One of the best things that Microsoft Corporation ever created a few years ago is Windows Search (formerly Windows Desktop Search). It creates an index of all the files on your PC, including the contents of your documents. But what made it even better was that it installed a "deskbar" on your Windows taskbar right beside your icons. As such, it definitely is the most convenient free searching software - even better than Google's! Thus, I've been using it for years now.
One day, I installed SolidWorks on my PC. After the installation, I noticed that my deskbar suddenly disappeared! I could still access the Windows Search by going through my Start Menu but I desperately wanted to be able to easily type onto the taskbar.
After some research, I discovered that there is an easy solution to bring the deskbar back. To do this,
- Open registry editor.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\DesktopSearch.
- Delete the db key.
- Restart your machine.
Viola! It comes back and life is good!
Of course, I'm sharing this with you under the presumption that you backed up your registry, that you're comfortable working with the registry editor and that you have the permissions to do so. If the above steps don't make sense to you, please contact your IT person and have him do it for you.
P.S. This post only applies to Windows XP.
Comments