[Feature Request] APPS Search Engine - Does Not Work for - "IKEA Tradfri" . "TP Link" . "Philip Hue"

Off-Topic
1

APPS - Search Engine - BUG ?

I just searched for some APPS using the search engine on the HOMEY Pro web site.
Some APPS could NOT be found - particularly when you search with 2 words instead of 1 word.
This is because the search engine, sometimes needs a - PRECISE word search.

My suggestion is for Athom or the Developers to add additional TAGS to the search engine
so that a slightly incorrect search request - would STILL be able to find the APP on the database.

TP Link

“TP-Link” - Works OK
“TP Link” - NOT Working - Most People would never Remember to Add the DASH

Link Tap

“LinkTap” - Works OK - No Space
“Link Tap” - NOT Working

Sharp Tools - Dashboards

“SharpTools” - Works OK - No Space
“Sharp Tools” - NOT Working
“Sharp Dashboard” - NOT Working
“Sharp Dashboards” - NOT Working
“Tiles Interface” - Works OK
“Interface Tiles” - NOT Working - Same Words - In Different Order

Ubiquiti

“Ubiquiti” - Works OK
“Ubiquity” - NOT Working
“Unifi” - Works OK
“Unify” - NOT Working

Philips Hue

“Philips Hue” - Works OK
“Philip” - Works OK
“Philip Hue” - NOT Working
People do make mistakes as they type, maybe the search engine could become MORE forgiving.

Suggestion to Athom

If a 2 word search does NOT work - i.e. Returned a ZERO Match - “Philip Hue”
Then maybe the search engine - could do a second search
But only using the FIRST Word that the user had typed.
In the above case - an automatic second search for just 1 word “PHILIP” - would have worked

My original post was related to “SharpDashboards” - but having tested a few other brands
There are several other brands that have the same bug. So this is may be a WIDER problem.

Every APP that is successfully found by the search engine - could potentially lead to
a new customer purchase of Homey. So if the APP search engine, could be a bit more forgiving of inaccurate search queries by users. That may increase Homey sales levels.

I realise the team at Athom will be busy making sure the Beta rollout for THREAD goes well.
So the above may not be a major priority for you, right at this time.

PS - Thanks for all that Athom are doing for the Home Automation Community.

2

You should have seen results already when you entered sharp :wink:

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.

Yes, and what’s wrong with that? Sharp Tools really is written as SharpTools according to their site? :wink:

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3

And as addition to Peter.
Homey won’t do anything though, that’s just a device, Athom would be the one you would have pointed to.
But in the end it is for SharpTools to do themselves, as developers can add as many tags as they want, for any language they want, but still, up to the developer itself.

3 Likes
4

Thanks for the advice Caseda - I will now send an Email to Sharp Tools.
My mate was thinking of Purchasing a Homey Pro in the UK
He wanted to do a Dashboard - so he searched the Homey Apps database for “Sharp Tools”
He rang me back - and told me that Homey did not support - Sharp Tools
so suggested that he may re-think on purchasing a Homey Pro

The Apps database is one of the most important influencers of users purchasing a Homey
If the App you need, cannot be found - then a potential customer might decide NOT to purchase

The more customers that Athom can acquire and retain,
the better it will be for the whole Community.

Then Athom will be a more stable and profitable Company
Thanks for replying

5

Good Point Peter - I did not think to only search for Sharp - so in error I entered my search as “Sharp Tools”

1 Like
6

Are you suggesting that if the tags field in the app.json had separate tags for ["sharp", "tools"] that the Homey App search would index those tags?

Josh here, founder of SharpTools. No need for the email as I saw the thread. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

3 Likes
7

I can imagine one just enters ‘sharp tools’ in one go, and then look at the results.

But yeah, I have to agree on you Athom should finetune the app approval procedure (devs should provide for the right ‘wrong’ search tags), while, like you said, in this case customers get the wrong results from searching the store, and can make the decision to not buy a Homey.

On the other hand, when a search engine was used using ‘sharp tools’, the app is in the results.
What does duckduckgo know, what homey.app store doesn’t?

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1 Like
8

Correct, you could even do "sharp tools" as 1 thing to be doubly sure…

2 Likes
9

That’s exactly what I was thinking! And some common misspellings like “Smart Tools”:

"tags": {
    "en": [
      "dashboard",
      "tiles",
      "interface",
      "sharp",
      "tools",
      "sharp tools",
      "smart",
      "smart tools"
    ]
  },

I would note that the first three terms from the above snippet are already there and it seems like a search for any one of those individual terms works pretty consistently, but combinations of the terms is “hit or miss”. For example, searching for “tiles interface” finds the app, but “tiles dashboard” does not. :thinking:

1 Like
10

Maybe the marketing team at Athom, could start logging
every App search, that does not find the App.

As that could potentially, be a new customer checking out - Athom and Homey

If that zero entry response, was as a result of a bad search query,
then everyone could work on improving the database, by adding additional tags.

Maybe it does not matter if it is an
Athom problem - or the App developers problem

A zero entry return, Is potentially another lost customer

Maybe Athom do already, maintain an ongoing count - of App searches not finding the App.

i.e. which APP is most searched for on the APP database.
An individual APP with a lot of hits - could be marked as a priority for development resources.

11

looks like the order matters :thinking: “dashboard tiles” does find the app, might be a bug in the search engine.

1 Like
12

Tony now Deleted This Thread - Added into the Main Thread at the Start - to Avoid Duplication

13

Tony Now Deleted This Thread about Auto Searching for a Plural

Now Added this point - into the Main Thread at the Beginning - to Avoid Duplication

14

Plural is difficult, it will work in english, but that is probably one the few languages where the plural of a word is the same for (almost) every word: (s), but enough languages that use multiple ways to make a word plural.

15

And this should be for your mate the reason to buy a Homey :wink:
Less than 3 hours, ~4 users, an answer, and an analysis of the issue on the Community and the Developer on board and now only thing is we can’t fix it here.
But I guess @joshua will Ping Athom’s Marketing department and inform the Search engine can have some improvement and Love. (imho the best line as stakeholder and contact with Athom)
Then just wait until an Athom Dev can spend some time as they have many more things high on their list to develop…

Extra Lesson: there is more than one search engine :wink: that even fixes my bad typo’s

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And even then Google doesn’t link to the Homey.App Store on searching “Sharp Tools Homey”
but al least it is suggesting enough including this hidden one:

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3 Likes
16

As I think it isn’t related to Homey self, nor Development or Apps I move this to Off-Topic
nonetheless: Thanks for pointing out!

1 Like
17

Hi Dijker - You are Absolutely Correct - at 17.57 I did indeed Email my mate Gary with this Thread.
I pointed out how Impressive the Homey Community Response was, and told him that this bodes well for him to move to Homey.
A Year back, I persuaded him to Purchase Home Assistant, with only very limited technical knowledge myself, but Home Assistant has been very complicated for us Non Techies.
So I have been suggesting to Gary that with Homey Advanced Flows, perhaps Homey would be a Better and Simpler Choice for him.
His immediate reply was “But What About Dashboards”. Which then resulted in me posting this Thread.
I too am not Currently a Homey User, and I can only say that all of the above is beyond Impressive.
So Homey may get me as a Customer as well as my mate Gary - 2 new Purchases.
Thanks to you all for Caring enough to get involved. Absolutely Brilliant.
Hopefuly @joshua can Ping Athom’s Marketing as a Stakeholder, and then sometime in the future, they may be able to make some improvements to the APPS Database Engine.
Thanks again Guys

1 Like
18

Sun - 21-JAN-2024 - I will update here - if I find any additional searches which do not find the APP

Brands Listed - at the Bottom of the Homey HOME Page

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If I do a Search for the 5 x MAIN Brands - exactly as LISTED on Athom home page.
The following are my RESULTS

NOT WORKING - on App Search

IKEA Tradfri

WORKS OK - on App Search

Sonos
Philips Hue
Fibaro
Somfy

19

?

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but beside that others also work for me: IKEA Trådfri

  • IKEA Tradfri
  • IKEA
  • Trådfri

No problems here…

20

@Dijker

Search for - “IKEA Tradfri” APP - NOT Working

  • If you search - just for “IKEA” as a SINGLE word - then YES it does find the APP.
  • But if you look right at the bottom of Athom’s - Home Page.
  • IKEA Tradfri - is one of only - 5 x MAJOR brands Listed by Athom.
  • Athom show the entry as - “IKEA Tradfri”
  • If a potential new customer searches, EXACTLY as Athom lists the brand name
  • Then the search will not work.
  • The Search Engine is not very forgiving for new customers - so could limit Athom’s sales

Windows - Chrome - sometimes displays results as you type ?

  • Search using Windows Chrome browser - it sometimes - not always - displays as you type
  • So as you start to type just the word - “IKEA” - it will sometimes start to show entries
  • If a customer does not notice and therefore
    continues typing - so types in FULL - “IKEA Tradfri” - then the search fails.

IPAD - Search using GOOGLE - does NOT display as you type

  • On the Google Browser on an IPAD - then IPAD does NOT offer search as you type
  • IPAD requires users to complete typing their full search, then press ENTER at the end
  • Therefore an IPAD - search for “IKEA Tradfri” - will always fail.

IPAD - Search using CHROME - does NOT display as you type

  • On the CHOME Browser on an IPAD - Then IPAD does NOT offer search as you type
  • So a search for “IKEA Tradfri” - will always fail.
    .

Windows 10 - CHROME Browser

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