Search index problem

Dear Folks,
I've got three Windows Vista Extended Home Edition issues--they appear
to be related but may not be--that are baffling me. The first problem
involves the Search Indexer, which has stopped working, and despite my
best efforts, cannot be turned back on.
The second problem is that I can't seem to complete a Restore session,
yet I can create Restore points without any problem. I've tried it
several times using different dates, including before a new video card
was installed (see background below), with no success. Problem #3 is
that when I go into Sleep mode, I can't come out of it. I'm forced to
turn the computer completely off.

The background:
These problems did not exist until I augmented my computer with a PNY
PCI Extended 8500 graphics card with 512MB of RAM on Dec. 24.

Before I installed the new video card (and several Windows updates
related to the upgrade), I did not get this message: "Microsoft Search
Indexer has stopped working and was closed. A problem caused the
application to stop working correctly. Windows will notify you if a
solution is available."
Doing a Find (Windows key plus F) allows me to turn indexing on, yet
it fails to do so.

Regarding the sleep mode issue, it's been suggested that I remove both
video drivers then only reinstall the one that came with my new card.
I'm reluctant to do so since I intend to use both card simultaneously
with a 22-inch monitor connected to it and a 17-inch monitor connected
to the original card.

Hardware configuration
The computer has an on-board graphics card with a shared 64MB of video
RAM. I have 1.5GB of RAM, two internal hard drives of about 200GB each
and a pair external 512GB drives configured in a RAID system.

Software:
Windows Vista Extended Home Edition upgrade from Windows XP
Microsoft Office 2003 plus Vision 2007
Adobe Creative Suite 3
Symantec Internet Security 2007 with the Norton firewall turned off
Windows Defender is on

Any comments or suggestions would be extremely helpful.

Sincerely,
David B. Reynolds