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AI Search and Fuzzy Search

Global search in Alcedo Studio lives behind Search in the album's left tool area. The search dialog supports finding by file information, understanding image content in natural language, and jumping directly to a specific photo.

The semantic route uses the local CLIP model activated in Local Content Recognition; it does not use the API provider's description or rating configuration. If saved, image descriptions generated by an API provider can also be searched as ordinary text fields.

Click Search on the left to open the search dialog. The input placeholder reads Search photos, cameras, lenses, dates.... Typing shows preview results below; press Enter or click Search to actually apply the search.

Search settings ▾ in the top right opens the Search conditions panel. Every option in the panel is already translated in the Chinese UI:

English optionChinese UIPurpose
Filename文件名Find keywords in file names
EXIF infoEXIF 信息Find in EXIF metadata such as camera, lens, date
AI descriptionAI 描述文本Find in saved AI description text
AI tagsAI 标签Find in labels generated by the local model
Natural language search自然语言搜索Find images by meaning using the local CLIP model

The first four field filters are enabled by default and can be turned off individually. Natural language search is a separate switch that is mutually exclusive with the four field filters: turning it on disables those checkboxes, so the two search modes cannot apply at the same time. The switch remembers the last choice.

Fuzzy search: by file information​

With Natural language search off, typing keywords runs fuzzy matching over the currently checked fields. Good for finding:

  • Camera models, lens models, or capture dates;
  • Words in file names;
  • Labels generated by local AI;
  • Saved AI description text.

Results show the file name, camera model, capture date, and rating or lens information. After clicking Search, the conditions apply to the album and the right inspector shows SEARCH FILTER, which you can clear with its x.

Natural language search: by image meaning​

With Natural language search on, the app first decides whether the input suits the natural-language route:

  • Queries recognized as natural language run only after pressing Enter or clicking Search.
  • Queries that do not fit are still handled as ordinary fuzzy search.
  • During preview the UI may show Press Enter or click Search for natural language search.

For example, a dog on the beach or 夜景人像 (night portrait) find photos by what they show, without those words appearing in file names or metadata. Natural language search uses the activated CLIP model on your machine; photos are not sent to an API provider for this feature.

If the local model is unavailable, the UI shows:

  • Query is too long for natural language search: shorten the input and retry.
  • Natural language search is not available yet: download and activate a model in Local Content Recognition first.

To search only by file name, EXIF info, AI description text, or AI tags, turn the natural language switch off.

Suggestions and results​

With no input, the list header reads Suggestion. The app suggests by camera, date, lens, and similar categories; clicking a suggestion applies a normal fuzzy search directly. If there is nothing to suggest, it shows No recent suggestions.

With input, the list header becomes Results, with the match count next to it, e.g.:

  • %1 matches;
  • 0 of %1 matches;
  • %1-%2 of %3 matches.

If the album already has other search conditions applied, the header also shows Active: %1.

Paging and loading states​

With many results, the list pages forward and backward:

  • At the top of the list, click Load previous.
  • At the bottom of the list, click Load more.
  • Scrolling near either edge also loads the previous page or more results automatically.

A loading indicator shows while a search is running. No results shows No matches; on the natural-language route, errors appear in the same spot.

Each result may also show Rating %1/5. Clicking a result row performs an exact match and jumps to that photo; if the source file is unavailable, the UI reports Source file is unavailable, and a failed preview image shows Preview image failed to load.

  • Fuzzy search: uses Filename, EXIF info, AI description, and AI tags; good when you know the file information or existing labels.
  • Natural language search: turn on Natural language search and use the local CLIP model to find by what the image shows, e.g. "sunset at the beach" or "night portrait".
  • Exact match: click a search result to jump directly to that photo.

With no local model activated, natural language search is unavailable, but fuzzy search and exact match still work normally. See Local AI model management for model download and activation steps.