what i really need as well is to search the discussion forum of a particular group, is there any plugins for this?

It's exactly what I was looking for too - especially as a new user.  One of the first things I noticed was that I don't want to ask a question that's already been asked in the discussion groups.  A search feature in the discussion groups is exactly what's needed.

Maybe that will be my first coding attempt at expanding functionality.

Haven't seen any plugins that do that. Would be a nice addition to the group functionality.