Wuala Blog

In this post I'll show you how to use a file indexing software for faster access to files in Wuala. It will enable you to search through your Wuala files faster than with the built-in solution.

What is a desktop indexing software?
A (desktop) indexing software is a program which scans specific folders on your computer and stores relevant information to a small database. It will then enable you to search through its index of relevant information. Some advanced desktop search tools will even scan the text inside a pdf or text document.
The advantage of indexing is a very fast and complex search for files and folders of tall types: images, documents, etc.

How to use Locate32 to index Wuala on Windows
Now I'll describe how to install and use a indexing software for windows and Wuala: My program of choice is locate32. I'd much rather use a software that allows to turn off file content indexing because this can take a long time with large amounts of files. Please leave a comment if you know one.

1. Download and extract locate32 (1.3 MB and portable):
   
   Download Windows 32 bit version (standard)
   Download Windows 64 bit version


2. Run through the installation process and start the program.


3. Then go to Tools -> Settings -> Databases


1. Create a new database, enter a name for the database and specify a path where the database will be saved.
   
   


2. After creating a database you're ready to specify some folders via Wuala's File System Integration (FSI). Go to the "Include" Group and check "Custom".


3. Now you can add some folders (default: W:\La12345\folder) or even the whole network drive. (W:)


4. After this click "Ok" to save the temporary settings.


4. Now you're ready to update your database. Go to File -> Update Databases (or F9). Running the scane for the first time takes a while (depends on how busy Wuala is and how many files or folders have to be indexed). The update process will be a lot faster in the second run.


5. To search your indexed files simply type in a few words. You'll get an interactive preview of the files which contain the words you typed in. You can do a more complex search by using the search syntax (it's like Google): words in quotes will show you only the files which are exactly like your search words; plus and minus for including and excluding.
   
   

Some additional screenshots to show you how to search for:

1. Videos in Wuala
   
   


2. Specific folders in Wuala
   
   

Did you find this post useful? Please leave your feedback in the comments.

About the author
I am posativ from Germany. I've been using Wuala (since June 2008) because of its simplicity. I like the ease of sharing data with my friends. Additionally I appreciate having my data accessible anywhere. You can read more about my experience with Wuala in my personal blog: www.posativ.org/blog