Expandable (two-level) Category list

[Maxim Kizub]

A list of categories is too long. It's about a few screens tall. Scrolling it with mouse wheel (to find a right category) takes too long.

One option to make it smaller is to show (in transaction dialog) only income or only expense categories, depending on transaction type; this may make it shorter (but I have a short list of income categories, so not in my case).

But much better solution whould be to use expandable or two-level list to select categories.
It could require mouse click on a category group to open sub-categories; or it can auto-open a side window when a mouse pointer hovers over the category group item (like in multi-level menues).

UX for category choose may also include:
- income/expense toggle filter;
- most used / all (include rare used) categories filter;
- hot-key assignment for category groups and sub-categories (using letters for groups and numbers for sub-categories or vice versa).

[Maxime DOYEN (mdoyen)]

yes, there is also autocomplete, just try to type a few letters.
I will see you other suggestion as well.

[Maxime DOYEN (mdoyen)]

Don't know what version you uses.
BUT autocomplete as it is implemented is sufficient here, you probably missed it.
When you popup the list, it is intentionally to scroll within the list and to pick a category.

[Maxim Kizub (mkizub)]

If users have to use autocomplete, then why it's not an input field with drop-down filtered list?
When lists have height of a few screens without fast scrolling - they are useless.
If you don't want your users to use mouse, but use autocomplete - make it in this way.

Indeed, auto-complete may be a faster way for input. In case you remember all the categories, i.e. you are using this program for a while. In case you are a newcomer, and just learning the program, and do not remember all those categories - autocomplete will not help at all.

Thus, you just piss off new users from your program.