yes, it is as designed to use text boxes on the search form.
as long as you keep the name the same, you could edit the code to change it to a text area.
Your friends over here at WebAssist! These Dreamweaver extensions will assist you in building unlimited, custom websites.
These out-of-the-box solutions provide you proven, tested applications that can be up and running now. Build a store, a gallery, or a web-based email solution.