Improve user search functionality with partial matching #99
Description
Description
Currently, Hackers' Pub only supports exact username/handle matching for user navigation. Users cannot perform partial searches or search by display names, which limits user discoverability.
Current Limitation
- Only exact username/handle matches redirect to user profiles
- No partial matching for usernames or handles
- Display name search is not supported
- No fuzzy search capabilities for user discovery
Proposed Enhancement
Improve user search to support:
- Partial matching for usernames and handles
- Search by display name
- Fuzzy search results for better user discovery
- Mixed search results showing both users and posts
Implementation Considerations
- Extend the existing search infrastructure to support user queries
- Consider integrating with the current search syntax (e.g.,
from:operator could be enhanced) - Ensure proper privacy controls (respect user visibility settings)
- Support federated user search across the fediverse when applicable
Acceptance Criteria
- Users can search for other users from the search interface
- Search results display user avatars, names, and handles
- Search works for both local and federated users
- Search results are properly paginated