In my framework, I have a search page for text function that uses the page innertext and a INSTR function. It doesn't really care about objects, just text and is a lot faster than the childobject method. It might suit your needs.
AJAX can be tough because the html objects don't exist until later. Try doing a page.sync then a search and click on the object you need. That might work. I know in QTP10 there is a new dev application called the Web Extensibility that is suppose to be able to test ajax, but I haven't used it much and it probably won't work well with 9.2. Best bet is going to be the sync then click. It depends on how the popup is coded. If it's a hidden div that just becomes visible, QTP can find it. If it's a javascript function that builds and adds HTML it might be more difficult, but I still think QTP will find it if you use the right object. Try my click framework, see if it works.
AJAX can be tough because the html objects don't exist until later. Try doing a page.sync then a search and click on the object you need. That might work. I know in QTP10 there is a new dev application called the Web Extensibility that is suppose to be able to test ajax, but I haven't used it much and it probably won't work well with 9.2. Best bet is going to be the sync then click. It depends on how the popup is coded. If it's a hidden div that just becomes visible, QTP can find it. If it's a javascript function that builds and adds HTML it might be more difficult, but I still think QTP will find it if you use the right object. Try my click framework, see if it works.