How to properly search ATS

This post is to aid all members in searching for historical/archived content as well as searching for content to avoid multiple posts of the same topic or event.

Most of you have been there...you want to post a new topic but are aware you ought to avoid posting if that topic or event is already being discussed - particularly, if you are not presenting a different aspect of the matter. So, you do a search with the built in ATS search engine and do not see the information you are looking for. You then proceed to follow through with your post only to have someone reply moments later that it is indeed already being discussed. The issue is that ATS search engine is not that great (no offence ATS) as I have seen mentioned several times. How can you better identify material and content on ATS then? Here is how...

1. Go to your preferred search engine.

2. Type in the following (without quotes) "host:abovetopsecret.com" which directs your search only ATS and nowhere else.

3. Enter your search term(s) following "host:abovetopsecret.com" for example, host:abovetopsecret.com Ukraine, which will give you all results that mention the word "Ukraine"

4. Adjust search terms and engine filters accordingly. This can be done in several ways...

5. Your search engine gives the option to restrict searches to 24 hour, 1 week, 1 month, 1 year, or customized time ranges in some form or another. This is useful if you have a general idea, or know, what you're searching occured during a specific time period (news for example).

6. You can combine search terms, exclude certain terms, and include variations of a search term with boolean terms...
"AND" (all caps without quotations) will include a term for example: host:abovetopsecret.com Russia AND Ukraine
"OR" will include variations for example: host:abovetopsecret.com Russia OR Soviet Union AND Ukraine
"NOT" will exclude terms for example: host:abovetopsecret.com Russia OR Soviet Union AND Ukraine NOT rebels

I hope this helps everyone as I still see people posting threads stating they searched and did not find it was already posted when, indeed it has been. Using this method, I can guarantee you will find what you are looking for.

Happy searching and posting

a reply to: AllSourceIntel

For many here this is a genuinely useful post and one that many will refer to as they learn to be less luddite, myself included.

Good on ya

a reply to: AllSourceIntel

Flag and Bookmarked so I can find it when I need it.
Thank you.

It would be great if we could access this directly through ATS, with the time options and all. I wonder if that would be possible somehow.

ATS used to have a good search engine of it's own but the newest version is obsolete and doesn't find half the stuff it should.

It is better to search using another search engine these days and yes adding ATS or ATS host makes it easier.

Been using this search engine, prefer it, before it went back to being the main linked one. This helps even more. Thanks for the tip.



Posting to remember it for later use.

originally posted by: theabsolutetruth
ATS used to have a good search engine of it's own but the newest version is obsolete and doesn't find half the stuff it should.

It is better to search using another search engine these days and yes adding ATS or ATS host makes it easier.

I link the old search engine into my signature for when I need it (see if you can find it, hint -- )

a reply to: Aleister

You said that to me before and I meant to write it somewhere, I will now. Thanks.

cool

I've been using the little green magnifying glass icon for a while now. Is your way better?

originally posted by: soficrow
I've been using the little green magnifying glass icon for a while now. Is your way better?

That is for you to try out and decide...it allows for more options and filtering...the boolean terms "AND, OR, NOT" should work with ATS search engine as well, but you don't have the date filtering, which is very handy. Also, it's been stated ATS search does not catch everything...other search engines should catch anything that has been scrapped by said engine. Note however, a search is only as good as the person doing the search...you can be too specific and not get the results you want, or too general and get too many results to weed through. Keywords is...key.

Thank you kindly for the information AllSourceIntel. It was very helpful.