Ok friends.
I installed a modification to the forum that should help the differences with the search box in the upper right corner and the search button in the main menu.
The problem before is the difference between the scope of the search. The search in the upper right only searched the immediate context. For example if you were looking in the "Off Topics and General Interest" board and typed something into the box in the upper right and hit search. That search would only happen in the general interest location... Not the entire Eaglers site. You can control the scope for that box now.
There is an "Advanced Search" you can get to in either place now. Said search is the ultimate in parameter control.
I hope this helps with the search results.
-Dan
