Vista Search problems

  • Thread starter Thread starter GaryDean
  • Start date Start date
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GaryDean

Vista search continues to confound me. I'm sure it works but it has clearly
been obfuscated. After going through the tutorial I still can't get how it
works...

I want to fine a string in a file. A "string" not a word.
If I search for <appSettings *.config it works (the string is preceded by a
space)
But if I search for appSettings *.config, nothing is returned

I've tried all sorts of quotes and things.

On Good Ole XP and Server 2003 I have no problem finding a string.
(I hope so much that Windows 7 works like XP)
 
I do now but it does not change the behavior.

As a funny aside, I typed appSettings *.config and checked the non-indexed
location box. It returned all .cs files containing that string but not
..config files.
 
Vista search continues to confound me. I'm sure it works but it has clearly
been obfuscated. After going through the tutorial I still can't get how it
works...

I want to fine a string in a file. A "string" not a word.
If I search for <appSettings *.config it works (the string is preceded by a
space)
But if I search for appSettings *.config, nothing is returned

I've tried all sorts of quotes and things.

On Good Ole XP and Server 2003 I have no problem finding a string.
(I hope so much that Windows 7 works like XP)
Click to expand...

Hello Dean,

The syntax has changed and Search is now word-based. You can ignore spaces
and punctuation. If you are searching within file names, try this from
Win Explorer:

ext:config appSettings

That searches for a file name with the specified extension containing the
words "app" and "Settings". An upper-case letter in the middle of a word
is considered a word break.

I always try a search without wild cards first, as they are needed much
less often that in prior versions of search. Your syntax was not limited
to file names (making it slower), and did not need a wild card character
because of the space after "Settings".

Doug M. in NJ
 
Doug,
nope. ext:config appsettings does not find the string appsettings. However
ext:config <appsettings does find that string which is perceded by a blank
just as before.
I'm thinking that Vista search is worst than obfuscated: it does not work
correctly.
 
Doug,
nope. ext:config appsettings does not find the string appsettings. However
ext:config <appsettings does find that string which is perceded by a blank
just as before.
I'm thinking that Vista search is worst than obfuscated: it does not work
correctly.
Click to expand...

1. Shut off the Indexing Service
2. Install "Agent Ransack"
3. Eschew Obfuscation
 
Doug,
nope. ext:config appsettings does not find the string appsettings. However
ext:config <appsettings does find that string which is perceded by a blank
just as before.
I'm thinking that Vista search is worst than obfuscated: it does not work
correctly.
Click to expand...

Gary,

I tested my example syntax before posting it and it worked. I'm using
Search version 4 on Vista Home SP1.

Please post the full name of the file that you are looking for -- I had to
guess at the rest of it. Based on your post, I created a file named "My
appSettings Test.config". I put a space on either side of the appSettings
string because your post mentioned the preceding space and also showed a
following space, before the wild card character. Was that correct?

I'm puzzled by the left angle bracket in your second query -- as far as I
know, that is only used when filtering values like dates (it is the "less
than" operator) . The bracket has no meaning in a search of file names.
In file content searches, a string containing angle brackets should be
enclosed in quotes. The quotes tell search not to treat the < character
as an operator.

Doug M. in NJ
 
Doug,
I'm a software developer (I have no problem with c# but Vista search is
beyond my capability) and our .net config files are all xml files so we have
a lot of <>....

As far as I can tell Vista can't find strings, just words. for instance if
a file contains xappsettingx
it can't be found. but if there is a space before appsetting in the file
then it can be found. My files
have a lot of <appSettings> but it can't find the string appSetting.
 
Doug,
I'm a software developer (I have no problem with c# but Vista search is
beyond my capability) and our .net config files are all xml files so we have
a lot of <>....

As far as I can tell Vista can't find strings, just words. for instance if
a file contains xappsettingx
it can't be found. but if there is a space before appsetting in the file
then it can be found. My files
have a lot of <appSettings> but it can't find the string appSetting.
Click to expand...

Gary,
That is correct. You are not searching within file names, so my example
above does not apply. As I understand it, the shift to word-based
searching was made for primarily for speed. It's fine for typical users.

There are a vast number of specialized search utilities out there, some of
them free. With a little digging, I'm sure that you can find one that
suits your needs. I use MS XML Notepad for the type of search that you
describe, but of course I must open the file first.

Good luck,
Doug M. in NJ
 
Doug,
I'm a software developer (I have no problem with c# but Vista search is
beyond my capability) and our .net config files are all xml files so we have
a lot of <>....

As far as I can tell Vista can't find strings, just words. for instance if
a file contains xappsettingx
it can't be found. but if there is a space before appsetting in the file
then it can be found. My files
have a lot of <appSettings> but it can't find the string appSetting.

--
Regards,
Gary Blakely
Dean Blakely & Associates
www.deanblakely.com
Click to expand...

See my previous post in this thread, or suffer the consequences!
 
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