I'm running Windows XP Pro, and my Search function does not work. When I go to >start > search, I get the window that says "search companion", and has all the usual "file-edit-view-favorites-tools-help" menu options at the top of the window, but I do not get a box to enter search criteria in....the whole window is blank except for the menu options. My search companion doesn't ever show up (the dog character). Help! I'm tearing my hair out trying to look for buried documents, and would love to have the abilito to "search" again.

Thanks in advance!

On the side there is a link that says "All files and folders". Click that and you will get a search box.

I usually click on 'all files and folders' , when the option is there, but unfortunately, the option isn't there.

Here's a screen shot of what I get when I click "search"

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f68/Rusty301/Misc%20Stuff/searchbox.jpg

That looks odd. Try going to View > Explorer Bar > Search and toggle it on if it isn't already. If it is on try to toggle it off and on.

Also you may want to try to going to Tools > Folder Options and reset to default setting on the View tab.

Also try right-clicking the gray area. If there is an option that says Lock Toolbar that is checked, uncheck it.

Otherwise, it may be one of those weird bugs that Microsoft usually has. You may want to do a search on their site for a fix to the problem.

Thanks, Zoran! I'll try those suggestions when I get back to my home computer, and let you know how it goes....

Well, no luck. I went to View > Explorer Bar > Search, to try and toggle it off and on...and the only thing that happens is the gray column area on the left side disappears. Went to Tools>Folder options, and nothing happens. I checked and unchecked the "lock toolbar" option, and nothing. I'll try to search on the Microsoft website and see what they have....