Linked by Thom Holwerda on Sun 28th Mar 2010 17:02 UTC
"Search has become an integral part of Windows, particularly in later versions. While the major search improvements began with Windows Vista and were backported to Windows XP, it's really only with Windows 7 that the larger majority of users are discovering the search bar all over in the operating system. Search is built into every aspect of Windows 7 to help users cope with the increasingly rapidly growing number of files, be they work documents and e-mails, personal photos and videos, or music collections. Many users perform searches without thinking nowadays: it's an ingrained habit of using the operating system. Like many habits, this one is worth breaking in order to to develop an even better one. Here we take a quick look at a few basic search techniques and a few more advanced ones. Force yourself to use them and you'll soon become a master of Windows Search. A bit of extra time now will save you loads of effort in the long run."
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RE: While search is nice...
by Laurence on Sun 28th Mar 2010 19:20
in reply to "While search is nice..."
Member since:2007-03-26
RE: While search is nice...
by project_2501 on Sun 28th Mar 2010 20:42
in reply to "While search is nice..."
Member since:2006-03-20
I agree - it trying to fix a sympton - not the cause. The root being that the control panel is not logically organised. Even back in XP or win2k days, what was in Admin Tools and what was in control panel, and what was hidden is som obsure msc applet or could only be called up by some powertool.
crazy. and not a fix but an admission of failure.
what next? malware trying to SEO their way up the windows search results so you get malware masquerading as admin tools to grab your admin password?
i thought Microsoft employed the brightest and best, did none of them pipe up and protest this madness?
I have enough trouble trying to convince friends of the need for AV because windows doesn't "just work". Trying to convince them not to belive the ads and malware in their search results will be even more fun.
RE[2]: While search is nice...
by darknexus on Sun 28th Mar 2010 21:43
in reply to "RE: While search is nice..."
Member since:2008-07-15
what next? malware trying to SEO their way up the windows search results so you get malware masquerading as admin tools to grab your admin password?
Holy crap, I didn't even think of that. Ouch, that is seriously brilliant, and could be very effective too. If they find a way to do it we could have a whole new generation of malware even nastier than what we've got now.
Member since:2009-07-17
RE: While search is nice...
by Karitku on Mon 29th Mar 2010 07:36
in reply to "While search is nice..."
Member since:2006-01-12
I can't help but feel that, in certain parts of Windows, Microsoft is pushing search so they do not have to redesign the UI. The control panel, in both Vista and 7 (without classic mode in Vista obviously) is a mess and it is difficult to find what you're looking for without search. If we start using search *that* much, maybe we should've just stayed in the CLI and reserved GUI only for apps that needed it. It almost seems like we're going in reverse, or maybe sort of an odd backward spiral.
That problem exists on every platform from phones to desktop OS. I still have nightmares on Suse settings. Keep mind that search is always option! Microsoft or any other isn't forcing to use just search! Search is wonderful solution when you are not familiar with system, hardcore users find stuff easily.
BTW I don't find control panel mess in Windows 7 nor Vista but it is huge mess in XP, there is tons of icons without any description and every time I ask novice user to click something it takes half a minute before they find it.
Another great example is Sharepoint 2007 settings, they are insane mess for novice user but still many veteran user was complaining that it's hard to find stuff in Sharepoint 2010 because Microsoft redesigned settings view. Habits die hard! When people say stuff is confusing person next to him should ask is because it really is or because they are just used to something else.
xp cpl list is alpha sorted
by sPAZbEAT on Tue 30th Mar 2010 05:30
in reply to "RE: While search is nice..."
Member since:2009-07-17
1) In the list in xp, user must know something about the name of the cpl.
2) Similarly in the multiclick, sub-windows in vista, must guess in which subwindow/panel you might want to open.
So search is another way to try guessing where things are. (also, vista allows toggling to classic (list) view.)
Some apps install stuff into control panel, though, so xp's list gets long. I wonder if this 3rd party stuff create new subpanels, or must dump themselves into a single subpanel?
(in arstechnica link:)
1) looking at the huge list, those searches require too much typ(o|)ing! Some kind of customizable flyout/pulldown should be faster (I'll rarely search for cameramodel:DoIRecallWhetherTheModelNameContainsHyphen?) Kind: looks useful.
2) I've become accustomed to regex in agentransack... vista/7's boolean looks wordy.
3) Where in xp, have vista's "major search improvements" been "backported"?
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/13/13 14:35 UTC
The third and final WWDC product I want to talk about is - of course - OS X 10.9 Mavericks. While iOS 7 was clearly the focus of this year's WWDC, its venerable desktop counterpart certainly wasn't left behind. Apple announced OS X 10.9 Mavericks, the first OS X release not to carry the name of a big cat.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/11/13 17:07 UTC
We already talked about iOS 7 yesterday (after a night of sleep, it's only looking worse and worse - look at this, for Fiona's sake!), so now it's time to talk about the downright stunning and belly flutters-inducing new Mac Pro. As former owner and huge, huge, huge fan of the PowerMac G4 Cube - I haven't been this excited about an Apple product since, well, I would say the iMac G4. This is the Apple I used to love.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/10/13 23:13 UTC
Apple held its big keynote event thing at WWDC earlier this evening, but since I was away with friends I've had to read up on it later in the evening. The company announced iOS 7, OS X 10.9 Mavericks, and they gave a preview of the new Mac Pro. Especially the Mac Pro impressed me, and while iOS 7's new Holo/Metro-inspired theme looks messy and garish to me, I do commend Apple for finally breaking the mold. This news item will focus on iOS 7 - I'll dive into the Mac Pro and OS X 10.9 tomorrow (it's late here now).
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/08/13 14:57 UTC
And yes, the PRISM scandal is far, far from over. More and more information keeps leaking out, and the more gets out, the worse it gets. The companies involved have sent out official statements - often by mouth of their CEOs - and what's interesting is that not only are these official statements eerily similar to each other, using the same terms clearly designed by lawyers, they also directly contradict new reports from The New York Times. So, who is lying?
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/07/13 11:40 UTC
This story is getting bigger and bigger. Even though most Americans probably already knew, it is now official: the United States government, through its National Security Agency, is collecting the communications and data of all American citizens, and of non-Americans using American services, through a wide collaboration with the large companies in technology, like Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and so on. Interestingly enough, the NSA itself, as well as the US government, have repeatedly and firmly denied this massive spying on Americans and non-Americans took place at all.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/04/13 12:45 UTC
Ah, patents - the never-ending scourge of the technology industry. Whether wielded by companies who don't actually make any products, or large corporations who abuse them because they can't compete in the market place or because they're simply jerks, they do the industry a huge disservice and are simply plain dangerous. According to The Wall Street Journal (circumvention link), president Obama is about to take several executive actions to address patent trolls - which may seem like a good idea, but I am very worried that all this will do is strengthen the positions of notorious patent system abusers such as Apple and Microsoft.
Linked by nfeske on 05/31/13 10:12 UTC
With version 13.05, the developers of the Genode OS Framework take measures to ensure that Genode continues to scale well with a growing number of users and the steadily broadening platform coverage. Further highlights are the improved SoC support for Exynos 5, OMAP4, Raspberry Pi, i.MX, and new components for realizing headless systems.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/29/13 16:59 UTC
At the D11 conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook once again took the stage to be interviewed by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. While most of the interview can be replicated by picking and reading 10 random Apple fanblog stories - there were still a number of very interesting things that warrant some closer scrutiny.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/24/13 17:26 UTC
So, the Xbox One disaster continues. Microsoft's policy for dealing with the used games market has reportedly leaked - and it's a clear and direct attack to destroy the used games market. Prices for used games will be set at the retail value of a new game, and retailers have to hook into Microsoft's computer systems and comply with Microsoft's terms and conditions.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 21:38 UTC
At an event earlier today, Microsoft unveiled the next Xbox - the third model, but confusingly named Xbox One. The big focus was TV, integrated Kinect, and all the other stuff we all expected to be forced down our throats. I think it took them 25 minutes to actually come to what should be the core of the story: gaming. Nothing groundbreaking in the gaming department, except for how Microsoft intends to handle the used games market and borrowing games from friends: pay up, buddy!More Features »
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I can't help but feel that, in certain parts of Windows, Microsoft is pushing search so they do not have to redesign the UI. The control panel, in both Vista and 7 (without classic mode in Vista obviously) is a mess and it is difficult to find what you're looking for without search. If we start using search *that* much, maybe we should've just stayed in the CLI and reserved GUI only for apps that needed it. It almost seems like we're going in reverse, or maybe sort of an odd backward spiral.