surprisingly simple
To search the db based on Category ID simply add the following to the end of the url of the page to that will display the results of the search.
?CategoryID=2&Search=1
example: http://www.YOURWEBSITE.com/displayresults.php?CategoryID=2&Search=1
The CategoryID in this instance is 2.
This solved my problem and I was able to complete the project. Basically when a user clicks the link it takes them to a page that displays only products with CategoryID of 2. I hope it helps, not sure if this is the best way to accomplish the job.