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I've never cared much for the "Find by Content" feature in the Mac OS Sherlock search engine. The necessity of indexing the hard drive has always seemed too much of a hassle. I have maybe ten thousand word processor and text editor documents archived, and the feverish racket from hard drive trying to index all that always put me off me so much that I just turned off the FBC stuff in the OS 9 Extensions Manager. OS X Sherlock is much more efficient at indexing the drive while you're working, and doesn't slow machine to a crawl when the process is ongoing, as was the case in OS 9. 
If you want to index a volume on your hard drive, open Sherlock and check the "On" box beside an item that is indexable (the Mac OS X start-up volume can't be indexed because it may contain files belonging to other users). Choose Index Now from the Find menu to index or update the selected volume. 
As you can see from the screen shot, most of the volumes on my hard drive are not indexed, although my Home folder has been for some reason I don't recall, updated the last time back in June. You can also set Sherlock to automatically index selected items in the Sherlock window by opening the Preferences and choosing "Automatically Index items When Sherlock Is Opened." However, I obviously don't use Sherlock for content searches, even though I usually do several every day. Even with indexing completed, the implementation is to lame. For one thing, Sherlock only indexes the first two thousand words in a file. I have many documents with well over 2000 words, so this is a half-baked solution for me. For another thing, the Sherlock content search is just not configurable enough. Especially when searching for phrases. It will turn up results for any word that appears in the phrase, and even parts of words that match (i.e.: "even" if you're searching for "evening"). Instead, I mainly used a wonderful little shareware application, SpeedSearch, which, as its name indicates, is very fast, and which happily requires no indexing. It also searches the entire content of all documents in the folders selected. 
SpeedSearch has a substantially richer and more complex set of features than Sherlock Find by Content, and is consequently somewhat more powerful. SpeedSearch uses WASTE to display search results. The size of search results is limited only by application memory, and the colors used to display search results are user-configurable. SpeedSearch displays results similar to UNIX grep -- each line that matches the search string is displayed in the results area. And like grep, SpeedSearch supports regular expressions.
Features:
To use SpeedSearch, select a start folder using the dialog box or drag and drop a folder on the Start Folder icon in the SpeedSearch window and specify the string to search for, then start the search. Any files containing text that match the search string are displayed, along with the lines that matched, in the results area. You can search in either a single folder or in one or more volumes. A Start Folder Favorites popup-menu is located to the right of the Start Folder field. You can set the start folder by selecting an item from this menu. Recently searched folders are placed at the top if this menu. The maximum number of recently searched folders is set in the preferences. Instead of specifying a single start folder, you can also search one or more entire volumes. To specify the volumes, select the "Select Start Volumes…" item in the Search menu. This will bring up a dialog that allows you to specify the volumes to be searched. You specify the string you want to search for in the field labeled "Search For:". By default, the text is searched for exactly as entered. However, you can have SpeedSearch treat the string as case-insensitive, as a whole word, or as a regular expression. The following criteria can be specified:
• Ignore Case
Other Items in the SpeedSearch Window include:
And that just hits the high spots of what this little application can do. SpeedSearch is $10.00 shareware. Registered users of a previous version are entitled to a free upgrade.
For more information, visit:
re: Optimizing Software Re: OS X Odyssey 178 - Windows With Many Views Odyssey 178 and the Dock Homemade Launcher Folder in OS X Re Tim Davenport's Internet Explorer slowdown (Mailbag, Monday 7Oct 02) From Richard Hadfield Hi Charles,
Well it's just a beautiful day in the City of Sails. No clouds but more importantly no wind. Go to
Okay Mac stuff; I have been an early adopter of all the OS's that Apple has churned out way back to 1.4. I now have this cool iMac 17in FP. I also have a Pismo and a 8600/300 [7 years old now].There are various Macs in the garage retired. The 8600 is, I suppose, my main machine, as it is John Farr's; it's tricked out to the max with internal Cheetah drives etc and attached to a 21in CRT. This runs 9.1. The Pismo 10.1.5 and the iMac 10.2.1. I like X, I like the eye candy and the DVD player controller is nicer than 9's. I play a lot of DVDs. The iMac is hooked up to Sound sticks and an iSub. You know.. all the toys! The Pismo and iMac have Airport cards and the Snow Base Station is attached to my ISDN router to my ISP and then there is nothing but net. My main browser on these machines is Mozilla 1.1 and this is also my e-mail client. Don't like separate e-mail clients. Like getting HTML mail and then straight to the web. On the 8600 I use Netscape 4.8. The problem with the 8600 is that the fan is noisy and so is the HP Laserjet 4M. I have this quiet iMac in another room. Soooo I went ahead just the other day and connected up the printer to the base station using a Netgear fast Ethernet switch to an Ansante [Asantetalk] bridge via the serial port to the Laserjet. Fine, the Laserjet4M is one great printer had it for 10 years or so...it is just great. Print from the 8600 fine; print from the iMac and Pismo in Classic or 9.2.2 fine. But just forget trying to print using X. It's broken....the X printcenter is useless. Can print from X using Steve Becker's WebPrint Plus X but this is a bit Mickey Mouse. Apple should incorporate the power of LaserWriter 8 into X.....anyone out there from Apple listening? And don't suggest I try other drivers I have.....none of the currrent ones work. Sooo, again, I'm back using 9.2.2 on this iMac and it works - it's fast and reliable and it prints. I know you don't do much printing and this rave isn't of much concern to you but I like to print out your Applelinks stuff and read them outside in the sun;-) Also my main prog. is MYM [Managing Your Money] v 7.0 which is orphaned and only works in Classic or 9. If anyone can carbonise it - cool. Oh I also use FileMaker a lot but that's okay I have v 5.5 which works in X. Another change of subject; we went to Fredericton to a conference on Narrative Matters put on by the Universities of NB and St Thomas. my wife was giving a paper there. Of interest to me was that when, in a previous life, I was at Cassino during WW2. A Canadian tank commander relieved my squadron and was immediately killed...blown to bits but a German shell in front of my eyes...he came from Fredericton. Only been at the front for three days. I took a picture of the War Memorial on the banks of the Saint John River. I guess my point is IMHO the idea that the Americans are going to war against Iraq so they can get control of Iraq's oil fields is totally wrong. War is evil and no trumped up excuse can justify it.
Cheers,
Hi Richard;
Thanks for the interesting report about the AC proceedings, your fleet of Macs, and the printing issues. OS 9 isn't dead yet.
Incidentally, I was born in Fredericton, and still have family living near there.
Charles From Mel Krewall Charles, Michael Koren asked about the "optimizing software" phase of installation of programs. What is happening is that the software is resolving library links that will allow the program to launch faster. If the program did not do this at installation it would have to do it on each launch and during program execution. Definite time savings, so be patient when installing new software. Mel Krewall
Thanks for the info, Mel.
Charles
From Jeremy Scott-Joynt Dear Charles, A quick word in elaboration of your interesting piece. I may be parroting info well known to many users, for which I apologise in advance. But until two weeks ago I simply hadn't noticed there were keyboard shortcuts in OS X's Finder for the three main views: cmd-1 for icon, cmd-2 for list and cmd-3 for column. Another word of advice: I spend most of my time in column, a tactic I heartily recommend to other users. I followed OS X Hints' Rob Griffiths's advice, and keep two windows open at all times, one atop the other, each stretching almost the whole width of the screen and one usually minimised into the dock. It takes a while to get used to the file browser idiom, but over the months that's proved the easiest file management system I've ever used on any machine, Mac or Windows. The return of spring-loaded folders has made it even better. One final thing: I keep a folder at the root level called "bits" as a container for file downloads, installers, and other stuff that changes frequently but doesn't fit anywhere else. There's an "alias" folder in there - kept permanently in the Dock, with a nice distinctive icon instead of just a standard blue folder - with subfolders for graphics, communications, writing, system, search etc, each of which contains aliases to the main programs I use. It takes a bit of housekeeping when you're downloading updates, but it does make for a very efficient means of rapid access for those who prefer not to go the Appswitcher or Classic Apple Menu route.
Best wishes as ever,
Hi Jeremy;
I wasn't aware of the Command view shortcuts. Thanks for the tip.
I find the Column View intrigueing, but haven't really gotten into it yet, although I certainly plan to once I make the transition to using mainly OS X.
I just dump everything on the Desktop by default and then shunt it off to warious destinations. I keep an alias of my Applications Folder in the Dock along with an alias of another storage folder for software installers. There are a bunch of other folders on the desktop for various classes of documents, etc. It's crude, but it works for me.
Charles From Ira Lansing Charles-- You wrote: " I do still have a homemade Launcher folder in OS X, stored in the Dock, but you have to Option-click to open to a list of the aliases within". I'm confused. I too have a folder in the Dock, filled with aliases and all I have to do is click and hold on the folder for a list of its contents to pop up. From within the list I can scroll and pick what I want; no option-click necessary. If you prefer the spatial familiarity of your aliases, why not open that folder onto the Desktop from within the Dock and then double-click the desired alias? That's not much different than under OS 9, but does require a couple more clicks since there are no spring loaded folders (they're back under Jaguar) and no button icons. --Ira Lansing
Hi Ira;
Actually, I should have said "Control-click."
You're right, just holding down the mouse button will open the folder, but that takes even longer (I find it sluggish enough even when I use the Control key).
And yes, one can open the folder and dohble-click an alias, and then one has to close the folder. More clicking. Slow compared with the slick two clicks to open an application with my OS 9 Button view alias Launcher, and the pop-up window closes by itself. All those extra clicks and lost seconds add up.
Charles Homemade Launcher Folder in OS X From Neil Anderson Hi Charles, In Odyssey 178 you mention option-click to open your dock folder, then scroll to what you want. You mean control-click to get a pop-out? Also, a single click opens the folder in a view you select; a command-click can be set to open the window in another type of view; and option-click can be set to open the window in a third type of view. For example, a single click could be set to open the folder window in icon view (whatever view you select, when you close the window, the next time you open that folder it will be in the last view-type you chose for it); command-click could be set to open in column view; and option-click could be set to open in list view.
Happy clicking, Neil
Hi Neil;
I did mean Control click. Mental typo.
Thanks for the tips.
Charles
From Bill DeVille Charles: I experienced a drastic slowdown of performance on the Internet after downloading Microsoft's latest Internet Explorer update for Mac OS X 10.2. There were also general symptoms of slow performance and flakiness in the Finder, with occasional inability to find files. It seems that the new Internet Explorer installation changes file permissions willy-nilly. Solution: Mac OS 10.2's Disk Utility program (it's in the Utility folder inside the Applications folder). Launch Disk Utility, click on the OS X 10.2 boot drive or partition, click on the First Aid tab, then click on Repair Permissions. The repair process may take a few minutes. I've encountered permissions problems from other sources than installing the Internet Explorer update, and they were quickly fixed by Disk Utility/Repair Permissions. It's probably best to do a Restart if permission problems were found and repaired. My guess is that people who complain about slowness with Mac OS X 10.2 have 'scrambled' permissions. I find 10.2 to be very quick and responsive.
Regards,
Hi Bill;
Ah, Microsoft software gumming up the works again. Plus ca change; plus ca meme chose.
Thanks for the report and tips.
Charles
The OS X Odyssey archives may be accessed here: Note: Letters to Moore's Mailbag may or may not be published at the editor's discretion. Correspondents' email addresses will NOT be published unless the correspondent specifically requests publication. Letters may be edited for length and/or context. Opinions expressed in postings to Moore's MailBag are those of the respective correspondents and not necessarily shared or endorsed by the Editor and/or Applelinks management. If you would prefer that your message not appear in Moore's Mailbag, we would still like to hear from you. Just clearly mark your message "NOT FOR PUBLICATION," and it will not be published. CM
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