Search Machine for Ubuntu machine

[Ted Hilts]

Carl Friis-Hansen wrote:
> Ted Hilts - Thunderbird Acct. wrote:
>   
>>  I have Ubuntu 7.10 and would like to get an open source search engine 
>> which I can use on this machine.  I would like to tell it what hard 
>> drive and/or directory to search and tell it to search for a file and/or 
>> contents of a file.  It would also be nice if it was written in perl or 
>> java or java script or python or some other script or language but not 
>> compiled.  Even a bash shell with bash commands. Also, I would like it 
>> to be a server so clients from other machines (like XP) could access the 
>> search  domain.  I suppose I could use a browser as client which gives 
>> Apache a CGI script with the results back to the browser but I  am 
>> hoping not to develop  this application but rather (at least initially) 
>> to pick up a search application ready to go.
>>     
>
> I could suggest a small PHP or perl script.
>
> ///// With PHP /////
> Let the user fill in a form field.
> Send the request, something like
>
> shell_exec(
>    "find /fromHere -type f -wholename '$someScope' etc...",
>    $output );
>
> print "Result:<br />$output<br />";
> ////////////////
>
> If you have many files and is concerned about speed, then you might want 
> to use locate instead of find.
>
> PHP has a function to filter out malicious commands. You want to pass 
> the user's search string through this before you use the search string 
> in $someScope.
>
> Your question is a bit off topic, so you might benefit from Google for 
> Perl and PHP scripts out there in the big world.
>
>   
Carl:

I was hoping for an open source package which if it exists would put 
this request on  topic.  However I certainly appreciate your response.  
I picked up a PHP manual many years ago but never got around to using 
PHP.  I am hoping to initially avoid any development.  I could not find 
a Ubuntu  or  Debian package for a search engine but that does not mean 
there isn't one. I do have the beginnings of a bash based search engine 
which I found in some VAX Digital reference books.  But as I said, I'm 
hoping for an open source package -- preferably Ubuntu..

Thanks again Carl -- Ted