choster

The listing on the category page shows the updated url; there is nothing left to say that the new information will be updated in the search feature in due time. The ODP search index has not been updated since late September due to technical problems.

DMOZ doesn't aspire to be anything other than an unwieldy directory <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" />. The history, the social contract, the guidelines all reflect this. Most web users don't use dmoz.org for anything; most don't even know it exists. It stands to reason that editors are the ones who most heavily use the internal search engine-- and I think most editors would agree that our software engineer's limited resources should make editing software improvements and fixes a priority.

*sigh* driftwood, you seem already to have made up your mind. As several posters here have mentioned, you seem to have received a standard form letter when applicants apply for too large or complex a category, or one which is already under close and competent supervision, OR one that simply is not granted to new editors because of special rules or history of abuse. The "this category needs an editor" is an internal as well as external message. For such a large and complex category in a spam-heavy branch of the directory, promotions can *only* come from within, from those who are familiar with editing guidelines and conventions, and who have seen many kinds of submissions that will or will not qualify for acceptance. As odd as it may sound, the fact that there are a large number of submissions is a cause *not* to accept a new editor; I prefer to join new editors in areas with a moderate volume of new sites so that they are not overwhelmed, and so that their capacity for making mistakes is limited until their experience level is higher. The requested category is large, high in the taxonomy, and located in the Shopping/ branch, which has a heavy volume of submissions from unethical webmasters. It is simply not going to be granted to someone who is a total stranger. Sometimes, a meta-editor or catmod who processes a new application will "reassign" the editor to a smaller or differently focused category. You seem to wish that this would have occurred in your case. However, it is up to the reviewer, and not a few of the editors whose initial category I have "redesignated" have complained that they are not where they wanted to me. The meta who handled your application left the choice to you which of the subcategories you might want. I cannot see why that would put you off so.