By default, Internet Explorer 7's search box taps Windows Live Search--not the least bit surprising given that the latter is Microsoft's baby. Unfortunately... hmmm, how to put this politely... Windows Live Search bites.

The good news is, there's an easy to tweak Internet Explorer so it uses the search engine of your choice. Like, say, Google. Here's how:

1. Start Internet Explorer.
2. Click Tools, Internet Options.
3. In the General tab, find the Search section and click Settings.
4. If Google is listed, click it and then click Set Default. If not, click Find more providers, then click Google and follow the instructions. As you'll see, Google is just one of the available options.

That's it! Now, when you click inside IE's search box and type a query, you'll get results from Google (or whatever search provider you set as the default).

Want to change it back? Click the pull-down menu on the right side of the search box and choose Change Search Defaults.

Was I wrong to suggest Google as a preferred alternative to Windows Live Search? What's your search tool of choice?