The Recoll query language was based on the now defunct Xesam user search language specification. It allows defining general boolean searches within the main body text or specific fields, and has many additional features, broadly equivalent to those provided by complex search interface in the GUI.
The query language processor is activated in the GUI simple search entry when the search
mode selector is set to Query Language
. It can also be used from the
command line search, the KIO slave, or the WEB UI.
If the results of a query language search puzzle you and you
doubt what has been actually searched for, you can use the GUI Show Query
link at the top of the result list to check the exact query which was finally executed by
Xapian.