Sort By as a dropdown Menu

I think you would have to write a custom block to do that. You can look at the code used to implement to current sort block. The drop down would have to appear within a form pointing to search/apachesolr_search. If you want the form to submit without the user having to click a submit button, you would have to write some JS. It's not trivial, but it is doable.

has anyone done this and can you share how? I don't know how to write code and I have searched these forums for hours. I keep ending up on the drupalorg design cusomizations - but I can't find the answer there either.

Any help would be appreciate - thanks.

Please see apachesolr_sort module. This is not something we'd support in the main module for now

Not relevant to the 6.x version, but I did post a sandbox project Apache Solr Select Sort for 7.x providing this functionality. I don't plan on maintaining it any further, but would love to pass it off to someone who wants to refine it and maintain it is as a full project on D.O. I am also willing to move the functionality to the Apachesolr Sort UI module if the community thinks that is the best way forward.

Cross posting to discussion on G.D.O. at http://groups.drupal.org/node/227623

Moving this to the Sort UI queue

Merged in to this project

Cool... so just to clarify I can deprecate the Apache Solr Select Sort sandbox?

Yes you can :)

Great. Thanks!

Nick, I added a new issue to let you know that your merge is missing apachesolr_sort_admin.inc.
#1665096: HEAD for 7.x-1.x-dev branch is dead in the water