Browsing the Dictionary

While the command palette is great for quick lookups, browsing lets you explore your organization's entire acronym dictionary. Discover new terms, filter by department, and dive deep into categories.

The Browse Page

Access the browse page by:

• Clicking Browse in the main navigation
• Visiting /browse directly
• Searching without a query and clicking "View all"

The browse page displays a paginated list of all acronyms (20 per page) with essential information at a glance.

Acronym Cards

Each acronym appears as a card showing:

• Term (e.g., "OKR") — clickable, links to the full acronym page
• Primary definition — the top-voted or editor-selected definition
• Category tag — labeled with a color (e.g., blue for "Engineering", green for "Product")
• Vote count — number of upvotes on the primary definition
• View count — how many times this acronym has been viewed
• Deprecation badge — if applicable (see below)

Example Card

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ OKR                               2.4K↑ │
│ Objectives and Key Results              │
│                                         │
│ [Engineering]                    5.2K👁 │
│                                         │
│ Last updated 2 days ago                 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

Filtering by Category

Categories help organize acronyms by department, function, or team. Each acronym is assigned a primary category.

Category Pills

At the top of the browse page, colorful category pills appear:

[All] [Engineering] [Product] [Sales] [Finance] [Marketing] [HR] ...

• Click a category to filter — only acronyms in that category appear
• The selected pill is highlighted
• "All" shows acronyms from all categories (default view)

Category Colors

Each category has a unique color for visual recognition:

Colors are automatically assigned to new categories, ensuring no two categories share the same color.

Multi-Category Filtering

While most acronyms have one primary category, definitions may be tagged with multiple related categories. Click a category to focus on acronyms managed by that team.

Sort Options

Control how acronyms are ordered with the sort dropdown (top-right of the list).

Available Sort Options

Example Scenarios

• New to the org? Sort by "Newest" to see recent acronyms your team added
• Find the most trusted definitions? Sort by "Most Voted"
• See what's hot this week? Sort by "Trending"
• Random discovery? Keep "Relevance" (default) and scroll through

Deprecated Acronyms

Some acronyms may be marked as deprecated — they're outdated or no longer used but kept for historical reference.

Deprecated Badge

Deprecated acronyms show a gray "Deprecated" badge on their card:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ SOAP                                    │
│ Simple Object Access Protocol (Old)     │
│                                         │
│ [Integration] [DEPRECATED]       120↑   │
│                                         │
│ "Use REST API instead"                  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

A description may suggest the replacement (e.g., "Use REST API instead").

Why Acronyms Are Deprecated

• Technology has evolved (e.g., older protocols, frameworks)
• Company direction changed (old internal projects)
• Team restructuring made terms obsolete
• Best practice updates recommend alternatives

Deprecated acronyms remain searchable and viewable; they just don't clutter the "active" dictionary.

Pagination

Browse results show 20 acronyms per page. Navigate with:

• Previous / Next buttons — at the bottom of the list
• Page indicator — "Page 2 of 45" with manual page input
• Jump to page — click the page number field and type a specific page

Your current page selection persists while you browse and filter.

Search Within Browse

Use the search box at the top of the browse page to instantly filter:

Browse page showing "Engineering" category
Type "API" in search box
→ Shows only "API", "REST API", "GraphQL API" in Engineering category

Results update instantly as you type.

Bulk Actions (Admin Only)

If you're an administrator, bulk action buttons may appear above the list:

• Export to CSV — download the current view as a spreadsheet
• Bulk edit — apply changes to multiple acronyms at once
• Archive — soft-delete selected acronyms

See Admin Guide for details.

Mobile Experience

On mobile devices, the browse page adapts:

• Category pills scroll horizontally if they don't fit
• Cards stack in a single column (full width)
• Sort dropdown is compact
• Pagination shows "Next" and "Previous" buttons prominently

The experience is fully functional on all screen sizes.

Viewing an Acronym

Click any acronym on the browse page to jump to its dedicated page. There you'll see:

• All definitions with vote counts
• Full description and department context
• Related tags and categories
• Edit history (if available)
• Option to add a new definition
• User contributions (who added each definition)

See Definitions & Voting for details.

Favorite Acronyms

While browsing, you can bookmark an acronym to your favorites (if enabled for your organization). Look for a star icon on each card:

• Click to add to favorites
• Access your favorites list from your profile
• Favorites sync across devices

Tips for Effective Browsing

Discover New Terms

• Sort by "Newest" to learn recently added acronyms
• Filter by different categories each week to expand your vocabulary
• Check trending acronyms to stay current with team focus areas

Verify Information

• Look at vote counts — higher-voted definitions are typically more reliable
• Read multiple definitions for the same acronym to understand nuance
• Check the "Last updated" date to see if information is fresh

Find Related Acronyms

• Browse in the same category to find related terms (e.g., all "Engineering" acronyms together)
• Click tags to see other acronyms with the same tags
• Many acronym pages show "Related Acronyms" at the bottom

Track Changes

• Check "Last updated" timestamps to see recently modified definitions
• Some definitions show edit history (hover to see who made changes)

Exporting Your Browse Results

Admin users can export the current browse view as CSV or JSON:

1. Apply any filters or sorts you want
2. Click Export button (appears above the list for admins)
3. Choose format (CSV or JSON)
4. File downloads to your computer

See Admin Guide for export details.

Performance

Browsing is fast and responsive — results load quickly and updates are instant.

Troubleshooting

I can't find an acronym I know exists

• Check the category filter — it may not be in the category you're viewing
• Try the search box to filter the browse results
• Use the main search feature for more powerful options (see Searching)

Acronyms are loading slowly

• This is rare on our optimized infrastructure, but try:
  • Clearing your browser cache (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + Delete)
  • Removing all filters and viewing the default list
  • Checking your internet connection

I see a deprecated acronym — can I request it be removed?

• Soft-deleted (deprecated) acronyms can only be hard-deleted by administrators
• Contact your admin if you believe an acronym should be removed permanently
• Most deprecations are kept for historical reference

Next Steps

• Learn about Adding Acronyms to contribute
• Explore Definitions & Voting to understand community contributions
• Use Keyboard Shortcuts to browse faster