Is there a way to access old threads without resorting to the search function?

ATS search has issues, this we know. Also, on a members personal profile, the "Posts" section doesnt cover ALL posts made by a member. Therefore, I was wondering if there is a way to access old posts without resorting to the search bar. The reason I am having problems is because in order to search thoroughly , one may have to use several keywords, or several different searches.
Unfortunately , because one is only allowed a search every half minuite or so, the process can be very slow, especialy when dealing with posts more than a year or so old, due to ones memory slipping as to the exact title of the thread.
For example, I have been posting in the thread which poses the idea of a function preventing disagreement in posts, by stopping members who do not believe certain stories from posting. As part of my efforts to explain why I think this is a bad idea, I wished to use an example of a post which contains a good amount of critical and forensic thinking from about a year (perhaps more) ago that I did on a cattle mutilation thread. However, it is no longer accessible through my profile, and I couldnt find it on search because I couldnt narrow down my search terms enough to locate it.
I could use other examples, but they wouldnt do the job as effectively.
Any hints or tips? Have I missed something obvious? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for your time folks.

reply to post by TrueBrit


If you're searching for a thread, try typing the key words you're searching for on google, then add the words "abovetopsecret" and you should find what you are looking for.

If you can remember what thread the post you're searching for is in then you should try the google approach as well. It's always seemed to work for me anyway.

reply to post by Rising Against


This works, but when I'm doing a Google search for something I want to see just on a specific site I use the "inurl" filter. So just use "inurl:abovetopsecret.com" amongst your search terms to really limit yourself to ATS content. GL.

Thanks both of you... I had attempted the google bit, but I had neglected inurl useage.. again many thanks!

TB

reply to post by TrueBrit


If you click search and then fill in the post author field then I assume it's the same as seeing all of their posts.

The ATS search is in fact using google search (as far as i know) just with the "site:" field already filled in so all the results come from this domain

edit to add, in url works but so does
site://www.abovetopsecret.com truebrit

Hi TrueBrit,
I agree that it's hard to find old threads on here sometimes. Just wanted to make sure you are looking through your old posts correctly. Go to tools, go to profile, go to posts....it should bring up pretty much everything. Mine go all the way back to 2/5/2010 and I joined 2/4/2010. There are a couple missing, which were 404ed. If you are having trouble searching through the list you can always hit (ctrl) and f on your keyboard and it will find keywords on your page.
I sometimes have luck using google. Also, for a bit of fun, try typing your ATS name into google and see what comes up!
Sorry if you know all this stuff already, just trying to be helpful!

reply to post by mutantgenius


Regards the "Posts" section, it tells me that I have 800 posts to veiw, sorted by creation date, most recent first. However in my time here on ATS I have posted 2,515 times. It refuses bluntly to show any more of my posts for some reason.

reply to post by davespanners


Really ? Thanks for that ! I will remember that trick for the future for sure! I guess Im too damned used to using ATS itself to aquire post information, thats why I was so suprised at not being able to find it !

Try the ATS time machine sometime.

On the recent posts page right of the off topic tab where it says ATS History... Explore.