I'm impressed: Google has a free search tool for your hard drive
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Google-Desktop.html?oref=login
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Funny you should mention this as I installed the applet on my lone Win32 box not three hours ago.
My first impression is very positive. After performing an index of HDD objects (best done while the machine is idle) it returns local search results with a speed that should make Microsoft blush (first the IE embarrassments, the mass defections to Moz/Firefox and now this).
You have the option of choosing to send, or not to send bug reports automatically to Google. Super privacy advocates (and obsessive bandwidth watchers) might object but it seems - at least at first glance, I haven't analyzed any data streams yet - perfectly harmless.
So far, my only complaint is the totally Win32-centric character of this release. But then again, Windows users have been in sore need of efficient search tools for some time. The OS' built-in capabilities are less than stellar.
.d.