Does anyone know how to fix this? Google yields lots of solutions for 64-bit but none for 32-bit ... (one person suggested a way to modify the 64-bit solution to work on 32-bit but it doesn't work)

Nvm I figured it out sorry

I have another question -- the options for managing the search indexer seems to have disappeared in W7. In Vista, you could set it to "Maximum battery power" when on battery and it would basically stop or try to avoid indexing when on battery. This option is no longer in the power options dialog nor anywhere else and now my laptop actually drains faster when I'm NOT touching it because the indexer ramps up if there's no user activity. Is there any fix for this?

There's no free NEF driver for 64 bit, either.

No idea on the indexing..

There is a dedicated control panel for Search options, check there.

Alternatively remove all folders from the search indexer to force it to stop indexing. Then you can also optionally stop the "Windows Search" and "Indexing Service" services if they exist and disable them.