Request: option to not show search results until N number of characters typed

[Nod5]

Request: option to not show search results until the string in the search box is N or more characters long, except if the string matches an alias regex pattern.

The idea here is that typing only one or two characters is often not enough to get a good match when using FARR for general file search. Which means that FARR results will resize and flicker briefly with irrelevant results until we have typed enough characters to get something useful. That's most often visual clutter.

The regex alias exception is needed since it can be useful to have a few short regex aliases that are easy to memorize. For example "ff" for Firefox.

The option could be added on the Program Options > Settings > Search Behaviour view.

[skajfes]

Wouldn't the same thing be more easily avoided delaying the search until you stop typing? Ie, a 100ms delay (configurable?) after last letter typed to begin searching. Every letter typed resets the counter.

But it seems to me that there is already something similar implemented in FARR, since the search status quickly changes to "Search delay initialized" when I start typing.

[Nod5]

Yeah you're thinking of Settings > Keyboard > Delay search start

I've tried it and it seems there is a small delay in showing the result also when an alias regex is matched with that option on, which I don't want. (Though that might be an illusion on my part - mouser can you say if that delay happens also when an alias regex match is detected?)