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Introduction - How Google Desktop works

You have lots of information on your computer, and you see a lot more on the web. With Google Desktop, whenever you look at a web page, read an email or edit a file, Desktop indexes that item and copies its contents into your local cache, so you can quickly and easily find all this stuff right when you need it.

This page will help you get started using Google Desktop. You can also visit our Google Desktop Features page for more information.

Starting Google Desktop

Do I need to do anything after installing Desktop to get it to work?

Nope -- once you install Desktop, it will begin working automatically the next time you log in to your computer. If you want to start it immediately after installation, click the Google Desktop menu item from the Start Menu (or the K menu in KDE, the Application menu in Gnome).

Once Desktop has started, it also indexes new items in real time as you see them. For example, it can find a web page immediately after you view it, or an email right after you read it (if you don't see the Desktop tab on your browser, restart the browser).

How long does the initial indexing take? Can I use my computer while it's going on?

Depending on how much data your computer contains, Desktop can take up to several hours to index all your existing information. This one-time indexing, however, is designed to peacefully co-exist with your normal work, so you can keep on using your computer while the indexing takes place.

What if there's stuff that I don't want Google Desktop to index?

No problem -- you can tell Desktop not to index certain items by adding them to the "Don't Search" list in your Google Desktop preferences. You can also have Desktop remove specific files, folders and URLs from its cache.

Using Google Desktop

How do I search my computer with Google Desktop?

You do desktop searches the same way you do Google web searches: simply enter your search terms into a query box and hit Enter, and you should find what you're looking for on the resulting search results page.

There are two ways to get to a desktop search query box:

1. With the Desktop application running, press the Ctrl key twice to call up the Quick Search Box.
   

---OR--


2. On the Google.com homepage, click the Desktop link above the search box.
   

Viewing Search Results

Press Enter to open the selected result. Use the arrow keys to select other results, then press Enter. Or, use the mouse to select and open any result.

What if I want to see more results for these search terms?

Click the line that reads "See all results in a browser."

What if I want to search the web for these terms?

Click the line at the top that reads "Search Web." This line may hide under "Search More" if "Search Web" isn't your default search type.

Browser Search Results Page

In a web browser, your Desktop search results page lists all the items in your index that match your search terms. By default, it lists your most recent items first; you can click "Sort by relevance" near the top of the page to change the order of your search results.

A small icon to the left of each result identifies the result's type: whether it's an email, web page, folder, document, and so on.

When you click on a result's title, you'll go to the current version of that result.

• If you click on a web page title link, you'll go to that web page.
• If you click on an email message subject link, you can read the email in your browser.
• If you click on a file title link, the most recent version of that file will open, using the appropriate application (for example, gedit for text files in Gnome).
• If you click on a folder link, the folder will open in the default file browser.

What if I want to see an old version of a file or web page?

Just click on the item's "Show cached" link on the results page to see all versions of the item that Desktop has in its cache. This is particularly useful when you accidentally delete a file.

What if I only want to see one type of result - just emails, web pages, media files, and so on?

Near the top of your results page is a line that lists how many items Desktop found of each result type. Click on a result type and you'll get a page showing only results of that type; click "emails," for instance, and you'll get a list of only email results.

Modifying Preferences

What if I have files and folders that I don't want Google Desktop to index?

Open the Quick Search Box, click "Preferences," go to the "Local Indexing" tab and check "Remove Deleted Items."

What if I don't want Google Desktop to show deleted documents?

Open the Quick Search Box, click "Preferences" and check "Remove Deleted Items."

What if I want Google Desktop to temporarily stop indexing and remembering what I look at?

Right-click the Desktop tray icon and select "Index -> Pause indexing..." from the popup menu.

What if I stopped Google Desktop from indexing and I want it to start indexing again?

Right-click the Desktop tray icon and select "Index -> Resume indexing..." from the popup menu.