>When searching for a member, the UT tells me I need at least 3 characters for the name. It so happens that two characters is perfectly valid (example: Ed Rauh).

All is ok here. I did some tests and it works as expected.

If you only enter Ed, we require at least three chracters as you would end up with hundreds/thousands of entries. So, you can enter Ed and R in the other field. That'd do it.