Lookout 1.2

15 Oct 2004 11:02

Regular Outlook fans will find this desktop search tool easy to use, but the rest of us may be frustrated.

Lookout is a small, 859KB download that installs in less than 2 minutes -- that is, if your Windows PC is already running Microsoft.Net Framework 1.1, a system upgrade essential for Lookout-Outlook integration. Our test PC did not have Framework installed, a problem quickly rectified by Lookout's setup routine, which downloaded and installed the 23MB Framework file. This extra step added 6 minutes to the overall setup time.

Lookout installs as a toolbar within Outlook and, after installation, immediately indexes your email messages and attachments so that it can quickly find messages thereafter. Unfortunately, Lookout doesn't index the contents of attachments by default -- if you want to search by keyword, you'll need to open Lookout Options > Advanced and re-index by file type. On the plus side, Lookout is fast. We indexed our test group of 129 email messages in 32 seconds, which is very fast.

Lookout's biggest weakness is that it lacks a file viewer -- an essential tool found in both HotBot Desktop and X1 Search. File viewers are helpful when identifying subtle differences between two similarly named files. Nor does it work with Outlook Express, although we suspect Microsoft will remedy that shortcoming in the near future.

Currently, support for Lookout includes only a FAQ on the original Lookout site (accessible through Microsoft.com). It would be nice to have email or user forums for additional questions.

Story URL: http://reviews.zdnet.co.uk/software/productivity/0,1000001108,39170366,00.htm