More on Win7 Search idiocy...

By chance I just stumbled across another amazing feature of the Windows Search interface in Win7's Windows Explorer: Do you recall how, when you click in the Search box, a menu with a couple of blue links pops up, that allows you to specify various filters, namely "Kind", "Date modified", "Type", and "Size". Ever wondered if you could specify more filters, without using Advanced Query Syntax? Try this: Expand the Search field (move the mouse pointer between the Address Bar and the Search field, and drag to the left). Now click in the Search field again: Wonder of wonders, you will now have access to a couple of additional Search filters you may have never known about!

So, the question is: What genius designed this interface?

 

Holy Sh**! Yes what genius designed it and then HID it?

This just boggles the mind.

Gary

P.S. Nice find. How did you stumble upon it? +rep

 

wow that's pretty cool. nice find. +1 rep

 

Mine only lets me select date modified and size, regardless of the size.

:/.

 

Even when explorer is maximized, the search box does not expand to scale along with the other parts of the window. This is pretty funny. +rep for finding something so simple yet amusing.

Edit: Akari, you're doing it wrong! You moved the edge of the window outward, but you have to move the point that's between the address bar and search bar.

 

Ooooo, ooooo, ooooo. It gets even BETTER. The options are all context sensitive. Open a folder with music files in it and the search options change to reflect that type of files. Do the same with a picture folder.

I wonder why this is a) so hidden away and b) not documented anywhere?

Gary

 

Excellent question... The whole thing feels like a rush job: Somebody didn't have time to finish things up, maybe.

I found this purely by accident, after I had resized my address bar, and suddenly saw additional options appear for the Search field. In this case, it looks like somebody "forgot" to add these little right arrows indicating more options, and a little drop-down menu for them. Maybe in SP1?

 

Suddenly I hate the Win7 search a WHOLE lot less, especially the context sensitive nature of the options that show up. Really nice find!

Gary

 

I can't see it either! I'm expanding the search bar to the left which makes the address bar smaller, but even if I make it as big as possible I only get date modified and size, like Akari.

It could be either because I'm running Swedish version (which I doubt), or because I have Classic Shell installed ( I missed the Up button )

Is there no documentation in Help? I can't check since I have removed it..

Edit: They showed up after restarting Explorer. I gave you a Rep for that!

 

Figured it out.

I only get additional options when I'm looking through "library" type folders.

This is unfortunate, since most of my files are directly on my desktop/c drive, and in those folders I only get date modified and size.

 

A calendar pops up when clicking Date modified, I've never seen that before..

There must be lots of people who wants the Vista search pane in W7.
Is it really removed, or is it possible that it's disabled somehow?

 

That doesn't say a word about expanding the size of the search box to expose more of the keywords, nor anything about the keywords being context sensitive. That is what I was questioning.

Gary

 

Totally missed that.

Gary

 

Lots of great finds in this thread, nice!

 

More likely is that a programmer engineer and designer added all of it in with a big fat search button, a marketing guy saw it, said "that's ugly" and forced them to hide it. The search functionality is too robust to have been created then hidden by accident.

 

+1
I wonder if there's just a simple registry switch to enable a Search pane button next to New folder button.

Did the search function look the same in W7 beta?

 

I don't know about beta, but as far I remeber it was like that in the RC's

Another search related tip to hit windows key (bottom left of most keyboardss) and F for a more robust search.

 

Pirx wrote:

Yep, the w7 search functions and accuracy may all be there (or rather here and there, now and then), let's hope for a major w7.1 improvement to the user interface. Until then, Agent Ransack does a superb job for my humble needs. & have learned a lot (see http://forum.notebookreview.com/windows-os-software/508287-win-7-search-blows-any-suggestions.html ), great forum.

Mats wrote:

Excellent program, now got the (imo) great xp start menu! Thanks for the tip.

 

Yeah, it's a must have for Windows 7. I don't install the Classic start menu tho, only the Explorer.