You can choose whether the window's title bar should show the name or the full path of the selected folder or category. For example, the full path of Red is /Things/Colors/Red. This places the current folder or category in context, and makes it easier to tell whether you are browsing by folder or category. Categories usually begin with /Dates, /People, etc. while folders usually begin with ~/Pictures or /Volumes. (Folders in the Pictures folder only show the relevant part of the path.)

You can add the selected photos to a category by typing its name in the "add a category" combo box at the top of the Info window. If there is no matching category, Shoebox can create a new category for you. You can choose whether the program should create a new unfiled category, ask where to create the category, or do nothing.

By default, photos are automatically categorized by date when they are added to the catalog. You can uncheck "Automatically add date category" if you don't want photos in a particular catalog to be categorized by date.

You can also choose whether to use relative dates. Recent dates will be displayed as "yesterday" or "today" throughout the program, and you can enter relative dates in the "add a cateogry" combo box and search field.

Photos with dates before the selected earliest year are added to the "Early Photos" category. If you choose a different year, photos will be recategorized accordingly.