Try switching to the Purchases view, I've found that you can see the download/install progress better there.

You can use Cmd+E to directly insert the selected text into the search buffer, so for the Project-Wide search you wind up with the shorter sequence:

Cmd+E, Cmd+Shift+F, Return

This sequence seems to work in many other apps, I don't know if it's a system command or just a common convention.

Thanks! That's really useful to know.