May I make a suggestion that (hopefully?) could help us get back on topic?
First off, though, let me chine in and say that I appreciate the work and research Jerry has done and shared with the community (which, in my mind, is larger than just "OpenACS" but also extends to ACS, WTR, and AOLserver/OpenNSD), and I'd hate to see him ostracized--though my guess is that since his tussle with Kriston didn't cause him to leave, this won't either. ;^) I also appreciate Don's role in getting the OpenACS project off the ground with Ben and Roberto and Dan way back when, and for coordinating the porting effort now and I'm sure no one, Jerry included, wants him to step down.
The topic of this thread is "OpenACS 4 Search Integration, what should it look like?." If we change the title to "Future Search Integration, what should it look like?" (so as not to imply or leave it open for interpretation any attempt to expand the scope of the current 4.0 porting effort or sidetrack it), then perhaps we could have the type of conversation that Jerry was trying to start (this being a discussion forum, after all, where historically lots of people have shared ideas, even those who aren't actively involved in the porting of actual code--even people who don't program themselves). Basically pick up the thread from Ben's reply and continue on...
