Docfd User Guide - Filtering and Navigating Results

User Guide | Engineering Case Study

Filter Results

TODO: Explain content and path filtering with concrete examples.

For a Docfd repository search such as filter, use path-fuzzy filters to move between different kinds of results without changing the content query:

path-fuzzy:lib
path-fuzzy:cram
path-fuzzy:changelog

For a directory of technical reports, the same technique can distinguish domains:

path-fuzzy:automotive
path-fuzzy:coding-standards
path-fuzzy:secure-development

This works best when documents are stored under meaningful directory names, rather than collected into one flat directory.

TODO: Add the exact keys for opening, applying, editing, clearing, and cancelling a filter.

RECORDING TODO (15–20 seconds): Reuse the relevant portion of the “Searching Docfd with Docfd” portfolio recording if it remains clear without its engineering narration. Begin with results for filter, apply path-fuzzy:lib, replace it with path-fuzzy:cram, then clear or undo the filter.

TODO: Explain selection, result movement, and opening documents.

The repository example should culminate in opening an implementation result in the configured editor. The PDF example should culminate in opening the selected report at the page containing the match.

Undo and Redo

TODO: Explain the user-visible history workflow and its limits.

As a practice exercise, switch the repository filter from lib to cram, then undo and redo that change while keeping the content search intact.

Narrow Search Scope

TODO: Explain how narrowing differs from filtering: a filter controls which current results are visible, while narrowing constrains the document scope used by a subsequent search.

OPTIONAL RECORDING TODO (15–20 seconds): Run a broad search, narrow the scope to the current results, run a second search, show that excluded documents do not return, and finally reset the scope. Record this only if the distinction is still difficult to understand after the written example is complete.