Google Desktop Search 2 - Index Now, Ask Questions Later
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One major issue I have here is that Google indexes every file on your computer before you can control which ones it is using. Then if you do not want them to access certain files, you need to go back and takes steps to remove the content. This isn’t necessarily easy for everyone to do.
You can delete any item from Google Desktop's index. Once you've removed an item from the index, it won't show up in your Desktop search results ever again. The one exception is if you re-read an email in Outlook or Thunderbird, in which case it will get reindexed and added back to your search results.
But remember, you're only deleting Google Desktop's version(s) of the item. The current version is still in your computer, mailbox, or on its website. If you want to get rid of the original, live version of the item, you have to delete it from where it lives, the same as any file, email, or web page that Google Desktop doesn't know about. If you delete the original, live version of an email, file, or web page, and there are copies of it in your Google Desktop cache, those copies will not be automatically deleted. To get rid of the cached copies as well, you'll have to explicitly delete them from Google Desktop.
Google should rethink how the toolbar installs as I should be able to control the indexing before it happens and not have to go through extraneous steps afterward. You can also tell Google to exclude indexing certain directories, but this doesn’t help with Outlook email unless you want to exclude it all. And again, those directories will be indexed shortly after installation, and you need to change things afterwards.
This is something else that has me wondering how much is too much:
Your copy of Google Desktop includes a unique application number. When you install Google Desktop, this number and a message indicating whether the installation succeeded is sent back to Google so that we can make the software work better. Additionally, when Google Desktop automatically checks to see if a new version is available, the current version number and the unique application number are sent to Google. If you enable Advanced Features, this unique application number is included in the information sent to Google. The unique application number is required for Google Desktop to work and cannot be disabled.
Now, is this a good thing? I am not sure, they have me now like a tagged deer, don't you think? We can all have little ear tags applied and allow Google to see our every move online. I wonder how happy they would be if I did all of my internet searches through Yahoo.
Okay so perhaps I am a bit paranoid, but I have always been an early adopter of many new technologies. I hounded my ISP when I knew they started offering DSL broadband (I am on them now for FIOS Service), and take pride in being first in for such toys. However, I think the Google Desktop is a sign of Google wanting to be everything to everyone. If you step back and think for just a moment about where Google has ventured and is headed, you can almost envision a world of Goog... a place where you buy a home from Google real estate, Google controls all the utilities to the home as well as cable, phone service, broadband, and your entertainment choices are all in your Desktop Toolbar. Wait till Google adds control for your washer and dryer into the sidebar.
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