no way to find what you entered in the past unless you remember the DATE you entered it because this seems to be the only way to sort my 1000+ notes about my calnendar r the past 4 years.
My macbook iCal has a search and it works fine.. they just "forgot" it on the iphone.
Even on my old Palm PDA i can search a few letters and it finds matches from contacts, TODO lists (also lacking in iPhone) memos, calendar, whatever... very helpful to keep things managed.
Amazing.
 
Do you really need 4 years of listed dentist appointments and such on your iPhone?

I know that doesn't create a search function, but why would you ever need 4 years of calender events in your pocket?
 
I agree there needs to be a better search. I use mine for business and need to be able to find contacts by business name as well and last name. I've had to pull over 3 times now and break out the laptop to find a phone number because my iPhone can't retrieve it.:(
 
Julien said:
I've had to pull over 3 times now and break out the laptop to find a phone number because my iPhone can't retrieve it.:(
Click to expand...

You probably shouldn't be driving and searching for dates in your calendar or scanning contacts at the same time anyway. I don't do anything on my iPhone while driving except answer calls, or maybe dial a contact from my favorites list because it's only 2 touches.

And we wonder why we can't have a highway with no speed limits in America...

In regards to the OP, I agree about the search function. I think Spotlight is one of the best features of OSX. To leave any type of search out of a device that "runs OSX" seems pretty lame. Perhaps if they add file support in the future...
 
Really really need search

Yes, we need search on our PDAs, just as we need it on our laptops. Why? Because it is good to have records available at hand when at meetings, and it is inconvenient to unfold a laptop in the middle of a lunch to check up on a familiar sounding name or event, or to find the exact date for something happening in the future. This is one of the things that makes PDAs so powerful. I really love the design of my new iPhone, but it will be a bit silly if I need to hang on to the Treo as a PDA (as I am finding myself doing).

And folks, comments like "Why would you like to do that, anyway" are contradictory to "Think different". Back in my youth in Europe, when all young people loved Mao, Lenin and Marx, this was the standard counter-argument to any criticism of lack of variety in the socialist economies. (One car brand is enough!)
 
Didn't that survey that went out to iPhone users ask you to rate the "iChat" and "Search" functions? We may very well be seeing those two features in the near future.
 
earnjam said:
You probably shouldn't be driving and searching for dates in your calendar or scanning contacts at the same time anyway. I don't do anything on my iPhone while driving except answer calls, or maybe dial a contact from my favorites list because it's only 2 touches.

And we wonder why we can't have a highway with no speed limits in America...

In regards to the OP, I agree about the search function. I think Spotlight is one of the best features of OSX. To leave any type of search out of a device that "runs OSX" seems pretty lame. Perhaps if they add file support in the future...
Click to expand...
Actually I wasn't driving (and don't) while making a call. I also only use hands free to talk while driving. Was sitting at red light (once on the connector (I85/75) stopped) but had to pull into parking lot to look up.
 
David DDD said:
And folks, comments like "Why would you like to do that, anyway" are contradictory to "Think different".
Click to expand...

Plus it sounds like what my father used to say to me back in my youth, when the first FM stereo car radios became available.

"Dad, I'm going to install TWO speakers in the car... one front, one back."

"WHY in the world would you want to do that?? Isn't one enough??"

:D
 
The General said:
Do you really need 4 years of listed dentist appointments and such on your iPhone?

I know that doesn't create a search function, but why would you ever need 4 years of calender events in your pocket?
Click to expand...

I wish I could go back 5 years if that was possible.

Knowing what events occured on what dates are EXTREMELY important to me and my job.
 
yeah...

Remember, the iPhone was meant as a consumer device, not something to replace your business PDA. If you were expecting that, methinks you read into it wrong...
 
appleretailguy said:
Remember, the iPhone was meant as a consumer device, not something to replace your business PDA. If you were expecting that, methinks you read into it wrong...
Click to expand...

Agree though imo the iPhone does do a lot of things that someone "on the go" needs and through some software updates can replace/take-over certain "buisness" cell phones
 
True

OrleansMac said:
Agree though imo the iPhone does do a lot of things that someone "on the go" needs and through some software updates can replace/take-over certain "buisness" cell phones
Click to expand...

Oh, I completely agree with you and I hope these updates come soon.

I just get annoyed at the people who bought one KNOWING it wasn't a full fledged PDA and now complain incessantly about it.

That being said...I want more from my iPhone!
 
appleretailguy said:
Oh, I completely agree with you and I hope these updates come soon.

I just get annoyed at the people who bought one KNOWING it wasn't a full fledged PDA and now complain incessantly about it.

That being said...I want more from my iPhone!
Click to expand...

Again, I agree but in a slight way disagree.

Some people say Steve Jobs told everyone that this was "Just a Ipod-Phone" type device and I don't agree. I think we were told that this would be a revolutionary phone that combined Apple ease with applications/music with telephone service.

I did expect a few more "business like" applications to come pre-installed OR already working

BUT, BUT, BUT

I am in no way disappointed by it because like I said...all MY working needs are done with in this current phone AND i think Apple will soon update other needs to attract more users within the business community.
 
The General said:
Do you really need 4 years of listed dentist appointments and such on your iPhone?

I know that doesn't create a search function, but why would you ever need 4 years of calender events in your pocket?
Click to expand...

Well i do service calls. I find it helpful to type in a customer name and bring up all my notes on previous visits. Or i can type in a brand name and bring up previous appointments where i made notes on what needed to be done. Search seems to be such a simple function that i just do not understand what it was left out.
Why did Jobs skip the discussion on iCal?
 
The General said:
Do you really need 4 years of listed dentist appointments and such on your iPhone?

I know that doesn't create a search function, but why would you ever need 4 years of calender events in your pocket?
Click to expand...

thats hardly the point of search,

emails can contain important numbers, addresses, names
notes can contain important info
calender appointments with locations, names, numbers etc


EX: i wrote a note in my TO DO List on my PDA back when i moved in about the window sizes in my house (brand new house, needed blinds and stuff)

ive since switch pdas 2-3 times but the info is the same as it syncs with outlook, i went shopping one day and there was a huge sale on curtains/blinds/shades but it was too close to closing time for me to run home, measure. so i take out my PDa phone and i just do a simple search for "window sizes" it brings the 2yr old to do note up in less than 1 second.

i have tons of examples that ive use the search to save me money or to save me from driving back and fourth.

not having a search in the contacts in excusable, the "Jump to" letters on the side dont cut it when you have 50 people's names starting with D
 
Its going on 2 years.....

And with the current 15,000 apps added to the iPhone i still can't use the calendar part of the phone and be able to search old appointments.
Say search "mac mini" and bring up the meeting i had where i made a note about the size of my mac mini... or whatever.
Or search "steve J" and bring up all the lunches i have had with steve J.... and i can be reminded of what that steve guys last name is.
:(
 
wjbnyc said:
And with the current 15,000 apps added to the iPhone i still can't use the calendar part of the phone and be able to search old appointments.
Say search "mac mini" and bring up the meeting i had where i made a note about the size of my mac mini... or whatever.
Or search "steve J" and bring up all the lunches i have had with steve J.... and i can be reminded of what that steve guys last name is.
:(
Click to expand...

I hear ya. Yesterday I migrated ten+ years worth of notes off my old Windows PDA/Smartphone onto my iPhone (some of those notes originated on various Apple Newtons - so it was a homecoming for them!) Anyway, I'd been carrying the big old clunky, 'disconnected' Windows PDA phone everywhere along with my iPhone for about a year. It just seemed silly.

And today, I had to look something up.:eek: Hadn't realized there was no search (other than eyeballing everything). Hope Apple fixes it with an update. They have the technology, you know. The old Newtons had the best search ever. The information architecture on those devices was designed to expect unstructured data. I think they called the data-stores 'soups'. Kinda like my notes :)
 
One more reason to jailbreak. There are at least two different spotlight-like search programs on Cydia.

QuickGold comes up with a simple press of the home button from the springboard and searches contacts, applications, SMSs, bookmarks, Safari history...

Searcher is a regular app, but it adds Notes and calendar events.

There are a couple more, but I am pretty happy with these two. Hmmm. Wonder if they have one that searches your emails...? [EDIT] Yup, MailSearch. Gonna have to try that out.
 
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