dtSearch recognizes most file types automatically. If you are indexing only files such as major word processor documents, DBF files, ANSI text, or ZIP files containing any of the above, you can disregard this section. (To see a list of the file types that dtSearch recognizes, see Supported File Types in the on-line help.)
"Binary" Files
A "binary" file is a document that uses a file format that dtSearch cannot recognize. Settings in the Filtering options dialog box let you control whether dtSearch indexes such files as plain text, ignores them, or applies a filtering algorithm.
Filtering Binary Files. To tell dtSearch to index, search, and display only the text in binary files, click Options > Preferences > Filtering options, and select the Filter text option under Binary Files.
Excluding Binary Files. To avoid indexing files such as *.EXE and other program files, you can: (1) keep text files in separate directories and only index those directories, (2) use filename filters in the Update Index dialog box to exclude these files, or (3) use the option setting in Options > Preferences > Indexing Options > Excluded Files to automatically exclude binary files from indexing.
Older Word Processor Files
Some older word processors such as WordPerfect 4.2 and WordStar used a file format that cannot be detected automatically. To tell dtSearch which files to index in these formats, click Options > Preferences > File Types.