I must be the only one in the world who hates tags, because all software uses them nowadays. But they are so visible in Devonthink Pro. It’s nice to have the facility in case I evolve into a tag-lover, but for now, can’t I make all those tag icons go away or be invisible somehow? It reminds me of the stockmarket icon on the iPhone that you can’t remove even if you would never in a million years use the stockmarket! Thanks, Craig
“all those tags icons” - does this mean the “Tags” group in each database? Or the tagging bar at the bottom of the preview panel of a document? The Tags group can be collapsed - for example, in three-pane view click the little disclosure triangle next to “Tags” and the group is collapsed. Hide the tagging panel (see this post). For your database(s), uncheck the Exclude Groups from Tagging property in File > Database Properties > [name of your database]
Avoid looking at the View > as Tags view.
It’s that tag icon. Weirdly, the View > as Tags view is the only view where the icon doesn’t appear – so I may use that! Although I’d rather not go aroung tagging things. The tag bar at the bottom of the preview panel doesn’t bother me at all. It’s that persistent yellow pair of hanging tags in my way everywhere.
I looked in the three pane view and there was no disclosure triangle next to tags that I could see. If I exclude the entire database from tagging will the yellow things go away? Why can’t I just make them invisible?
Here’s an example of all the views – as you see, the tags haunt you in every view (except the sixth). As I have ADD and trouble concentrating on what I’m supposed to be doing, the fact that this WORD APPEARS everywhere knocks me right off course and I forget what I’m supposed to be doing. I just want rid of it. By the way, I love Devonthink. I adore it. That’s why I want to exorcise it’s one demon haunting my lovely house.
While you cannot delete the Tags folder, you can make it look like it isn’t the Tags folder. First, rename it. Click and hold the name “Tags”, it will turn into an editable field. Give it a new name. Second, replace the icon. Select a group whose icon you like. Open the info panel (Tools > Show Info). Click on the icon for that group and copy it (command-C). Without closing the info panel, select the group-that-used-to-be-called-tags. In the info panel, click the icon again and paste the new icon in its place (command-v). Now, the Tags group looks like any other group.
This is totally unsupported by DTech, but seems to work without a problem. In fact, you can tag things and DT knows where to put the tags. I have no idea if this change will survive into the future, especially program upgrades, but try it anyway. (You’ll need to repeat this process in each database and the global inbox.)
Just to add to korm’s suggestion, if you create groups in the renamed ‘Tag’ group they too will appear as tags, even if you have turned on ‘Exclude Groups From Tagging’ in the database properties. To address this, you’ll want to bring up the info pane for the renamed ‘Tags’ group and check Exclude from… Tagging’. Then you can create normal groups within the renamed ‘Tags’ group.
Thanks for your excellent thoughts to my grumpy emails. I think I’m just tired of tags all around. You’re supposed to use them in Aperture, too, and everywhere. I just… don’t trust them as much as a folder. But then, that makes me sound like a crusty old man. Also, DT is so complex it’s like a world of its own, and its relationship with DevonSearch… it just takes my breath away. I would like to spend time just learning about it all at once, rather than bit by bit, but time, always time… I do have another question though. In my initial enthusiasm I bought DevonNote as well, thinking it was a different program (which it is) but isn’t it just like DevonThink Lite? I mean, is there any reason I should keep it installed if I use DevonThink all the time? Can anyone think of a reason for having both? And if I don’t need both, can I gift DevonNote to a friend? Craig
DEVONnote is indeed “just like DevonThink Lite”. (Here’s a feature comparison.) IMHO, give the license to someone else (uninstall it from your machine too, of course). You’ll have enough on your hands learning DT - 
- and more power too.
Consider Joe Kissell’s pretty good book on working with DT.
See DEVONthink/DEVONnote Feature Comparison.
In several topics Bill DeVille has posted examples of how he uses both. There’s probably no good reason to have/use different editions of DEVONthink (especially since they might interfere with each other, e.g. with Services usage) but a DN/DT combo can have value.