Search for specific text (web links) in multiple documents?, Part 2

Recall --

Yesterday, Infopackets Reader Bill 'Mr Full Service' asked if there was a way to search for text inside of multiple documents (stored in multiple areas) on his computer:

" I have a question for you about bookmark managers, or similar software. Do you know of any program that can search MS Word documents on your computer for web links (URLs) [or any text, for that matter]? Any help you can provide is greatly appreciated! "

In my response, I suggested Bill use the built-in Search function in Windows XP, which has the capability to locate certain text in document files. I also asked Infopackets Readers for alternative, third-party programs that can do the same (if not better) than the Windows Search function.

Wayne T. and others recommended Copernic Search, which is freeware and seems to be the best solution for searching any file for a specific phrase or word.

" I am an IT manager who reads your newsletter regularly. I ran across a great freeware utility that addresses exactly the problem this guy ran into. It's called Copernic Desktop Search. By the way, I am not affiliated with Copernic. I read about it in Network World where the reviewer was complaining about the inadequacies of Google's version. It's well worth checking out. "

http://www.copernic.com/en/products/desktop-search/

Jeff F. agreed with Wayne T., and even went as far as comparing Google Desktop to Coppernic using the same search query:

" Following up on your response to searching for URLS in Word documents, I typed the location of my Word files into Google Desktop, ending with www.* and this came up with a list of 20 entries in the documents located there. I then did a similar search with Copernic using the exact same parameters, and it came up with 162 entries, of which 7 were either not Word documents (Adobe PDF) or Word documents located on a different partition than specified. This was on a Win2K system. "

Infopackets Reader Bob E. and a few others recommended Agent Ransack. Bob writes:

" You might want to take a look at the following web site freeware Agent Ransack. Some highlights: Agent Ransack [792kb] is a free tool for finding files and information on your hard drive fast and efficiently. When searching the contents of files Agent Ransack displays the text found so you can quickly browse the results without having to separately open each file! Agent Ransack provides compelling advantages over similar search tools: Regular expressions that allow complex rule based searches; Immediate contents results view; Various wizards to walk the user through the searching process; Agent Ransack is provided FREE of charge for the benefit of the Windows community. "

http://www.mythicsoft.com/agentransack/pageloader.aspx?page=home

And, finally, Reader Martin P. writes:

" There's a utility called 'Extract Link' that I've been using for a while now. It will extract weblinks and email addresses from any type of document, including Word files. Compressed files are also no problem. It's not free but I believe a trial version is available. "

http://www.spadixbd.com/elink/

Thanks to all who wrote in with their suggestions!