Incorrect grouping of search results between "Extensions" and "Other Matches"
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Description
Background
In https://github.com/php/phd/pull/154, we resolved the issue of missing pages in the search index. However, now that these pages are visible in search results, a long-standing bug in result grouping has become apparent.
Issue
Some search results are incorrectly categorized between the "Extensions" and "Other Matches" groups.
Example:
Query: security
As shown:
- "Security (PHP Manual)" appears in the "Extensions" group, although it is not a PHP extension.
- "Security consideration" (from the
win32serviceextension) is incorrectly placed in the "Other Matches" group.
Cause
The client-side search code groups results based on types, including Function, Variable, Class, Exception, Extension, and Other Matches (general). These types are assigned according to the XML element tags in the manual's source.
Issue 1: Incorrect grouping in "Extensions"
The first issue occurs in this section of the code:
https://github.com/php/web-php/blob/27fbef13e912547b4086793a5dd2e04fc0fcf684/js/search.js#L130-L134
The code assumes that any entry with the element tag <book>, <set>, or <reference> is related to extensions, which is inaccurate. Many entries, though using these elements, do not belong to extensions.
Example data:
| id | ldesc | element |
|---|---|---|
| getting-started | Getting Started | book |
| install | Installation and Configuration | book |
| ... | ... | ... |
| reserved.variables | Predefined Variables | reference |
| wrappers | Supported Protocols and Wrappers | reference |
| ... | ... | ... |
SELECT "docbook_id", "ldesc", "element"
FROM "ids"
WHERE "element" IN ('book','set','reference')
Issue 2: Incorrect grouping in "Other Matches"
The second issue is due to an assumption in the following code:
https://github.com/php/web-php/blob/27fbef13e912547b4086793a5dd2e04fc0fcf684/js/search.js#L136-L141
The code assumes that entries with the tags <section>, <chapter>, <appendix>, or <article> do not belong to an extension. While this is not as bad, there are many pages that are part of an extension but are currently placed in the "Other Matches" group:
| id | ldesc | element |
|---|---|---|
| ... | ... | ... |
| apcu.installation | Installation | section |
| apcu.configuration | Runtime Configuration | section |
| ... | ... | ... |
| pdo.setup | Installing/Configuring | chapter |
| pdo.constants | Predefined Constants | appendix |
| pdo.connections | Connections and Connection management | chapter |
| ... | ... | ... |
SELECT "docbook_id", "ldesc", "element"
FROM "ids"
WHERE "element" IN ('section','chapter','appendix','article')
PHP Manual index dump
For convenience, here is the dump from the PHD SQLite index for the PHP Manual: php-manual-index_2024-10-08.sql.gz
Notes
- This will continue to be relevant even after #1084 is merged, as it uses the same logic for displaying the result type.
- The screenshot has the upcoming fix for https://github.com/php/phd/issues/159 applied.
Contributor guide
First steps
- Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
- Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
- Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
- Open a pull request that references the issue number.
Research direction
Start in js/search.js at the grouping logic around lines 130-141, then compare its element-based assumptions with the provided PHP Manual SQLite index dump and the listed examples. Determine how the result type should distinguish extension pages from general manual pages, and verify that the Security, apcu, pdo, and similar results appear in the correct groups.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- javascript, php
- Domain
- frontend, search
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 3/5
- Estimated time
- 1-2 days
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 45/100