Search

An efficient and easy-to-use search feature assists users in quickly reaching a desired service or content in a government website. It is particularly useful for websites with large volumes of information.

• Government websites must include either a "search" box or a link to a”search” page from every page of the website.
• The search box or link must be titled "Search", as it is a standard term understood by all web users.
• An equivalent word should be used in non-English versions.
• Position of the search box or link should be the same on all pages.
• See section Header.

• Search results should be displayed in an easy-to-read format.
• Each search result should contain a snippet of matching content for quick review.
• The term(s) searched for should be showed on the results page.
• The term(s) searched for may be highlighted in each search result.
• The total number of matching results should be shown on the page.
• Possible spelling corrections for misspelled term(s) may be provided.
• Search results may be grouped under different headings in the results page.
• Search results with matching content in a language different from the current page language should be linked to the proper page in that language.

• Each entity should carefully determine the scope of its search index to determine which content should be included and which content should be excluded. This further implies that the content not meant to be in the public domain should not be included in any web-based file that could be retrieved through any search engine.
• The frequency of indexing the content of a government website should be pre-decided. Content that is added and updated frequently, such as press releases, should be indexed more frequently.
• Government websites should provide help, hints, or tips, and include examples, along with its search facility to aid the users.
• In case the search results reflect the results from outside the website, it should be clearly distinguished and mentioned on the top of the page.
  See section Content and Services.

“Advanced” search functionality provides tools to allow for more refined results, and more filtering options. Thus users can find relevant information quicker.

• More search parameters should be provided, besides “keywords”
• Predefined lists may be used to guide users through available options
• Search results sorting options may be provided
• An option to allow search within a sub-section of the website may be provided.
  Example:

  Provide two radio buttons under the search box, with the following text: (x) Search all website ( ) Search “Downloads” only.