A Better Search Algorithm in Outliner

I create robot models comprised of many parts placed together. (see my 3D collection named pistonrobot). These parts are arranged as groups. For example, consider a robot’s legs, there is a right and a left leg. They are mirror images of each other. There are perhaps 100 groups in each leg. When there is this many groups, the only reasonable way for names of groups to work is if the names have more than one word in them.
And Hey, I don’t know about all of the SketchUP crowd, but I can never remember exactly how I named all these groups.
I sure wish the search algorithm for the outliner (when the outliner was set for expanded view) just simply chose to display any group that had any instance of any of the words in the search phrase, independent of where the word is in the search phrase, and independent of what other words were in the search phrase. And if people don’t like this, then add it as an option for how the Outliner algorithm works. And then make it fairly obvious to users how to pick this option.

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There is an Outliner in the 3D Warehouse ?

There is not an outliner in the 3D Warehouse that I know of. I just wanted to say where one could get one of my models that has many groups named with many words to each name, and as I go in and out of the model to fix or improve things, it tires one out to navigate from one small group that is way inside several larger groups to work on another smaller group somewhere else. Or to fix a group way inside a lot of groups on the left leg and of course usually this same type of group would need to be also fixed on the right leg. One way is to navigate with clicks all the way out on the left leg and then with clicks navigate all the way in on the right leg. If you just put a word in the outliner it will take you right there. Except you must exactly state the name of the group and I would just prefer not to be forced to remember the exact word by word name of every group. For example, if I typed ankle, I would wish it to display every instance of the word ankle in a group. This would include the group named ankle, left ankle, ankle piston, upper ankle piston seal left, etc. all these group names would be displayed by the outliner. And of course if I typed ankle piston, the outliner would include every group that had the two words ankle and piston in the name of the group, independent of their order in the group name, and independent of what other words were in the group name.

Ok, well you had initially posted in the 3D Warehouse > Feature Requests category. Geo has since moved it to the correct category. (I was going to also, but wanted to be sure you were speaking of the SketchUp Outliner tool window.)

This is the behavior that I see currently.

Yes, I see two words match nothing ! (Although they should have matches.)

Well, I do appreciate your interest. I opened my latest model, (I am currently working to place the pelvis structure between the two legs). My original plan was to add the word left in front of every group that exists in the left leg, and right in front of every right leg group. So, if I type left in the outliner, I get all the left groups. If I type ankle, I get all the ankle groups, both right and left. Ok so far. But if you look at my models as an example, its easy to get tired or distracted and some groups on the left may have been named ankle left instead of left ankle. I would prefer and argue that people would prefer that the list that the outliner gives you if you type in ankle left should be the exact same list as the one you get if you type in left ankle
I mean, I guess there are people who use the outliner to demonstrate the order and finesse of their models, sort of that the outliner is the last thing they do after they get the model totally correct.
I want to use the outliner for another purpose, I want to be able to “zip around” in my model from here to there, for example checking a little group deep inside the left most side of the left ankle and then “zipping up” to check a little part deep inside the right side of the pelvis.
The outliner will (sort of) let you do this, except you have to remember the exact name of all the parts. I don’t think the outliner should be set up where it has to work that way.
And another issue, when one sets it to expanded mode, every time one types in another search string, one has to tell it to display in expanded mode. I wish the outliner could be set up to just be your “little google search engine” just for your model. Google should like that concept. If one sets outliner on expanded view then it stays there all the time. if one types in a search string and hits enter, then off the outliner goes to display (in expanded mode) all the group names that contain the search string with all the caveats about searching that we have already discussed.
And of course if one really wants the outliner to be a sort of mini-google limited just to your model, then there should be an outliner option where google would take the given name of any group in the model, and then create names for all the groups that are as yet unnamed and are subgroups of the named group.
In fact, there really should be a subroutine in SketchUP where it says, hey, if you want, lets go through your model and get all the groups named. If you said yes, then SketchUP would start at the highest located group of the model using the blue axis and would list the group there, its name (if it had one) and a suggested name. And one could go through it as they wanted.
The truth is the joy of SketchUP is the drawing, but the models and what one can do with them is so much more powerful if everything is indexed and named, but that part of SketchUP is a pain in the neck.
Again, thanks for your interest. PG

Except that on my machine, it does not work the way you describe.

It works the way that you are requesting.

Agreed on this! This should be considered a bug.