.com!
Frequently Asked Questions
- I'm having a problem with the Enhanced results format.
- Is there a way to filter the results by date?
- Can you remove cities that have 'no results'?
- I know I'm closer to city X than Y, but it's not showing up there in the list.
- I'm experiencing a different problem with the site.
Could you add options to filter the results by date?
This is in the works! It should be available within a month or two, when using the enhanced results format. (You can change results formats under the Results tab of the Options menu on the homepage or results page.)
Can you remove cities with 'no results'?
This is now done automatically when using the enhanced results format. (You can change results formats under the Results tab of the Options menu on the homepage or results page.) This format uses a small java applet to fetch results, and so is able to automatically close cities that return none.
It is not possible to filter out cities with no results in the classic format, because in that case the results from craiglist are opened directly in frames - Searchtempest has no access to them. I recommend switching to the enhanced format. However, if you wish to continue using the classic format, there is a work-around for skipping empty cities below:
UPDATE: Workaround for cities with no results!
You can do this by searching inside the results page for frames with results. So instead of scrolling and scrolling and looking for them, just do a search in your browser (by pressing CTRL-F), and search for the word 'displaying' (no quotes).
This will skip you straight down to the frames with results found! You may also find it useful to show more than 10 cities per page. You can now do this by clicking the 'Options' link at the top-right of the results page. (Be aware though that more than 50 or so cities per page can slow down computers without a lot of memory.)
Hope that helps!
I know I'm closer to city: _____ than _____, but it's not showing up there in the list.
Keep in mind that the distance is calculated as a straight line, rather than a driving distance. Also, some craigslist 'cities' are in fact general areas or even whole states. In those cases, the distance is generally calcuated from the center of the region.
If you still think you've found a problem, please send me your address with zip code and the exact name of the craigslist city or cities that appear out of place. I'll try and get it fixed ASAP.
If you could paste the URL of the results page you get (ie: http://www.searchtempest.com/results.php?...") into the email, that might help too.
When I click on a craigslist ad then click 'back', it jumps to the top of the list and the ad isn't hilighted. Why?
This is due to a bug in internet explorer. Unfortunately there is no way for me to work around it at present. You could use the Firefox browser instead, or maybe open the ads in new tabs, as described in the Tips.
When I do a search, the results page just says "Loading..." forever.
If you're using the 'enhanced' results format, please check here for things to try.
If you're using the classic format, this has been known to happen occasionally with Internet Explorer for unknown reasons. My first recommendation would of course be to upgrade to Firefox, a far better browser. However, if this happens, refreshing the page should bring it up successfully.
How come searchtempest.com doesn't remember the cities I've searched so I don't have to enter them next time?
Search Tempest should remember all your settings. If this isn't happening, you probably need to enable cookies.
I'm getting blank windows for each city in Firefox.
Under Tools/Options (or Firefox/Preferences on a Mac), Advanced, make sure the checkbox "Warn me when web sites try to redirect or reload the page" is not checked. (For some reason when ST redirects to Craigslist, instead of warning, it just... breaks.)
I've got another question that wasn't covered here.
You could check out the Help and Tips page, in case your question is answered there.
Also, go take a look at the new forums! There's lots of useful info there already, and more being added every day. You can also post questions or suggestions, or just random drivel, if you so desire. :) I read the forums regularly, and will answer your questions in short order. If you have a suggestion, I may well take it too. That's how things like the regions dropdown and the refresh button got introduced.
Cheers,
Search Tempest Nathan
