I keep losing the groups panel.
I select to show it, change a space and sometimes it’s there and sometimes not. I also realize that a DT window seems to need to be present in that space for the panel to show. When it’s not showing, I check the tool menu and Hide Groups is available-but no group panel shows. So I Hide then Show and it comes back.
Lost in space
Thanks
Have you looked at Preferences > General and unchecked “Hide `Groups’ panel when inactive”?
Yes,
It is unchecked.
If this has not been an issue with anyone else, I will try to pinpoint what might be in each space. Maybe find a better clue.
Thank you for the reply
I don’t use Spaces because the behavior is somewhat unpredictable.
The keyboard shortcut Control-Command-G shows/hides the Groups panel.
Now the Groups panel can be minimized to the Dock. From there, it can be brought up to accept files/folders from the Finder, or clippings from another application.
Within DT Pro/Office, the Groups panel can be used to copy content from one database to any desired location in another.
Thanks Bill
I’m going to try that Dock idea.
I’m too used to using spaces to give it up.
Also will try The Sorter more often.
Still a great program, looking forward to the updated OCR.
Thanks, Mike
This isn’t really important in terms of functionality but the groups panel is one of those interface elements in devonthink that makes me think I’m back in 2002 every time I see it. It is in serious need of some help, maybe bring the different floating interface elements in line with at least one another, like to me it would make sense that the Sorter and Groups panel would look similar, instead of the current mish-mash of old, new and confused.
I’m trying really hard to like Devonthink, it looks like it has more power under the hood then anything else out there even if everything I can use it for eludes me at the moment, but overall I would somehow try to at least bring the different elements of the program in line with itself, right now you click different options and its like a mystery game or something, will what shows up look like it came from Jaguar, Panther, Tiger or Leopard. Right now the answer to that is Yes, all of them, at random.
The Groups panel looks like the left pane of the Three Panes view (except that it is available for multiple open databases and, for obvious reasons, doesn’t include smart groups or the Trash), as it is intended to provide the functionality of allowing one to drag content among databases, or to drag files/folders from the Finder, or a clipping from a word processing application into the desired location in any open database.
The form of the Groups panel follows its function. The Groups panel is available only when the DEVONthink Pro/Office application is running and at least one database is open.
Should it not have the appearance of the group structure of each database, and so look familiar? Could it be simplified or made more functional by an appearance change?
The Sorter has a different and generally simpler function. At its simplest, when the Global Inbox is activated, one can drag new content into that Inbox whether DEVONthink Pro/Office is running or not.
Like the sorters found in office supply catalogs, one can file new content into individual database Inboxes or groups by dragging database Inboxes or groups into empty slots. The Sorter is expandable; additional slots can be added to accommodate as many databases/groups as one wishes (which. of course, makes use of the Sorter more and more complex). Again, such filing of new content can be done whether or not the application is running, or a specific database is open.
The paradigm of the Sorter follows the GTD admonition that everything should first go into the Inbox. Therefore, it can accommodate rapid dumping of new content into DT Pro/Office.
Later, one can decide to do with the new stuff — perhaps by using the Groups panel while manually assigning classification of new content into various databases and their groups. 
Bill, I thought about the Sorter Inbox just as you mentioned with regards to GTD.
I added one item and the Inbox showed a “1”
I added another item and the Inbox showed a “2”
My idea was to process these items and get them into a new database. Since this was just a test 2 items seemed sufficient.
I selected “Send to DEVONthink” and the Inbox does not show any numbers now.
My question is, where are these items? I thought that DEVONthink would launch and ask for my input on whether to add the items to an existing database or create a new one, but nothing happened.
I looked at the Help but found no answer. Is this a bug or a feature? If it’s a feature, what’s the proper way to use it? Where did the files go (regarding DEVONthink)?
I’m using DEVONthink Pro Office 2.0 pb3
Thank you very much for your input.
As documented in the Upgrader’s Guide (on the download disk image), the Global Inbox hasn’t yet been activated.
In the current beta, therefore, content dragged into the Sorter’s Global Inbox will not be sent to a database, and should not be used. The added content hasn’t been lost. It is stored in ~/Library/Application Support/DEVONthink Pro 2/Inbox/.
If you have sent new content to the Global Inbox, it can be manually imported into your database from the above location. Alternatively, if you leave it there, it will be imported when a future release of DTPO2 activates the Global Inbox.
You can drag the Inbox of one or more of your current databases into an empty slot of the Sorter in pb3. Now you can drag new content into an appropriate Inbox. If the database is currently open, the data will be immediately sent to it’s Inbox. If the database is not currently open (including the case where DTPO2 pb3 isn’t running), the material will be sent to the appropriate database next time is is opened. Note that if you wish, you can rename the Inbox of each database prior to dragging it to the Sorter, in order to avoid confusion.
Thank you very much for the reply Bill.
I usually check the Help and Manuals first, and this time I did not even consider the Upgrader’s Guide. Sorry about that. 