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When several xml files belong to a project, searching for a string using *.xml is a slow operation, especially when the user knows the object types that matter to them and the search term can occur in several other xml types. The IDE used to allow search based on file/object type. This feature should be brought back.
Replacement of a find dialogue with another find dialogue with many pros and a few cons is not a defect. I understand your need but I will not track this as defect - I change the status to ENHANCEMENT. For your information, the support for tabs in the Find dialogue has been maintained during redesign and reimplementation of the dialogue. So it is enough to write a custom search type (extends org.openidex.SearchType) and put it to the default lookup and then write a custom search type customizer (a Swing form implementing interface java.beans.Customizer. Names of the SearchType class and the customizer class must have a common base (e.g. TypeOfObject) and suffixes "Type" and "Customizer" (e.g. TypeOfObjectType, TypeOfObjectCustomizer). The Find dialogue will recognize it and display a separate tab for it in the Find dialogue. You do not need to add the search type to the Utilities module - it may be in a separate module.
The Search API has been redesigned, so the issue is now quite outdated. API for custom search providers is now available instead of search types. Closing this issue.