2.2 Using Categories to Organize Items

Categories provide you with a way to organize your items. You can assign a category to any item, including contacts. You create and add categories and can give each category an identifying color. The colors display in the Item List and in the Calendar.

2.2.1 Understanding Categories

When you assign a category to an item, the item is displayed in the color of the category. Categories help you to quickly organize items in groups.

Figure 2-1 Mailbox Showing Items With Categories

Figure 2-2 Calendar Showing Items With Categories

Four default categories (Follow-Up, Low Priority, Personal, and Urgent) are available for you to immediately assign to items. You can modify and delete them if you choose, as well as create new categories.

If you assign one of the default categories (Follow-Up, Low Priority, Personal, and Urgent) to an item you are sending, the item arrives in the recipient’s Mailbox with that category assigned. If you assign a category that you created to an item you are sending, the item arrives in the recipient’s Mailbox with no category assigned.

You can assign more than one category to an item, and specify which category is the primary one. The color of the primary category is used to identify the item.

2.2.2 Assigning Categories to Items

Assigning a Category Quickly

In any Item List:

  1. Click the item icon.

  2. Click a category in the drop-down list.

    or

    If the category you want isn’t listed, click More to display the Edit Categories dialog box, select the category, then click OK.

    The 10 most recently used categories are listed. (If you have not yet used categories, they are displayed alphabetically.)

Assigning Any Category to Any Item Type

To assign a category to a message, appointment, task, note, or contact:

  1. Right-click the item.

  2. Click Categories.

  3. Click a category in the drop-down list.

    or

    If the category you want isn’t listed, click More to display the Edit Categories dialog box, select the category, then click OK.

    The 10 most recently used categories are listed. (If you have not yet used categories, they are displayed alphabetically.)

To assign a category to an address book entry:

  1. Open a personal address book.

  2. Locate the user you want.

  3. Right-click the user.

  4. Click Details, then click Categories.

  5. Click a category in the menu, then click OK.

Assigning a Category by Using Item Properties

  1. Open an existing item, click the Personalize tab, then click Edit Categories.

    or

    Open a new item to compose, click the Send Options tab, then click Edit Categories.

    Categories dialog box

    If you assign one of the default categories (Follow-Up, Low Priority, Personal, and Urgent) to an item you are sending, the item arrives in the recipient’s Mailbox with that category assigned. If you assign a category that you created to an item you are sending, the item arrives in the recipient’s Mailbox with no category assigned.

  2. In the Edit Categories dialog box, select a category, then click OK.

Assigning Multiple Categories

  1. Right-click the item.

  2. Click Categories > More to display the Edit Categories dialog box.

  3. Select the desired categories.

    When you assign multiple categories to an item, the color of the primary category is the color that shows in the Item List. When you sort the Item List by category, items are sorted by their primary category. By default, the first category you assign is the primary category.

  4. To set the primary category for this item, select a category, then click Primary.

  5. Click OK.

Removing a Category from an Item

  1. Right-click the item.

  2. Click Categories > More to display the Edit Categories dialog box

  3. Deselect the category to remove, then click OK.

    The category is removed from the item.

2.2.3 Working with Categories

Adding a New Category

  1. Click Actions > Categories > More to display the Edit Categories dialog box.

    Categories dialog box

  2. Type the category name in the New Category field at the bottom of the Edit Categories dialog box.

  3. Click Add.

    The Add button becomes active when you begin typing a category name.

  4. To assign a color to a category, select the category name in the list, then select the text and background colors.

  5. Click OK to save the new category.

    HINT:You can also select an item before creating the new category, then immediately assign the new category to the selected item.

Renaming a Category

  1. Click Actions > Categories > More to display the Edit Categories dialog box.

  2. Select the category name, then click Rename.

  3. Type the new name, then click OK.

The category is renamed in the list, and for all the items to which it was assigned.

Finding Items by Category in a Folder

  1. In the upper right corner of any folder, click Find > Categories, then click the category name.

    All items that have been assigned this category are displayed.

  2. To clear this selection, click Find On icon.

Sorting Items by Category

  1. Add a Category column to the folder Item List, as described in Adding a Column.

  2. Click the Category column to sort the Item List by category.

Deleting a Category

  1. Click Actions > Categories > More to display the Edit Categories dialog box.

  2. Select the category name, then click Delete.

  3. Click Yes, then click OK.

The category is removed from the list, and from all the items to which it was assigned.