IntelliWebSearch: really the best Windows-based search tool for translators.

When I began using Michael Farrell's IntelliWebSearch (IWS) about a year ago, shortly before a few IAPTI webinars on that subject, I was impressed with the tool's flexibility, but one thing drove me nuts: the browser kept adding tabs with each search, unlike the tool I favored at the time, memoQ Web Search. But the latter is restricted to use within memoQ, so I had some hope of sorting out the problem with IWS.

I asked the program's author for a solution, but I think I failed to articulate the problem properly: I was told that this was simply a shortcoming I would have to live with. Not true. Michael's tool is better than he said.

The solution turned out to be in the program's settings, which are accessed under the Edit menu.

An example of "improved" settings more to my taste is above. The important thing for me to get the behavior I wanted was to define the return behavior. Use the return shortcut and close the browser. Subsequent actions can include pasting any copied text if you like.

Of course, adding extra tabs to the open browser is not such a bad thing in some cases, providing a sort of tab-based "history" of the searches. And simply using the search window shortcut opens an IWS window with text copied to a search field, where individual searches can be launched in the browser of choice using icons for various configured searches.

The much greater flexibility of IntelliWebSearch, its universal application in any Windows software, its memory stability (memoQ Web Search has had a serious memory leak for a long time, resulting in crashes and other troubles) and its very modest price for licenses after a 2-month trial makes it my search tool of choice now that I can get the browser window behaviors I want. And various "profiles" for searching can be saved in external files for backup and sharing with others.

For educational and professional use, this is a superb choice. The program can also be linked to local information, such as CD-based dictionaries or desktop search tools. Check it out!