Shotnest · Library
Search with a distinctive remembered token
Searching “blue” returns all three sample records, while the product code QX-2291 returns only the one you meant; pick the rarest word you remember.
Why a rare word narrows results
The search tool normalizes the query and each record the same way, lowercases them and folds accents, then keeps every record that contains the query as a substring. A common word matches wherever it appears. A code, an unusual name or a distinctive heading appears in fewer records, so the result list is shorter before you have to read anything.
In the Shotnest app the search box behaves slightly differently: it splits your query into words and keeps screenshots that contain every one of them, in any order. Adding a second rare word is therefore a quick way to narrow a long result list on the phone.
Try a generic and a specific query
Records: 1 “Blue notebook SKU QX-2291”, 2 “Blue folder”, 3 “Blue pen”.
- Search blue: records 1, 2 and 3 all match.
- Search qx-2291: only record 1 matches, because the code appears nowhere else.
- Open the match and confirm it is the screenshot you wanted.
- If nothing matches, try a shorter part of the code; a missing or extra space in the query changes the substring.
- Query blue · matching records
- 1, 2, 3
- Query qx-2291 · matching records
- 1
The browser tool treats the whole query as one piece of text. “blue notebook” does not match the record “Notebook, blue cover”, because those characters never appear in that order. The app would find it, since both words are present. When the browser tool returns nothing, try one word at a time.
Search habits that waste time
- Starting with the most common word on the screen, such as total or today.
- Searching a synonym of the word in the screenshot; the tool matches characters, not meanings.
- Typing a double space or a different hyphen than the text uses.
- Expecting the browser tool to search your photo library; it only searches the records you paste.
Only what was entered
The browser tool searches the text in its form and nothing else. Shotnest searches the text it read from your screenshots on the device; a word that the text recognition did not read cannot be found either way. The search tool linked below returns record numbers only.