This thread is not meant to discourage you from asking questions. It is designed to help you find answers more quickly. Do you need an answer in a hurry or want to see what others have said on the subject in the past? This information is available!
I think that the SEARCH feature is one of the most important features of the forum. It allows me to find numerous answers to my questions almost immediately, rather than waiting for someone to respond.
How to do it-
Step 1.



Step 2.


HINTS:
Keep searches as simple as possible. Search for a single word, if possible.. However, a three letter search will fail. rat= 0 replies, rats= more than 200 replies. A search for squirrel trap will bring more than 200 results. The search engine will display the first 200 posts with either the word squirrel or trap in it. “squirrel trap” , in quotation marks, will only find the phrase “squirrel trap” less than 100 replies and all replies will contain the phrase “squirrel trap” There will also be additional posts within the thread that may contain useful information. Use quotation marks- “xxx xxxxxx xxxx” when using more than one word for the SEARCH. A search for raccoon will bring up different results than will coon. And yes, spelling does count.
A couple of the most common questions asked are “How do I start an ADC business” and “How much should I charge for-“. A 3 year SEARCH on the ADC Forum and ADC Archive for starting or pricing will offer a vast amount of valuable information.

1. Search- Left click on SEARCH button at top of forum. SEARCH allows you to select the forums to be searched, time frame to be searched, search by USER NAME, and make other modifications to the SEARCH. You can select to SEARCH for the term(s) in either the post BODY or post SUBJECT, or both (requires two searches). You will usually get more results by searching in BODY. Limit your SEARCH for ADC questions to the ADC Forum and ADC Archives. Don’t forget the quotation marks if SEARCHing for a phrase. However, you won’t find much useful information about wolverine trapping here. Other forums would be better for that.
The SEARCH feature does take some practice to use it proficiently. But it sure does save time and offer many different opinions on just about any subject.

2. Another good feature of the forum is the ability to view almost all posts made by a member. Just click on the Sign-in name of the member; in the drop-down box- click on View Posts. You can then find many posts, made by the member, that have been pruned and no longer available through a SEARCH. You can find many posts that the user has made back until late December 2006.


Edited for ADVANCED SEARCH:
These steps can be performed in any sequence before hitting SUBMIT button or ENTER key.

1. After entering your Keyword Search Terms in the box, you can select the DATE RANGE. In the Newer than box we have the choice of Day(s), Week(s), Month(s), or Year(s). I usually use the 3 Year SEARCH (maximum range)), unless I know that the information that I am looking for was made more recently or that my SEARCH term is a common word. The SEARCH can be extended back six years by using the Older than SEARCH block. A little experimentation will make you proficient using it. Unless using a common Search Term, it is not usually required.

2. If your SEARCH returns 200 results (the maximum results on a single search) but not the one you are looking for, you probably used a common search term such as trap, raccoon, coyote, lure, bait, etc. Just think about how many posts contain those words. Maybe you used a multi-word term such as coyote trap but forgot to use quotation marks around them. It is time to refine the search term(s) or forums to search.

3. Instead of searching ALL FORUMS, select just the few that most relate to your subject. There is very little need to include the Wilderness Trapping and Living forum in a search for armadillos. I doubt that any useful information about trapping polar bears will be found on the Trap Shed (unless you want to buy or sell a “polar bear trap” ).
a. Select (click on) the first forum you want in your SEARCH. It should be highlighted.
b. Scroll down to the next forum you want to include in the SEARCH. Use CTRL+click. It should now be highlighted.
c. Continue for each Forum you want included in your search.
d. After selecting all desired Forums, click on the ENTER key or SUBMIT button.


Please feel free to PM me if you have any problems using the SEARCH feature or have any suggestions for simplifying this thread.

Thanks Ron

I don't think I want to post anymore lol

Ron, I'm not sure if I understand this, just how do I start an ADC business? LOL

Well the first thing is to learn the alphabet. D comes after C and there's a B in the middle. It's how do I start the ABCD business?

sorey thay didnnt larn me thet N gramr skool.

This is a great feature. My only question is this: If this is a forum to share information, experiences, etc, and to encourage posting, why do you guys always refer to the "search" option. I understand that some of you don't like to repeat your answers over and over again, but sometimes people have different situations than what are presented in the history option. I'm not trying to get something started here, but I would think it would be a more sociable experience to visit with some of the knowledgeable people here. I enjoy learning from you guys when I visit with you on the forum itself. It's not such a personal thing when I have to spend hours searching the past posts only to "maybe" find what I'm looking for. This is just my opinion, and not intended to get something stirred up, honestly. I would just rather post and visit with you guys the way a forum is intended. If I wanted to find information via searching for it, I wouldn't have joined, but instead would have just googled it. Thanks guys for such a wonderful site, I have learned a lot and have enjoyed meeting you all!

Look back through the last 3 pages of posts. You will see multiple for

"How do I start an ADC business?"
"How do I go about getting my ADC license?"
"Help with what to charge?"

A little common sense will tell you that these basic day 1 questions have probably been asked.

Now if you want to ask something with substance then go right ahead.

I personally have to agree with LATRAPPER on this subject because when I joined this site I spent hours upon hours reading everything on the current forum and the archives.

A perfect example is I am planning on picking up bird jobs so I spent from 9pm to 5am reading everything I could find on birds not only on this forum but two other ones also.

So it is unlikely I will post a question like:
"how do I catch a sparrow?"

Hey Nathan, I know how to catch a sparrow! I was checking some traps today and I met a guy working on a purple martin house. This was an all metal house and it comes with sparrow traps. The sparrow goes into the compartment and when he sits on the trigger to roost, it lets a metal door down and he's trapped inside. Pretty cool.

Did you book him for the WCT show?

No, but I do need to look up that martin house.

If you find a link please post it. I am curious as to the design.

Paul, I have a link or download somewhere on this box that has plans for a starling/sparrow trap like you mention. The neat factor about this design is that it uses a counter weighted cylinder inside the false nest box so that the bird enters one end and when the cylinder drops the entry is closed and an exit opens in the back that leads to a pvc tee with one end screened to draw the bird in which at that point the trap resets. As the bird enters the tee it falls down a pipe to a holding cage on the ground. I'll look for the link and post it.