> this has happened a couple of times. i copy image files into the source folder and when i opened tp5 they didn't show up, so i cannot organize them in my galleries.
Are these regular JPGs on a regular local harddrive?
> the new images should always be at the top as i arrange them by date/descending.
Not necessarily.. for instance, if under Options | Sort By , 'Thumbnails first' is set, then the not-yet-thumbnailed files will appear at the end of the list. Or they may not show at all if Options | Which Files is set to a set of filetypes that does not include the new files.
> like does tp5 have an image search function?
It does (Edit | Find by Query) but it only searches for files that are already in the database so that's of no use here.
> or,,,if tp5 simply cannot find them in the startup scan what else can i do to correct this when it happens?
I don't recall any known bugs in v5 that would keep existing files from showing up in the thumbnail listing. In other words, if there are files that do not show, something must be wrong in your settings.
> i have to proceed with these "lost" image files one at a time, and they appear in their proper place.
What do you mean by proceed - what are you doing that does make them show up?