$ prefix is kinda bad for php code

[Hippo0o]

in php every variable is a wildcard

[sbeyer]

Maybe it would be a solution to have a PREFIX: $ setting above the "SEARCH:" field and you can change that to, e.g. %, or, even more advanced, the selected text could be checked for $ and if it is contained, the PREFIX: % setting is automatically chosen.

I'm just brainstorming here ;-)