Skip to content

Google Desktop Search - Version 1

The excellent Google Desktop Search (GDS) is now out of beta and is a full grown product.

The excellent Google Desktop Search (GDS) is now out of beta and is a full grown product. With this first official release comes a set of welcome new features and an established path for the development of extras.

GDS now supports PDF files and does NOT index password protected Word documents (which it did during the beta). More email programs are supported as well as a wider range of browsers.

There is an automatic update process for GDS but it may not have kicked in for your computer. You can tell the version that you are using by clicking on the About menu item from the system tray; look at the bottom of the page and you’ll see a series of numbers. 20050227 indicates that it’s the latest release.

If you have another number then you can wait until the update process happens automatically, or you can download the update yourself. Go to http://desktop.google.com/ and download the new version. After installation you’ll probably be prompted to restart your computer, so this is probably a good time to run Windows Update and see if there’s anything major needing attention there.

This update to Google Desktop Search is one reason why our Desktop Search Handbook (DSH) is an evolving ebook – instead of just one unchanging edition all buyers will get updated copies for no additional charge throughout 2005. Naturally we’ll release a new version of the already popular DSH, with a revised look at Google Desktop Search in all its wonders.

 

About this author