GNU bug report logs - #732
w3m shows different results than Firefox browser

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Message #5 received at submit <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: xah lee <xah <at> xahlee.org>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: w3m shows different results than Firefox browser
Date: Sat, 16 Aug 2008 13:44:42 -0700

This appears to be a w3m bug or the w3m-mode bug and can be  
reproduced 100%.

Summary:
The results from using Opera, Safari, Firefox, in google search seems  
to differ from results shown in w3m, for certain url string.

To test, try this url in Firefox and w3m/emacs:

http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The%20computer%20wizards%20at% 
20Industrial%20Light%20and%20Magic%20help%20alchemize%22

standard browsers shows many results, top one is this time mag article:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,981238-1,00.html

Safari, Firefox, Opera seems show identical results. (some has  
cookies turned on, some not, so this search shouldn't depends on  
cookies)

but in w3m it just shows one vocabulary page on my website that  
quoted this phrase.

---------

GNU Emacs 22.2.1 (powerpc-apple-darwin8.11.0, Carbon Version 1.6.0)  
of 2008-04-05 on g5.tokyo.stp.isas.jaxa.jp

The w3m mode i'm using is: emacs-w3m-1.4.4

  Xah
∑ http://xahlee.org/

☄

In GNU Emacs 22.2.1 (powerpc-apple-darwin8.11.0, Carbon Version 1.6.0)
 of 2008-04-05 on g5.tokyo.stp.isas.jaxa.jp
Windowing system distributor `Apple Inc.', version 10.4.11
configured using `configure  '--prefix=/Applications/Emacs.app/ 
Contents/Resources' '--with-carbon' '--without-x' '--libexecdir=/ 
Volumes/Emacs/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/libexec' 'CFLAGS=-Os -arch  
i386 -arch ppc -isysroot /Developer/SDKs/MacOSX10.4u.sdk -DUSE_ATSUI - 
DUSE_MAC_TSM''

Important settings:
  value of $LC_ALL: nil
  value of $LC_COLLATE: nil
  value of $LC_CTYPE: nil
  value of $LC_MESSAGES: nil
  value of $LC_MONETARY: nil
  value of $LC_NUMERIC: nil
  value of $LC_TIME: nil
  value of $LANG: nil
  locale-coding-system: iso-8859-1
  default-enable-multibyte-characters: t

Major mode: Emacs-Lisp

Minor modes in effect:
  encoded-kbd-mode: t
  shell-dirtrack-mode: t
  desktop-save-mode: t
  delete-selection-mode: t
  recentf-mode: t
  show-paren-mode: t
  tooltip-mode: t
  mouse-wheel-mode: t
  menu-bar-mode: t
  file-name-shadow-mode: t
  global-font-lock-mode: t
  font-lock-mode: t
  blink-cursor-mode: t
  unify-8859-on-encoding-mode: t
  utf-translate-cjk-mode: t
  auto-compression-mode: t
  line-number-mode: t
  transient-mark-mode: t
  abbrev-mode: t




☄

Message #10 received at 732-done <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
To: xah lee <xah <at> xahlee.org>
Cc: 732-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#732: w3m shows different results than Firefox browser
Date: Sun, 17 Aug 2008 09:51:30 +0200

On 2008-08-16 22:44 +0200, xah lee wrote:

> This appears to be a w3m bug or the w3m-mode bug and can be reproduced
> 100%.
>
> Summary:
> The results from using Opera, Safari, Firefox, in google search seems
> to differ from results shown in w3m, for certain url string.
>
> To test, try this url in Firefox and w3m/emacs:
>
> http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The%20computer%20wizards%20at%
> 20Industrial%20Light%20and%20Magic%20help%20alchemize%22
>
> standard browsers shows many results, top one is this time mag article:
> http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,981238-1,00.html
>
> Safari, Firefox, Opera seems show identical results. (some has cookies
> turned on, some not, so this search shouldn't depends on  cookies)
>
> but in w3m it just shows one vocabulary page on my website that quoted
> this phrase.

This is PEBKAC, just remove the %22 quotation marks.  With them, the
above URL shows only one result in any browser I've tried, including
Firefox and Konqueror; without them, w3m and other browsers show many
results.

Fortunately, Google does not seem to discriminate "non-standard"
browsers yet.

Sven

Message #15 received at 732 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: xah lee <xah <at> xahlee.org>
To: 732 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#732 closed by Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> (Re: bug#732:  w3m shows different results than Firefox browser)
Date: Sun, 17 Aug 2008 13:22:46 -0700

Thanks.

for what's worth, here's what i've found:

In OSX 10.4.11, in Safari, Opera, Firefox (all latest public  
version), when this line is pasted into the url field:

http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The%20computer%20wizards%20at% 
20Industrial%20Light%20and%20Magic%20help%20alchemize%22

they all return mulitple results with the following line on top:

«Information No results found for "The computer wizards at Industrial  
Light and Magic help alchemize".

Results for The computer wizards at Industrial Light and Magic help  
alchemize (without quotes):»

in w3m and icab, they give just 1 result using the exact phrase as it  
should.

So, perhaps some how when google search automatically switch to a non- 
exact-phrase search when the exact-phrase search got only one result?  
But this couldn't be because FF and Opera in linux apparantly return  
just 1 result from exact phrase search too.

prob nothing to do with emacs then... but a browser/web oddity...

  Xah
∑ http://xahlee.org/

☄


On Aug 17, 2008, at 1:00 AM, Emacs bug Tracking System wrote:


This is an automatic notification regarding your bug report
which was filed against the emacs package:

#732: w3m shows different results than Firefox browser

It has been closed by Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>.

Their explanation is attached below along with your original report.
If this explanation is unsatisfactory and you have not received a
better one in a separate message then please contact Sven Joachim  
<svenjoac <at> gmx.de> by
replying to this email.


-- 
732: http://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=732
Emacs Bug Tracking System
Contact help-debbugs <at> gnu.org with problems

From: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
Date: August 17, 2008 12:51:30 AM PDT
To: xah lee <xah <at> xahlee.org>
Cc: 732-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#732: w3m shows different results than Firefox browser


On 2008-08-16 22:44 +0200, xah lee wrote:

> This appears to be a w3m bug or the w3m-mode bug and can be reproduced
> 100%.
>
> Summary:
> The results from using Opera, Safari, Firefox, in google search seems
> to differ from results shown in w3m, for certain url string.
>
> To test, try this url in Firefox and w3m/emacs:
>
> http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The%20computer%20wizards%20at%
> 20Industrial%20Light%20and%20Magic%20help%20alchemize%22
>
> standard browsers shows many results, top one is this time mag  
> article:
> http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,981238-1,00.html
>
> Safari, Firefox, Opera seems show identical results. (some has cookies
> turned on, some not, so this search shouldn't depends on  cookies)
>
> but in w3m it just shows one vocabulary page on my website that quoted
> this phrase.

This is PEBKAC, just remove the %22 quotation marks.  With them, the
above URL shows only one result in any browser I've tried, including
Firefox and Konqueror; without them, w3m and other browsers show many
results.

Fortunately, Google does not seem to discriminate "non-standard"
browsers yet.

Sven




From: xah lee <xah <at> xahlee.org>
Date: August 16, 2008 1:44:42 PM PDT
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: w3m shows different results than Firefox browser



This appears to be a w3m bug or the w3m-mode bug and can be  
reproduced 100%.

Summary:
The results from using Opera, Safari, Firefox, in google search seems  
to differ from results shown in w3m, for certain url string.

To test, try this url in Firefox and w3m/emacs:

http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The%20computer%20wizards%20at% 
20Industrial%20Light%20and%20Magic%20help%20alchemize%22

standard browsers shows many results, top one is this time mag article:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,981238-1,00.html

Safari, Firefox, Opera seems show identical results. (some has  
cookies turned on, some not, so this search shouldn't depends on  
cookies)

but in w3m it just shows one vocabulary page on my website that  
quoted this phrase.

---------

GNU Emacs 22.2.1 (powerpc-apple-darwin8.11.0, Carbon Version 1.6.0)  
of 2008-04-05 on g5.tokyo.stp.isas.jaxa.jp

The w3m mode i'm using is: emacs-w3m-1.4.4

  Xah
∑ http://xahlee.org/

☄

In GNU Emacs 22.2.1 (powerpc-apple-darwin8.11.0, Carbon Version 1.6.0)
 of 2008-04-05 on g5.tokyo.stp.isas.jaxa.jp
Windowing system distributor `Apple Inc.', version 10.4.11
configured using `configure  '--prefix=/Applications/Emacs.app/ 
Contents/Resources' '--with-carbon' '--without-x' '--libexecdir=/ 
Volumes/Emacs/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/libexec' 'CFLAGS=-Os -arch  
i386 -arch ppc -isysroot /Developer/SDKs/MacOSX10.4u.sdk -DUSE_ATSUI - 
DUSE_MAC_TSM''

Important settings:
  value of $LC_ALL: nil
  value of $LC_COLLATE: nil
  value of $LC_CTYPE: nil
  value of $LC_MESSAGES: nil
  value of $LC_MONETARY: nil
  value of $LC_NUMERIC: nil
  value of $LC_TIME: nil
  value of $LANG: nil
  locale-coding-system: iso-8859-1
  default-enable-multibyte-characters: t

Major mode: Emacs-Lisp

Minor modes in effect:
  encoded-kbd-mode: t
  shell-dirtrack-mode: t
  desktop-save-mode: t
  delete-selection-mode: t
  recentf-mode: t
  show-paren-mode: t
  tooltip-mode: t
  mouse-wheel-mode: t
  menu-bar-mode: t
  file-name-shadow-mode: t
  global-font-lock-mode: t
  font-lock-mode: t
  blink-cursor-mode: t
  unify-8859-on-encoding-mode: t
  utf-translate-cjk-mode: t
  auto-compression-mode: t
  line-number-mode: t
  transient-mark-mode: t
  abbrev-mode: t




☄








☄

Message #20 received at 732 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
To: xah lee <xah <at> xahlee.org>
Cc: 732 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#732: closed by Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> (Re: bug#732: w3m shows different results than Firefox browser)
Date: Sun, 17 Aug 2008 23:15:32 +0200

On 2008-08-17 22:22 +0200, xah lee wrote:

> for what's worth, here's what i've found:
>
> In OSX 10.4.11, in Safari, Opera, Firefox (all latest public version),
> when this line is pasted into the url field:
>
> http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The%20computer%20wizards%20at%
> 20Industrial%20Light%20and%20Magic%20help%20alchemize%22
>
> they all return mulitple results with the following line on top:
>
> «Information No results found for "The computer wizards at Industrial
> Light and Magic help alchemize".
>
> Results for The computer wizards at Industrial Light and Magic help
> alchemize (without quotes):»
>
> in w3m and icab, they give just 1 result using the exact phrase as it
> should.

This might be dependent on your language settings.  When I set English
as preferred language for Google results in Firefox, I get different
results than with the default German.  Go figure...

> So, perhaps some how when google search automatically switch to a non-
> exact-phrase search when the exact-phrase search got only one result?

No, only when there are _zero_ results.

> prob nothing to do with emacs then... but a browser/web oddity...

Exactly.

Cheers,
       Sven

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