I have been archiving corporate email since 2004, and just started indexing it today. This is a huge process, and I am not going to bore you with the details or software that I am using. But I find it really interesting how I will need to sort and find “what I am looking for”. Most search engines are based on lexicons or the letters/numbers that make words. But our brains don’t always function like that.

For example, let’s say I had to submit a document to my boss regarding an upcoming meeting. I can remember if I did it during the during the week, and not on a weekend. I remember it was sent to me on a Monday because I got it in a meeting, and I remember the document came from someone in Sales. Well that seems logical to me and my brain, but there isn’t a way for me to put that in the Outlook search box or even the more powerful MSN/Google/Yahoo! desktop search tools.

Those are just a few ways I would like to search/query my email archive. Want more ideas? Tie it to phone logs (desk and mobile), calendar, and tasks (which I don’t use enough, so I think that needs some redesign). Give me a GUI that allows me to look at my history of where I was and what I was doing. That will help me find “what I am looking for”.