Search, Windows Explorer and More in Windows Vista - Search

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Search for files.

To open

Start -> Search

Start -> Enter text in Start Search

Enter text in Search box in Windows Explorer.

Description

Search has been embedded so deeply into Windows Vista and Windows Explorer that at first it can be difficult to know where to begin. Should you use the Search box inside Windows Explorer? The one inside Internet Explorer? The Start Search box that appears when you click the Start button? How about choosing Start -> Search to go straight to the Search Folder and Advanced Search screen?

Table 4-1 shows the major ways you can perform a search in Windows Vista and recommendations on when to use which.

Table 4-1. Different ways to search

Search method	When to use it
Search box in Windows Explorer	Best for searching inside individual folders and subfolders, because it searches only the current folder and subfolders. Also best for searching on filenames.
Start ? Search (leads to Search folder and Advanced Search)	Best for performing complex searches across multiple folders and for when you want to save a search for future use.
Start Search box on the Start menu	Best for quick searches across multiple folders or for searching the Internet. Not good for searching for filenames.
Search box in Internet Explorer	Best for searching the Internet.

Windows Vista performs a search while you type your search term into a Search box. So as you type the letters vis, for example, it will display all files that have vis in them and will narrow the search as you type more letters into the box.

Understanding searching and the index

When you search for a file on your computer, you aren't actually searching your entire hard disk. Instead, you're searching the Windows Vista index, which makes searching lightning fast.

Sometimes you will search outside the index. For example, when you perform a search inside a folder, you also search the filenames inside the folder, not just the index. And, as explained later, you can also expand your search to nonindexed locations when you want.

Although the index makes searching lightning fast, it can cause some confusion, as well. By default, your entire PC is not indexed, because doing that would defeat the purpose of the index--it would get so large that it would slow down your search.

By default, the following are indexed:

1. Your user folder (\Users\ username ), which contains your Documents, Music, Pictures, and Videos folders, as well as Contacts, Favorites, and the hidden AppData folder, which contains your Windows Mail messages.
   
2. Offline files, which are files stored on a server or network drive that you have configured to be available offline. For details, see "Offline Files," in Chapter 7.
   
3. The contents of your Start menu.

That's well and good, but what happens if you don't store files and folders underneath your user folder? What if you store them in other places on your hard disk? Then you won't find them when you perform a search, unless you specifically search for them outside the index, which of course defeats the purpose of the index.

There is a solution, however. You can add any folders you want to the index (and take them away, as well). For details, see "Indexing Options," earlier in this chapter. A simple way to get to the Indexing Options screen is from Windows Explorer, by choosing Search Tools -> Modify Index Locations. (The Search Tools icon appears only after you type text into the Search box.)

The Windows Explorer Search box

The Search box in Windows Explorer searches only within the current folder and subfolders beneath it. It searches the index and the names of files in the folder and subfolders, and displays results directly in Windows Explorer, as you can see in Figure 4-16.

Figure 4-16.  Results when searching from a folder in Windows Explorer

You can sort, filter, group, and stack the results, as you can normally with Windows Explorer. (For details, see "Windows Explorer," later in this chapter.)

At the bottom of your results, you'll see a "Did you find what you were searching for?" heading. Beneath that, you will see an Advanced Search link, which will launch an advanced search when clicked. (See the next section, "The Search Pane and Advanced Search," for details.) If the folder you've searched through hasn't been indexed, you'll also see a link to "Search in File Contents," which will search the actual contents of the files in the folder, rather than just the filenames.

The Search Pane and Advanced Search

To make it easier to search in a folder, you can turn on the Search Pane (Figure 4-17), by selecting Organize
-> Layout -> Search Pane.

Figure 4-17.  The Search Pane in Windows Explorer, which makes it easy to search for specific file types

The Search Pane is not normally available as an option from Organize -> Layout. However, as soon as you type text into the Search box, the option will be available. Delete the search or move your cursor out of the box, and the Search Pane will no longer be available. However, the option is always available from the Computer and Desktop folders.

The Search Pane makes it easy to search for different file types; click the file type for which you want to search, and then perform your search.

The Search Pane also displays an Advanced Search button at the far right of the screen. Click it, and Advanced Search appears (Figure 4-18). Use of Advanced Search is self-explanatory and needs no further clarification. If you want to search outside the index, check the box next to "Include non-indexed, hidden, and system files," although as Windows Vista warns you, this may slow down your search considerably.

Figure 4-18.  Advanced Search, which lets you fine-tune your searches

The Location field can be extremely useful if you're on a network, because you can add network drives and folders to your search. Select "Choose search locations" from the Location field, then browse to the network PCs, folders, and devices you want to search (Figure 4-19) and include them in the search.

Figure 4-19.  Adding network locations to your search

The Start Search box

The Start Search box on the Start menu works much like the Search box in Windows Explorer, with some differences. It searches your entire PC, not just within an individual folder and subfolders. As you type, it shows you these results, grouped according to the types listed here (and shown in Figure 4-20): 

• Programs (includes utilities and Control Panel applets as well as programs)
  
• Favorites and History (from the Internet)
  
• Files (includes folders and shortcuts)
  
• Communications (email and chat transcripts)

Click any result to view it, open it, or launch it. To see all results in Windows Explorer, click "See all results." To search the Internet using your default search engine, click "Search the Internet," and a search will be launched using your default browser.

Figure 4-20.  Searching from the Start menu

The Search folder and saving searches

When you choose Start -> Search, you're sent to the Search Results folder (Users\username\Search Results), which starts as a blank Windows Explorer screen, with the Search Pane turned on. You can do a basic Windows Explorer search from here, or turn on Advanced Search in the usual way. Even starting in the Users\username\Search Results  folder, though, youll do a search of your entire PC, not just the individual folder.

To save a search, click Save Search. From the screen that appears (Figure 4-21), give the search a name. File extensions for searches are .search-ms, and by default, they are saved in the \Users\username\ Searches  folder, but you can save them to any folder.

There are many ways to return to a saved search. You can navigate to the .search-ms  file and double-click it. There's a faster way, though: in the Navigation Pane, click More under Favorite Links, and choose Searches. You'll be sent to the \Users\username\ Searches folder, and a list of all saved searches will appear--not just those that you've created, but also those that Windows Vista has already created for you, including searches for all recent documents, recent email, recent music, and more.

Figure 4-21.  Saving a search so that you can latter return to it

Note that you can save searches not only when you use Start -> Search, but also when you're inside any folder in Windows Explorer. Your searches will be saved by default to your Search folder, no matter where you start your search.

Using Search Properties and syntax

The Windows Explorer Search box (and other search boxes also) lets you search using file properties, as well as a specialized syntax that makes finding files easier. You can search on any metadata associated with any files as a quick way to find what you want. Table 4-2 shows you some of the more common properties you can search on and how to search using them.

Table 4-2. Search properties

Property	Property description	How to search for it
Filename	The name of the file.	Type part or all of the filename. To find a file named budget.xls, you could type budg or .xls.
Kind of file	A description of the file, such as Document, Picture, Video, or Music.	Type the kind of filefor example, Music for any music files.
File extension	The file extension, such as .xls, .doc, .jpg, and so on.	Type the filename extension. You can also use wild-cards for example, *.mp3.
Tags	Words or phrases you or others added to the files to describe them.	Type a tag to see a list of files that have the matching tag.
Author	The person who created the file.	Type the name of the author.

Use properties with the proper syntax to narrow the search. For example, to search for files that have the name "budget" in them, you would type this:

  Name:budget

To search for files with the tag of "budget" you would type:

  Tag:budget

To find files modified on November 7, 2006, you would type:

  Modified:11/07/2006

You can also use the Boolean filters AND, NOT, and OR; the comparison operators > and <; and grouping syntax, such as "" and (). Furthermore, you can combine them with searching for file properties.

If you want to forgo complex searches and having to remember search syntax, you can also use natural language search, which, as explained earlier, is the ability to search for files using plain English rather than complex syntax.

For example, instead of typing:

  Kind:music artist:(Gluck or Salieri)

you could type:

  Music by Gluck or Salieri

If you want to do that, you'll have to turn on natural language search, using the Search tab of the Folder Options window. See "Folder and Search Options," earlier in this chapter, for details.

Notes

1. When using Boolean filters, you have to capitalize AND, NOT, and OR.
   
2. To modify how and where to search--for example, whether to include subfolders in searches, when and how to use the index, and so on--use the Search tab of the Folder Options screen. For details, see "Folder and Search Options."

See also

"Windows Explorer," "Folder and Search Options," and "Indexing Options"

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Shadow Copies

Shadow copies are made every time Windows Vista creates a restore point, and they can be used to restore previous versions of files. See "System Protection and System Restore," in Chapter 11, and "File Properties," in this chapter, for details.

 

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