The beta release of Google Desktop 5 was just announced on the main Google blog as well as the Desktop blog.
A complete overview of the new and existing Desktop features is here. The most important change is that users now have the ability to preview files in search results directly in the application or browser, which is a time saver. They’ve also upgraded security and redesigned the widget features.
We last covered version 3 of the product, which was released in February 2006. That was the first time Google started (optionally) storing your hard drive index on Google’s servers instead of locally on your own computer.
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Let’s not Forget Copernic Desktop Search.
unforgotten.
Great, than we can go back to that beer again:-)
i like the concept of google desktop.
but in the real world, i don’t see myself using it - nor mainstream america.
“opening” up your computer to the internet will make alot of people feel somewhat violated, insecure and vulnerable - it can be a tough sell
i rarely have to search my computer.
i’m organized enough to know where i keep files, thank you very much
I don’t intend to sound mean, but Google Desktop is still around? I really hate software that just takes up memory like that.
I love google desktop, but I always exit out of it when my computer starts up… google knows all… :O
I just use X1’s search (free, now — what Yahoo! based theirs on), and I can’t get by without it (www.x1.com). PM’ing multiple projects for a huge company, no matter how organized I am, a desktop search saves me TONS of time. I can quickly retrieve any e-mail, document — anything — so long as I can just remember a small phrase. I can’t live with out it anymore.
I originally moved away from Google to Yahoo (and then just to the generic X1 client) because Google kept ‘losing’ my Outlook emails when I would move them to another folder — in other words, it would index them, I would move them to another folder in Outlook, and then it would never update its index. X1 has never suffered from this downfall, so I can always quickly pull up an old email, ‘Reply to All’ right from the X1 interface, and voila!
The Outlook search bar, included in X1, is a nice feature as well! (Outlook’s internal search is soooo TERRIBLY slow!)
Don
Windows is still around
So whats your point?
I never fancied the previous Google desktop search, was user unfriendly and I found that Copernic was far better. I will have to take a look at this one and see how much it has improved.
unfortunately, the new preview simply shows you an HTML-based rendering of your PDF, Word, PPT documents, which is confusing because it strips most of the formatting. So in the end, previewing is useless to me.
What others think?
yahoo desktop search aka x1 is the best.
I use it every day and I love it.
Google, the index king, is expected to be king in desktop search as well, but they are way behind compared to others.
If Google Desktop and others only index in the background, why do they all seem to make my computer run so slow? I would happily trade in a slightly slower search for computer that runs faster when I’m not searching….
I just wish they would let me store the index somewhere other than C drive.
Werner
Has anyone compared X1 vs. Copernic?
Great to see some new features.
I still have a request list:
- Better handling of indexing on non-C drives (ability to opt out for certain removable volumes, and handle others).
- *nix version that could be run on a file server, and workstations can see and read it’s index (so you can view your network documents via your workstation).
- Mac version (kinda goes with the above).
@Werner, you can:
http://lifehacker.com/software.....199630.php
google desktop works and makes sense. Of course its still around.
- Google does know all. The fact that they have warned “that the government will be a bigger security issue, than exploits” …
- If the Government evers gets my info from google Im screwed
Later, RB
Take a look at the new version in Sidebar mode, and then compare to Vista’s Sidebar. This is a complete COPY of the Vista Sidebar!
I loved it and even liked X1, however both brought my laptop to its knees. I finally realized that Goog Desktop was a problem and have been running free and clear for a while now. Might be OK for a more powerful desktop, or even a dual-processor laptop….
I suggest you try Exalead Desktop Search http://www.exalead.com/download/exaleadDesktop
It provides you with very useful refinements !
Anyone know of a Google gadget that lets you play a video in a small window on the sidebar. That would be rather nice.
Does anybody else use Windows Desktop Search. I personally cannot live without it. Am I missing something in the competitors?
Copernic has been around for a long time - haven’t they? Or was that a different product line? Anyways, I don’t know how I ever lived without Google Desktop.
nice
i need this badly
Can the latest Google desktop search Outlook folders other than the INBOX? How?
- Peter