Google Desktop and Outlook 2007

[mjf17]

Hey everyone,
I've tried to look for an answer for this before posting but haven't seen it yet. I have Vista on an HP laptop and am using Office 2007. I used to use XP and Office 2003 and really came to rely on GDS to find emails, files, etc.

Since moving to Vista and Office/Outlook 2007, I've found out how to disable the built-in Windows Desktop Search. I've installed Google Desktop Search and have let it fully index the computer (left it overnight for a couple nights). On the page where you can look at the Index Status, it shows a high number for files indexed but only 200 or so emails. I figured out that it has only indexed emails that have come in since I installed it and has not indexed any emails already received.

I tried to look around and seeing no posts or info that matched my situation, I figured I must have just done something incorrectly. So I fully uninstalled GDS (including the option to remove the index) and then reinstalled. As I'm watching the index now build, I'm seeing the files increase, but the number of emails index remains at zero.

Is there something unique about Outlook 2007 and/or Vista which is preventing GDS from indexing existing emails? Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

Thanks in advance for any replies!

-Mike

[rpark@mts.net]

Did you find out if this can be resolved...i.e. have google desktop index Outlook 2007 mail received before installing google desktop search?

[mjf17]

Yeah, it sort of figured itself out. Just make sure the outlook plug in is installed and enabled. Then, I think the thing you have to do is reboot (or at least restart Outlook). If you don't do that, the previous emails don't get indexed. I have a habit of leaving my computer on for days at a time so once I finally restarted, the index built up to where it should be.

I should say, however, that I have since abandoned GDS on Vista. The main reason is because of the performance within Outlook 2007. When GDS is installed and active, the speed at which the reading pane displays successive emails in the Inbox is noticeably slower. So as I go through the emails in my inbox, there's a little hiccup as I touch each email. In addition, I get the "outlook data file did not shut down correctly" so it takes a few hours for it to clear itself. Finally, and this is the most annoying thing, Outlook will crash on starting maybe 4 out of 10 times. After I right-click and end the program and then re-open it, the message comes up that the Google Desktop Plug-In caused the problem and asks if I want to disable it. I always say no, don't disable, and Outlook loads properly. But then, I get to sit through another few hours of the data file figuring itself out.

I think Windows Desktop Search (built into Vista) definitely has its limitations, but at this point, I'd rather just have a more responsive computer than to have all the crashes and recoveries. What I do now is I keep a 2nd computer which runs XP. I synchronize all my files between my computers and do all GDS searches on my XP computer.

Anyway, just my experience. Hope it works ok for you.

-mjf17