Signal-android: Long conversations are difficult to use (search)

[kofalt]

• [x] I have searched open and closed issues for duplicates
• [ ] I am submitting a bug report for existing functionality that does not work as intended
• [x] I have read https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/wiki/Submitting-useful-bug-reports
• [ ] This isn't a feature request or a discussion topic

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Bug description

Conversations in Signal can go on for a long time - IIRC, the default is to retain the last 2000 messages which is quite a lot. Frequently I will need to recall some information from a week or months in the past, and in active threads (especially group chats) this basically leads to me giving up and asking the information again. It would be great to improve this.

This issue is a replacement for #1232 that follows the issue template as per the instructions in #7598.

From the original comment:

For example if someone send me an address, but I can't remember the date, it would be helpful if I can press options/search and then have a text field (and a search button).

Steps to reproduce

• Use signal for a long period
• Try to remember details of a past conversation more than ~30 messages ago

Actual result: App requires a lot of scrolling, potentially resetting to the bottom on new message (!)
Expected result: App could help me find relevant information

Screenshots

n/a

Device info

Device: Any
Android version: 7.1.2
Signal version: 4.16.9

[PiCob]

I'd also love to see this, but still it's definitely a feature request (exactly like the original issue).
And the issue template clearly says "GitHub issues should only be used to track existing bugs in Signal".

_EDIT:_ @sampablokuper , I don't know what you're trying to achieve by just firing thumbs-downs at anything you don't agree with (and even at neutral posts meant for keeping this issue tracker clean), but that won't get you anywhere. It only shows you don't seem to respect others and their opinion. Just food for thought.

[kofalt]

Yeah, I wasn't sure of the best path forward here since it's definitely a little column A / column B. The original ticket was open for 4 years, so presumably it was fine tracking it here, and after reading #7598 it seemed better to put in a few minutes to fill out the template rather than just dropping it on the floor. If the maintainers have a different view on things that's fine!

[Natanji]

You write "the default is to retain 2000 messages". Doesn't Signal retain all messages? I don't think that by default, anything is ever deleted, is there?

I agree though that this is a huge feature request and should be closed. The way I understand the Signal developers, they'd rather have users not store all messages forever but instead only keep the newest 500 messages or so - which isn't a lot, but realistically scrollable.

I think this is a design decision. If you want searchable conversations, WhatsApp offers this.

[lalunamel]

@kofalt This conversation, per https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/issues/7598 as you linked, should probably exist in the discussion forums.

So, I'd say, create a thread in there and close this GitHub issue here. jlund has created a Feature Request category which you can use to label the discussion you create.

[sampablokuper]

@Natanji wrote:

If you want searchable conversations, WhatsApp offers this.

Are you seriously recommending WhatsApp as an alternative to Signal? :open_mouth:

One of the reasons Signal _exists_ is so that people would have a more private and secure alternative to WhatsApp. Users shouldn't have to choose between privacy and security, versus being able to search within their own conversations.

And if Signal is failing to provide, in some specific respect that is not at odds with its aims, an adequate alternative to WhatsApp, to the extent where users are actually suggesting people use WhatsApp instead, then that definitely represents a bug in Signal.

(Even if you disagree about this - but why would you? - I hope you can agree that the "resetting to the bottom on new message" part of this bug report is most definitely a bug, not a feature.)

[2-4601]

Feature requests are supposed to go to the forum and there's a thread for the search feature. It's a planned feature for sure.