Why does Windows Vista x64 search so long?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Dima
  • Start date Start date
D

Dima

Hello!
Why does Windows Vista x64 search so long, especially when the progress in
the bar is at the end and the ring in rolling?
Sincerely,
Dima
 
Searching for what? Indexing took quite a while after I first installed
Vista but searching is nearly instaneous on my system.
 
Hi, Colin.

I think I know what Dima is asking and it's something that I've wondered
about and griped about, too - with no explanation or other feedback from
Microsoft. (Although I do NOT understand Dima's "the ring in rolling"??)

When a search is not "nearly instantaneous" it takes nearly forever. The
green pulsing thermometer (I don't know what else to call it) is drawn, then
redrawn across the Address Bar. It seems to be logarithmic (although I
never took enough math to learn what a logarithm is). That is, when you ask
for an Advanced Search of Computer, the bar first goes half-way across
fairly quickly. Then it goes more slowly to about 3/4 of the way, appearing
to redraw the bar every second or so, then more slowly still to 7/8, etc.,
getting closer to the end with each redraw - but never quite reaching the
end. I watch hopefully as it gets to the little down-pointing triangle,
thinking that it will give up when it gets there and report that it can't
find what it's searching for. But it doesn't. It keeps creeping further,
past the vertical separator at the end of the Address Bar, and then at a
maddeningly slow pace across the red "X" and... hours later, the green bar
is still being redrawn and it STILL hasn't got to the end. :>(

So far as I know, it has never completed or given up on such a search.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX
(e-mail address removed)
Microsoft Windows MVP
(Running Windows Live Mail 2008 in Vista Ultimate x64 SP1)
 
R.C. . .,

I've heard of sifting through large amounts of data organized on Logarithmic
Scales in order to speed things up. . .this sounds more like the
"All-or-nothing Algoritm" with a revenge!

This is perplexing - MS has produced many quite sofisticated search and sort
algoritms that are right there inside the API and ready to use, if you know
how to use them (which I find troublesome). Something has to have gone very,
very wrong somewhere!


Tony. . .
 
I think you're describing the "progress bar." I don't do complex searches
so I have not seen what you're describing. I do seem to recall that SP1
addresses something like that, but it may not be much of a change.
 
Searching for a file or folder.
Colin Barnhorst said:
Searching for what? Indexing took quite a while after I first installed
Vista but searching is nearly instaneous on my system.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks RC for your description!
That was "The ring is rolling" - a replacement for the sand glass.
Yes, RC, this is my problem too.
Sincerely.
 
Thanks Colin Barnhorst for replying!
SP1 did not change this problem.
Does the simple (not advanced) search go through absolutely all files
and folders?
I'm afraid that the simple search takes more time because it searches
through all file and folder properties instead of only needed.
Sincerely.
 
Good anecdote Tony!
Tony Sperling said:
Well, for my own part, I'd say that you cannot make usefull unspecified
searches like that. This somewhat resembles the anecdote:

A prowlcar spots a man crawling under a lamp post at night. They pull up
next to him and asks what is the matter? "I've lost my keys." says man. The
officers step out and takes a thorough look in the surroundings. Nothing
turns up. "Are you sure you lost them right here?" they ask. No -no, that
was over there, but that's completely black and I can't see a thing there!"

I've had much the same experience from my searches - I have to know where
the item is NOT. Exclude CD/DVD's and other removable media if at all you
can. For my self, I have to exclude folders with masses of CD and DVD
*.ISO's as well, because looking through all of that would leave the machine
antiquated before it finished.




Tony. . .
Click to expand...
 
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