Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Xapian VS Manticore search

Compare Xapian VS Manticore search and see what are their differences

Xapian logo Xapian

Xapian is an open source probabilistic information retrieval library, released under the GNU...

Manticore search logo Manticore search

https://www.
  • Xapian Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-21
  • Manticore search Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-26

Xapian features and specs

  • Open Source
    Xapian is open-source software, which means it is free to use and you can modify its source code to fit your specific needs.
  • Flexibility
    Xapian provides great flexibility with its API, allowing users to create complex search applications with customizable features.
  • Language Support
    Xapian supports bindings for multiple programming languages, including Python, C++, PHP, Java, Perl, Ruby, and Tcl, making it accessible to developers with different technical stacks.
  • Search Features
    Xapian offers advanced search functionalities such as probabilistic ranking, phrase search, Boolean search, and wildcard search, which enhance the user search experience.
  • Scalability
    Xapian is designed to handle large volumes of data, making it suitable for applications requiring scalability.

Possible disadvantages of Xapian

  • Complexity
    Setting up and configuring Xapian can be complex and may require a steep learning curve, especially for users unfamiliar with search engine technologies.
  • Documentation
    Although Xapian has documentation, some users find it lacking in depth, which can be a hindrance to those trying to leverage advanced features efficiently.
  • Limited Ecosystem
    Compared to more popular search engines like Elasticsearch, Xapian has a smaller ecosystem and community, which can limit the availability of plugins, integrations, and community support.
  • Performance
    While Xapian is scalable, very large-scale deployments might see performance challenges, necessitating additional optimization or the use of more robust solutions.
  • Maintenance
    Being a less mainstream option, finding ongoing maintenance and support professionals familiar with Xapian might be more challenging than with more widely used alternatives.

Manticore search features and specs

  • Open Source
    Manticore Search is open source, which means it is free to use, and the community can contribute to its development and maintenance.
  • Compatibility with Sphinx
    Manticore Search originated as a fork of the Sphinx search engine, offering compatibility and an easy transition for those familiar with Sphinx.
  • Real-Time Indexing
    Supports real-time indexing, allowing immediate updates to be reflected in the search results, which is beneficial for dynamic content.
  • SQL-like Query Syntax
    Offers a familiar SQL-like syntax for queries, making it easier for developers with SQL experience to adapt and implement search functions.
  • Distributed Search
    Supports distributed search capabilities, which allows it to handle large datasets across multiple servers, improving scalability.

Possible disadvantages of Manticore search

  • Smaller Community
    Compared to some other search engines like Elasticsearch, Manticore Search has a smaller community, which can impact the availability of third-party tools and plugins.
  • Limited Ecosystem
    The ecosystem surrounding Manticore Search is not as extensive or mature as those of more established search engines, potentially limiting integration options.
  • Steeper Learning Curve
    While it offers a powerful search capability, users unfamiliar with its Sphinx heritage or configurations may experience a steeper learning curve.
  • Feature Gaps
    May lack some advanced features offered by larger search platforms, such as built-in machine learning or advanced analytics capabilities.

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Xapian and Manticore search)
Custom Search Engine
51 51%
49% 49
Custom Search
41 41%
59% 59
Search Engine
44 44%
56% 56
Search API
54 54%
46% 46

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Manticore search should be more popular than Xapian. It has been mentiond 17 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Xapian mentions (7)

  • Making a huge collection of PDF's searchable (They are OCR'd already)
    Recoll is free/open source (GPL) that can index PDFs and search them very quickly. It uses Xapian under the hood. I have over 165,000 documents indexed on an old laptop running Linux and can query them all in a split second. Source: over 1 year ago
  • An alternative to Elasticsearch that runs on a few MBs of RAM
    + xapian which has been around a while, and while gpl licensed, is quite capable https://xapian.org/. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • ZincSearch – lightweight alternative to Elasticsearch written in Go
    Tangentially related if you need search without the clustering and high availability story of elastic search and friends I highly recommend Xapian. Its like the SQLite of search. Single library that provides the basic set of features you would expect in a quality search experience: facets, ranked search, boolean operators, stemming etc etc. https://xapian.org/. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • Need CLI tool that can handle large txt files and another tool that can conduct a lightning fast search of disk files.
    For fast searching, it usually requires indexing the files in question. There are a number of text-file indexing solutions, many of which use xapian, sphinx, or lucene/solr under the hood. Based on conditions (watching files/directories, cron jobs, new-mail triggers, etc), they'll add/remove files to the index, and you can then use a corresponding command to compose queries across that data. If it's indexed, it... Source: over 3 years ago
  • Lawsuit filed alleging Google is paying Apple to stay out of the search business
    There is also xapian/recoll https://xapian.org/ which works great for "desktop" search. - Source: Hacker News / over 3 years ago
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Manticore search mentions (17)

  • Building a Reverse Image Search app with Manticore Search
    At Manticore Search, we explored several approaches to building an efficient reverse image search system. We wanted a practical solution that leveraged Manticore's powerful vector search while remaining accessible, and this led us to TinyCLIP — a streamlined model that runs efficiently on standard CPUs. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Lexical Search vs. Vector Search: Exploring the Differences and Key Aspects
    Ready to enhance your search? Try Manticore Search to see how this powerful engine can improve your project with a blend of lexical and vector search. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Lexical Search vs. Semantic Search: Understanding the Differences and Use Cases
    Manticore Search offers a powerful solution that integrates both lexical and semantic search capabilities. This combination allows users to benefit from the precision of keyword-based searches while also leveraging the contextual understanding of semantic search. Whether you're building an e-commerce platform, a content management system, or a research tool, Manticore Search provides the flexibility to implement... - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Fuzzy Search vs. Vector Search: Exploring Modern Search Technologies
    If you're interested in harnessing both fuzzy and vector search in your projects, consider exploring Manticore Search. It could be the game-changing solution you've been looking for to create a smarter and more effective search experience. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Fuzzy Search vs. Semantic Search: Unraveling Advanced Search Technologies
    Manticore Search stands out as a powerful search engine that skillfully incorporates fuzzy search functionality and supports vector search capabilities. By offering fuzzy search and semantic vector search support, Manticore Search provides a flexible solution adaptable to various search requirements. Whether you need quick, error-tolerant matching or want to experiment with vector-based similarity searches,... - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Xapian and Manticore search, you can also consider the following products

ElasticSearch - Elasticsearch is an open source, distributed, RESTful search engine.

ElasticHQ - Tool for ElasticSearch management and monitoring.

Algolia - Algolia's Search API makes it easy to deliver a great search experience in your apps & websites. Algolia Search provides hosted full-text, numerical, faceted and geolocalized search.

Apache Solr - Solr is an open source enterprise search server based on Lucene search library, with XML/HTTP and...

Elastic Stack - Meet the search platform that helps you search, solve, and succeed

OpenSearch - OpenSearch is a community-driven, open source search and analytics suite derived from Apache 2.0 licensed Elasticsearch 7.10.2 & Kibana 7.10.2. It consists of a search engine daemon, and a visualization and user interface, OpenSearch Dashboards.