The Windows XP Search Companion Finds it Faster
Published: September 3, 2001
By Sharon Crawford, Windows XP Expert Zone Community Columnist
Editor's Note: Past articles by members of the online community are archived for your use. The information may become outdated as technology changes. For the most current information, please search the Web site or post a question in the newsgroups.
One experience that all computer users have in common is that of losing files. We've all done it and we've all wasted time in a frustrating search for an elusive document or picture. Admittedly things got easier with the ability to use long file names, but searches still could be difficult.
At first, Windows XP may appear to make searching more complicated, but the new Search Companion, used with care, can make finding lost and strayed items both faster and easier.
You begin your quest in Windows XP in the usual Windows way by clicking the Start button, and then clicking Search. Or, press F3 in My Computer or Windows Explorer to open the default Search Companion window.
If you know what you're looking for, you can shorten the search by selecting one of the items under What do you want to search for? For example, if you're looking for a complaint letter you wrote to the local power company, you'd click Documents (word processing, spreadsheet, etc.).
Of course, the more specific information you can provide, the quicker the search will be. You can specify a date range and all or part of the file name. To get more detailed, click the Use advanced search options link. This gives you an opportunity to add other search criteria including a word or words in the file, the size of the file, specific locations to search, and so forth. Click the Search button to begin the search.
If you're not sure of a particular item, it's best to leave it out. Only when a search based on everything you know turns up empty should you resort to guesses.
Sometimes your search can be too successful because you weren't specific enough—turning up hundreds of results. In this case, Search Companion gives you some options for narrowing the field.
Click the Sort results by category arrow or the View results differently arrow to sort by categories or change the ways you view the results.
Searching Far and Wide
Search Companion in Windows XP can make much broader searches than you might expect. In addition to looking for files and folders on your own computer, if you're on a network or workgroup, you can search shared folders on other computers. To search for a file on another computer, open Search Companion and follow these steps:
1. | Click the Printers, computers, or people link. |
2. | Click A computer on the network. |
3. | Enter the name of the computer and click Search. (If you don't enter a name, all the computers available on your network will appear in the results.) |
4. | Select the computer you want to search, and then click the link for Search this computer for files. |
5. | Make your choice under What do you want to search for? and you can search just as you would on your own hard drive. |
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Search Companion, like Internet Explorer, lets you search the Internet. Click the Search the Internet link and type in a question. If the question is specific enough, the answer will probably be in the top few results. If more information is needed, the Search Companion window will offer more options to narrow the search.
If you're in trouble, you can also click the Information in Help and Support Center link to look for all sorts of Windows XP help.
And, if you have thousands of files on your computer, you may speed up your searches by turning on the Indexing Service. If you don't have thousands of documents to search through, you're unlikely to benefit much from indexing. However, Indexing Service requires no help from you and runs all the time in the background, so there's no harm in trying. To enable the Indexing Service, click Change Preferences, and then click the With Indexing Service link. On the next screen, click the button for enabling the Indexing Service.
No More Dog Days
There are, indeed, strong feelings on both sides about the dog. Rover is the default animated character that appears when you open the Search Companion. People love it or loathe it. There seems to be very little middle ground. Fortunately, everyone can be made happy.
To get rid of the dog, you need only click the Change preferences link in Search Companion, and then select the first option, which lets you use Search Companion without an animated screen character. Or you can select the second option, and choose from an array of other animated characters.
And if you're a fan of the dog (or other character), click directly on the character and select Do a trick. (Merlin definitely has the best repertoire.)
Gimme that Old Time Searching
Not amused by any of the bells and whistles? Yes, you can go back to more unadorned searching, which works more like the search tool in previous versions of Windows. It's an easy process but requires a number of changes that must be done one at a time:
1. | Open a search window, and then click Change preferences. You'll see a list of possible changes. |
2. | Click Without an animated screen character. Click OK. |
3. | Click Change preferences again. |
4. | Click Change files and folders search behavior. Click the Advanced radio button. |
5. | Click Change preferences again. |
6. | Select Don't show balloon tips. Click OK. |
After each change, you'll get a changed search window. When you get the window to look the way you want, you must perform a search before closing Search Companion otherwise all your changes will be lost.
Sharon Crawford is a former editor now engaged in writing books and magazine articles. Since 1993, she has written or co-written two dozen books on computer topics. Her books include Windows 2000 Pro: The Missing Manual, Windows 98: No Experience Required, and Windows 2000 Professional for Dummies (with Andy Rathbone).
