Google, as one might expect, also has a dog in this hunt. Google Desktop Search looks and works a lot like Google--so much so that if you use the Web search tool regularly, there's almost no learning curve. It did a bunch of things Steve liked, such as displaying thumbnails of Web pages stored on his machine and arranging e-mail into conversation threads. And it didn't crash Outlook (though it didn't understand to include incoming messages in replies in Outlook Express, to his disgust). However, the program seemed perplexed by Steve's machine, claiming after two days that it was "still indexing." Steve missed that convenient Yahoo-style preview pane, too.
Angela points out a potentially more dangerous problem with Google Desktop Search: the program wants to index secure Web pages that may be sitting on your machine. If you share your machine or if you're carrying a laptop that somebody else might get their hands on, you've got to configure the software not to index those pages--good advice, notes Steve, for any of these programs. Also, some packages tend to do less-than-helpful things like indexing your deleted mail unless you tell them not to (though, as Angela points out, if you're a little too quick with the Delete button that might not be such a bad thing). A few minutes double-checking the Preferences settings will prove time well-spent for users.
Of course, no burgeoning category would seem complete without an entry from Microsoft. Windows Desktop Search was also in beta when the Duo sat down to tape this episode. It comes as part of a toolbar that attaches to Internet Explorer, Outlook, and even your taskbar at the bottom of the screen ... where it puts up an ad for MSN. The Duo's disgust at that prospect was palpable, and only got worse when Steve noted that the program never managed to finish indexing his hard drive.
Steve's fond of another package, the $50 Enfish Find. It's a lot like Yahoo Desktop Search, but the interface is quirky (though you should get the hang of it pretty quickly). There are fancier versions, but the only one that makes sense for most users is the $50 iteration. The good news is you can download a 30-day free trial to see if you like it.
So where to begin, especially since, as Steve notes, each of these programs tends to come up with slightly different results for searches? Steve says he'd start with Yahoo Desktop Search; if that causes crashes or if you just don't like it, try Google next. And there's always Enfish. For now, he says he'd steer clear of MSN's version. Angela concurs on that point, noting that both the new desktop "decoration" and the search tool's lack of support for Firefox are unacceptable in her world.
She, in fact, isn't going for any of these programs. But Steve argues that even if you don't think so, you need one of these programs, and you'll probably use one later if not sooner. So instead of deleting your e-mail, he says, start saving it--all of it, except for the spam. A few years from now, you'll thank him when you revisit the golden days of 2005--via your PC.
Angela: SAVE
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