Google released a slick new tool this morning: “Desktop Search”:http://desktop.google.com. It allows you to search your own computer with the same speed and accuracy as a Google web search.
It requires a thin client installed on your computer, which adds a layered service-provider to your winsock and an icon to your tray. The service keeps a constant watch over your files, re-indexing as often as you make changes. With the client installed, a new “Desktop” item appears next to the familiar Web, Images, Groups, News, and Froogle options above the standard Google search box.
The desktop search indexes the entire contents of Outlook, Outlook Express, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, along with transcripts of your AIM conversations. It also indexes all of your text files and your web history. On top of all that, it indexes your entire file system by filename.
Incidentally, ContentWatch has always had trouble with third-party winsock services, but the Google desktop search LSP seems fairly benign. ContentProtect is still filtering my Internet without a hitch. My guess is that the desktop search should be compatible with most firewall and antiviral software.
h4. External Links
# O’Reilly Network: “[“Google Your Desktop”:http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/network/2004/10/14/google_desktop.html]”
# Wired News: “[“Lost Files? Google the Hard Drive”:http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,65341,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_8]”
Thats cool. But scary. I can’t say I’ll give up my local search tools for it.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Google, but the idea of all my files being indexed on a remote computer just freaks me out.
I do use (and like) Gmail, though.
No, no. It doesn’t index any of your files on Google’s server. When you click the “Desktop” search link from Google’s page, it takes you to a locally generated webpage (on the standard 127.0.0.1 localhost address). The thin client on your box does all the work and “Google doesn’t see any of your files”:http://desktop.google.com/privacypolicy.html.
Ah, ok that makes sense.
I still probaly won’t be using it, though. It ignores XP’s (weak) permission system and allows you to search for *any* files on a computer, even other users. I’m probaly paranoid, but this sounds something that could be exploited and used as a cracking tool.
Hmm. Maybe I will try it after all…