Using the WebSphere InfoCenter search

• Using the search (input, restrictions, and such)
• Enabling the search
• Microsoft Internet Explorer enablement and workarounds
• Netscape Navigator or Communicator enablement and workarounds
• Searching Asian languages
• Reporting search problems

A correctly working search should display an input box, although you might need to be patient (waiting approximately 30 seconds or less) if you are starting the search for the first time during a work session.

After clicking "Search" in the InfoCenter banner, if you do not see the input box displayed on the left side of the InfoCenter, use the above links to view "Enabling the search."

Using the search

Search documents accessible from the InfoCenter for single or multiple words. The search is not case sensitive and does not search phrases, only individual words.

Single word search

Type the word in the input field and click Search. The search returns results with an exact word match or a variation. For example, if you search for "installer" you may get results locating "installer" and "install". This way you will always find the "install" related topics regardless of what you typed in.

Multiple word search

Type each word, separated by a blank space, and click Search. For example:

word1 word2 word3

The search does not search for the phrase but each word individually. The search looks for the words in the order they appear. For example, a search on "red orange" will find "red" first and then "orange".

Using the search results

The search yields a list of the documents that contain the search word or words. To display a document, click the entry in the list.

Search rankings

The documents are listed in order from the highest ranking hit (indicated by *****) to the lowest ranking hit (*). A document may contain more than one hit, each with a different ranking. The document is assigned the ranking of its highest ranking hit. The number of hits is indicated by a number following the ranking, for example (***4). If two documents have the same ranking, then the document with the most number of hits will be higher in the list.

If you searched for multiple words, any document that contains all of the search words in the specified order will be listed as a high ranking hit. If only one or two of the words are found, or if there are intervening words, or if the words are in a different order, the hit will be lower ranking.

Search restrictions

Boolean searches are not supported. The common boolean search qualifiers and and or are in the list of common words that are ignored in a search. Thus, both of the following searches will produce the same results:

servlets and beans
servlets or beans

Wildcard searches are not supported. The search on java* only looks for the literal string java*. It does not find javadoc, for example.

Enabling the search

Although the InfoCenter is not implemented in JavaHelp, it does use the standard JavaHelp search, encapsulated in an applet for use from a Web browser. Some users will not have to perform any enablement tasks to begin using this lightweight, effective search.

The most common search problems seem to be related to the Java and applet support provided by various browser brands and versions. After enabling a browser to support the search applet, or finding another browser that does, runtime search problems are rare. The main task is ensuring that your browser will display the search applet in the first place.

To support the search, your browser must:

• Support Java applets
• Have its Java support turned on (see your browser documentation for instructions)

Though the IBM WebSphere InfoCenter team does not endorse the use of any particular browser brand or version for performing the search, as long as the browser supports the above technologies, be aware that:

• Testing is performed using Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer, but does not include every available version of these browsers on every supported operating system.
• Most problem reports involve Netscape browsers, with the majority of cases being a common but fairly simple to fix problem described below.

Microsoft Internet Explorer enablement and workarounds

At this time, there are no known problems that are specific to Internet Explorer.

Netscape Navigator or Communicator enablement and workarounds

If your Netscape browser fails to display the search input box, try the following workarounds. You might need to extrapolate the workarounds to your particular version and environment. For the most part, particular error messages are not discussed because it has been found that any one of several messages can indicate the same basic problem. Do not disregard a workaround just because the error message mentioned in the description does not match the one that you are encountering.

Shut the browser down and start again

Although it sounds simplistic, this workaround can help:

1. Stop all instances of Netscape browsers so that there is no Netscape code of any sort running on the machine.
2. Open an instance of the Netscape browser once again.
3. Try once again to start the search.

Optionally, try removing all saved internet files by purging the browser cache. For example, this can be done on Netscape by selecting the following: Edit Preferences Advanced Cache Clear Disk Cache and Clear Memory Cache.

Help the browser find a JVM security class

A common problem involves a missing or misplaced security class. Try the following workaround, especially if you see the following line in the browser Java console:

   Cannot find class	 java/security/InvalidParameterException.

To fix the problem, you must ensure that the browser can find the classes in the java.security package. Netscape browsers can access classes provided through the system CLASSPATH environment variable. For information about accessing and changing your system CLASSPATH, refer to your operating system documentation or system administrator.

Use one of the following solutions to provide the InvalidParameterException.class to the Netscape browser.

If you have a JDK installed

• Note: You can download the latest JDK from http://java.sun.com

  For older JDKs that have a classes.zip in the lib directory, make sure that the CLASSPATH environment variable points to classes.zip of your JDK.

  For example, in AIX, add the following to your .profile file.
      CLASSPATH=/usr/jdk_base/lib/classes.zip
      export CLASSPATH
  

• For newer JDKs that do not include classes.zip file, add the rt.jar (the runtime environment jar) file to the system CLASSPATH. Sun's JDK and JRE downloads include the rt.jar file. WebSphere Application Server and WebSphere Studio also provide JDKs and the rt.jar file.
  1. To locate the rt.jar file on your system, from a command window, enter: dir <jdk_root> /s rt.jar (on Windows platforms) or
     ls <jdk_root>/rt.jar (on UNIX platforms)
     
  2. After you locate the rt.jar file, do the following:
     1. Add the rt.jar file to the system CLASSPATH, as for example:

        <jdk_root>\jre\lib\rt.jar

     2. Add the \bin directory for the JDK to the system path, as for example:

        <jdk_root>\bin

     3. Apply the changes. To ensure the changes are activated, reboot your system.
     4. Open your Netscape browser and start the Java console.
     5. Run the search applet. You might still see some error messages, such as the following, but the search should return results.
        
        # Error: Invalid Hash of this JAR entry (-7882)
# jar file: C:\TEMP\jzip8D6H.TMP
# path: com/sun/java/help/search/GeneratorHeap.class
# Error: This operation cannot be performed because a required
certificate has expired. Click on the `Security' icon
for more information about certificates. (-8181)
# jar file: C:\TEMP\jzip8D6H.TMP
# path: C:\TEMP\jzip8D6H.TMP
# Error: loading of signatures has failed (-1)
# jar file: C:\TEMP\jzip8D6H.TMP
# path: /F|/test_search/wps/doc/de/InfoCenter/


        Note:  The path to the JDK varies by system, and the JDK must be compatible with the browser version. Consult the browser documentation for specific restrictions.

If you do not have a JDK installed

• If the machine that runs your Netscape browser does not have a JDK installed, then Netscape cannot use the CLASSPATH environment variable to find the InvalidParameterException.class file. Instead, you can provide your own dummy version of InvalidParameterException.class for the Netscape browser to use.

  1. On a machine with the JDK installed, compile the following source file named InvalidParameterException.java:

     package java.security;
     
     public class InvalidParameterException
      extends Exception
     {
       public static void main(String[] args)
       {
          System.out.println("dummy class " +
          "allowing Netscape " +
          "to work with the Search applet.");
       }
     }
     
     

  2. Copy the resulting InvalidParameterException.class file to your client machine and to a location where the Netscape browser can find it.

     Depending on the browser version, place the file in a location relative to the "java" directory under your Netscape browser installation:

     • For Netscape Navigator version 4.08 or later, put the class file in the following directory:
       Netscape installation directory/java/security/
       1. Create a "security" directory under "java".
       2. Put InvalidParameterException.class in the security directory.
     • For Netscape Navigator 4.07 and earlier, put the class file in the following directory:
       Netscape installation directory/java/classes/java/security/
       1. Create a "java" directory under "classes".
       2. Create a "security" directory under "java".
       3. Put InvalidParameterException.class in the security directory.

     Create new directories as needed. For example, for the older browser workaround, create two new directories, java and security under classes. If necessary, try all locations, to see whether one will work for your particular browser.

Searching Asian languages

Due to the way the JavaHelp search indexer operates there is a limitation when searching Asian languages.

To search Asian languages:

1. Copy and paste words from the content frame into the search Find field.
2. Click Search, to begin the search.

Reporting search problems

If you find a problem that is not already documented here, you can notify either your IBM support representative (if running a locally installed search) or the IBM Web site team (if using the search contained in the online WebSphere InfoCenter).

Please include the following information:

• Whether you are using a locally installed search or the IBM Web site version
• The browser brand (Netscape, Internet Explorer) and version
• Any information or errors reported by the browser, through its Java console or otherwise
• Description of the problem

Although many search problems seem to be browser related (which means they are often outside of the control of this IBM product), it is acknowledged that they can frustrate users of our product. Alternatives are being explored to improve the quality of the search for all users, regardless of browser peculiarities.