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Why distinguish search from query?
Finding relevant content differs from selecting records by explicit conditions.
“Find articles about interface protocols” and “select records whose kind is concept and topic is afs-ui-system, then order them” both retrieve content, but make different demands.
Search commonly expresses intent in text; an implementation determines where it matches and how it ranks results. Structured query explicitly states conditions, ordering or selected fields, allowing consumers to interpret results against those requirements.
| Question | Closer operation |
|---|---|
| Which articles discuss X Window? | Text search |
| Which concepts belong to the interface-protocol group? | A field-based query |
| Return only their names in the authored order | Field selection and ordering |
This Learning catalog illustrates the second need: it must display records according to their declared topic and order, rather than selecting a few loosely related entries.
AFS collection query is an optional, strict capability. An implementation declaring support must execute the complete query requirements instead of silently ignoring unsupported conditions. Free-text search coverage and ranking depend on the particular Provider.
Two requests can both return entries while offering different meanings and guarantees.
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May an unsupported query condition be ignored while returning success?
Not under the strict collection-query contract. Declared support requires executing the complete specification or rejecting it explicitly.