Google’s Desktop Search App Is Back (Sort Of).
Back in the days of Windows XP, when the only search tool was a cartoon dog in the File Explorer sidebar ( and I’m not kidding ), Google released Google Desktop . With this app installed, you could search for files on your computer just like you would on the web. This app significantly sped up document searching—as a reporter in a small town in northern Alberta, I used it constantly to sort through my old notes and articles.
The service was shut down in 2011, announced in a blog post , which stated that in the era of cloud storage, the feature was no longer necessary. And that was the end of Google’s ability to search for files on your computer—until recently. In September, Google announced an experimental app, “Google App for Windows,” available only for Windows, which, among other things, searches for files on your computer.
Being a nostalgic person, I couldn’t help but wonder: would this be like the retro version? So I decided to give it a try. To install, you need to sign up for the “experiment” with a Google account, then download and install the app. After that, you can invoke the search by pressing Alt+Space , which will open the search bar. You can use it to search for files on your computer, Google Drive, and information on the web.
The file search itself doesn’t seem particularly sophisticated. While the old Google Desktop could search by file contents, the Google app for Windows only seems to recognize file names. This is disappointing—I liked being able to see which files I mentioned or try to find the source of a sentence I remember. Frankly, this local search feature isn’t much better than Windows search.
However, this new app can search Google Drive. I was able to quickly find and open files created in Google Docs, then open them with a single click. The ability to search these cloud documents and local ones in one place is a compelling reason to give this app a try.
There are also several web features. If no files matching your search are found, you’ll see Google search results. Select any of them, and you’ll see the answer to your question, generated by artificial intelligence. If you prefer traditional Google search results, you can get those too. Simply disable AI mode by clicking on your profile picture and turning off the AI mode toggle.
Finally, this app can be used to take screenshots of your computer screen and answer related questions. For example, I took a screenshot of my desktop wallpaper—a photo my wife took in New Zealand—and got an accurate description of the location.
This feature is similar to those offered by the desktop apps ChatGPT and Claude, but instead of those tools, it uses Google’s AI. I’m not sure I’ll use it regularly, but the idea is interesting.
Unfortunately, the Google app for Windows isn’t a revival of the long-dead Google Desktop, but it’s an interesting tool that combines simple local file search with results from Google Drive and the web. It’s worth trying if you’re a dedicated Google user and still store a lot of files on your computer.