There is a little known feature in Windows 7 that allows you to search for files on websites directly on your computer from within Windows Explorer. Yes, you can search websites from within your web browser using Google or some other search engine, like you always have.
However, there are some advantages of searching from your computer. Windows Explorer starts searching websites and displaying results as you type, just like it does with local files on your computer, so the page for which you are looking, often displays in the results before you even finish typing your search terms. Searches in Windows Explorer also happen very fast.
Searching in Windows Explorer also allows you to view a full page preview of the website without opening a browser. You can even print a webpage, just by right-clicking on the results.
For our example, we will add a Bing search connector to Windows 7 and do a search for Help Desk Geek.
Download the Bing Search Connector from
http://www.bing.com/community/media/p/9538349/download.aspx.
To begin, double-click on the .osdx file you saved.
On the Add Search Connector dialog box, click Add to automatically install the search connector.
The search connector is added under Searches in your user directory in Windows Explorer.
To perform a search, click Bing under Searches and enter a search term in the search box in the upper, right corner of the Explorer window.
To view a preview of a web page from the results, select the desired web page from the list, and click the Show the preview pane button.
The web page displays directly within Windows Explorer.
You can even print the web page from within Explorer. Simply, right-click on the selected web page in the list of results and select Print from the popup menu.
To have quick access in the future to a web page you found, right-click on the selected web page in the list of results and select Create shortcut from the popup menu.
A shortcut is created and placed on your desktop.
You can find search connectors by searching for them online. Here are some for several popular sites to get you started in the Connectors Pack provided by the Redmond Pie website.
by Lori Kaufman
[...] we have written about searching websites directly from on your computer in Windows 7. See our post, Search Websites From Within Explorer in Windows 7. This post will show you how to create your own custom search connector, and provides you with an [...]