What happens when the NOT operator is used incorrectly in a dtSearch context?

When the NOT operator is used incorrectly in a dtSearch context, it may return unexpected results. This occurs because dtSearch evaluates the conditions of your query based on logical operations, and an incorrect use of NOT can lead to ambiguities or unintentional exclusions of terms that one might expect to include.

For example, if a NOT operator is placed in a way that doesn't logically align with the rest of the query, it may exclude more terms or documents than anticipated, or it might not function as intended due to operator precedence issues. As a result, users might receive a set of search results that doesn't accurately reflect what they were looking for, leading to confusion.

While it's possible that default behaviors like AND or ignoring the operator might seem plausible, the implications of misusing NOT primarily revolve around the likelihood of obtaining results that do not align with the searcher’s intent. This highlights the importance of understanding the proper syntax and logic when constructing queries in dtSearch to ensure accurate and relevant search results.