Categories

What are Categories?

Categories help you organize and visually distinguish different types of events in your timeline. Each category has:

• Name: The category label (e.g., "Financial Transaction", "Communication")
• Color: A unique color for visual identification
• Description: Optional details about what events belong in this category

Creating Categories

Method 1: From the Timeline View

1. Open your timeline
2. Click Manage Categories or the categories icon
3. Click Add Category
4. Enter:
   • Category name
   • Choose a color
   • Add an optional description
5. Click Save

Method 2: While Adding an Event

When creating or editing an event:

1. In the Category field, click Create New
2. Enter the category name
3. Choose a color
4. Save

The new category will be created and automatically assigned to the event.

Default Categories

Thea provides several commonly used categories by default:

• Financial Transaction (Green)
• Communication (Blue)
• Legal Action (Red)
• Meeting (Purple)
• Document (Orange)

You can customize these or create your own.

Editing Categories

To modify an existing category:

1. Open Manage Categories
2. Click on the category you want to edit
3. Update the name, color, or description
4. Click Save

Changes will apply to all events using this category.

Deleting Categories

To remove a category:

1. Open Manage Categories
2. Click the delete icon next to the category
3. Confirm the deletion

Note: Events using this category will have their category removed. You may want to reassign events to a different category first.

Color Coding

Colors help you quickly identify event types in your timeline:

• Choose distinct colors for different categories
• Use similar shades for related categories
• Consider color associations (e.g., red for legal actions, green for financial)

Using Categories in Timeline Views

Category Rows View

In this view, each category gets its own horizontal row, making it easy to:

• See all events of a specific type at once
• Compare timing across categories
• Identify patterns within each category

Unified View

In unified view, categories are shown through:

• Event color coding
• Category labels on events
• Legend showing all categories

Filtering by Category

Use category filters to:

1. Click the Filter button
2. Select one or more categories
3. The timeline will show only events from selected categories
4. Clear filters to show all events again

Category Legend

The category legend appears at the bottom or side of your timeline visualization:

• Shows all active categories with their colors
• Click a category in the legend to filter/highlight those events
• Helps viewers understand your color-coding system
• Automatically updates when you add or remove categories

The legend is especially useful when sharing timelines with others who aren't familiar with your categorization system.

Color Palette

Thea provides a curated color palette designed for legal timeline clarity:

• Professional tones: Colors that work well in court presentations
• High contrast: Easy to distinguish even when printed in grayscale
• Accessibility: Colors chosen for colorblind-friendly contrast

When selecting colors:

• Use bold colors (reds, blues) for high-priority categories like "Legal Action"
• Use muted tones (greens, grays) for background categories like "Administrative"
• Avoid similar shades for frequently-used categories
• Test printed output if you'll be printing timelines

Best Practices

Categorization Strategy

• Limit categories: Too many categories can become confusing. Aim for 5-10 core categories.
• Be consistent: Use the same category for similar event types
• Clear naming: Use descriptive names that make sense to all users
• Color strategy: Choose colors that are easily distinguishable

Workflow Tips

• Set up categories early: Define your category structure before adding many events
• Review regularly: Merge or remove unused categories to keep your system clean
• Use category rows view: When working with many categories, the category rows visualization makes patterns obvious
• Document your system: For team cases, share guidelines about which events belong in which category