Upgrade StorageProblem with My Publications, version 7.0.11
I see 2 issues with the My Publications folder, both are changes from version 6
1. To add an entry to My Publications it has to exist as an entry somewhere in another collection. I cannot drag a file from, for example, my desktop, directly to My Publications.
2. If I delete an entry from a collection, it is also deleted from My Publications. This is weird because I have many entries in My Publications that do not exist in any other collection, but they were all added in version 6.
Strangely, suppose I have an entry in My Publications and also in another collection, and I do a search for the last name of the author. In that case, Zotero only lists the entry in My Publications, not the other collection.
As far as I can find, none of this behavior seems to be documented.
1. To add an entry to My Publications it has to exist as an entry somewhere in another collection. I cannot drag a file from, for example, my desktop, directly to My Publications.
2. If I delete an entry from a collection, it is also deleted from My Publications. This is weird because I have many entries in My Publications that do not exist in any other collection, but they were all added in version 6.
Strangely, suppose I have an entry in My Publications and also in another collection, and I do a search for the last name of the author. In that case, Zotero only lists the entry in My Publications, not the other collection.
As far as I can find, none of this behavior seems to be documented.
1. is correct. You cannot save directly to "My Publications". You have to have the item in your library first. If you move an item to Trash (i.e. delete the item entirely), it will be removed entirely (including from the "My Publications" collection). As you add an item to your "My Publications" collection, you need to answer questions about distribution rights, etc, so it is possible that adding to My Publications directly using the browser connector is not allowed (that's a guess; I don't really know).
By the way, you can always have your item "Unfiled". Not in any collection. Zero. And still have it in or add it to My Publications. Keep in mind that removing an item from a collection does not delete an item ("move to trash"). Those are two different options in the context menu.
2. If you "remove" an item from a collection, it should not delete it from My Publications. (I just tested this.) Are you sure you are not deleting the item entirely, by choosing "Move Item to Trash". That would, of course, delete the item from every single collection (including "My Publications").
Search question: It is not clear to me what you mean by this. The search in Zotero works more like a filter. If you are under My Library, it will show all the items in that library matching your search. Even if you have that item in a hundred collections, it will show one item, because there is only item. Search does not show collections, only items. If you search as you are in Collection X, it will only show an item, if that item is in that collection.
Reading about the Zotero Collections Model (https://www.zotero.org/support/collections_and_tags) may help.