feat: Add tool categories for organization

- Add category field to Tool dataclass (Text, Developer, Data, Other)
- Display tools grouped by category in main UI with section headers
- Add category dropdown selector in tool builder dialog
- Update example tools with appropriate categories
- Document category feature in README

Categories help organize tools in the UI for easier navigation.
Tools without a category default to "Other".

🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)

Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>

README.md

@@ -204,6 +204,7 @@ A tool is a YAML config file in `~/.smarttools/<name>/config.yaml`:
 ```yaml
 name: summarize
 description: Condense documents to key points
+category: Text  # Optional: Text, Developer, Data, or Other
 arguments:
   - flag: --length
     variable: length
@@ -219,6 +220,17 @@ steps:
 output: "{response}"
 ```
 
+### Categories
+
+Tools can be organized into categories for easier navigation in the UI:
+
+| Category | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `Text` | Text processing (summarize, translate, grammar) |
+| `Developer` | Dev tools (explain-error, gen-tests, commit-msg) |
+| `Data` | Data extraction and conversion (json-extract, csv) |
+| `Other` | Default for uncategorized tools |
+
 ### Multi-Step Tools
 
 Chain AI prompts with Python code for powerful workflows:

src/smarttools/tool.py

@@ -100,11 +100,16 @@ class CodeStep:
 Step = PromptStep | CodeStep
 
 
+# Default categories for organizing tools
+DEFAULT_CATEGORIES = ["Text", "Developer", "Data", "Other"]
+
+
 @dataclass
 class Tool:
     """A SmartTools tool definition."""
     name: str
     description: str = ""
+    category: str = "Other"  # Tool category for organization
     arguments: List[ToolArgument] = field(default_factory=list)
     steps: List[Step] = field(default_factory=list)
     output: str = "{input}"  # Output template
@@ -125,19 +130,24 @@ class Tool:
         return cls(
             name=data["name"],
             description=data.get("description", ""),
+            category=data.get("category", "Other"),
             arguments=arguments,
             steps=steps,
             output=data.get("output", "{input}")
         )
 
     def to_dict(self) -> dict:
-        return {
+        d = {
             "name": self.name,
             "description": self.description,
-            "arguments": [arg.to_dict() for arg in self.arguments],
-            "steps": [step.to_dict() for step in self.steps],
-            "output": self.output
         }
+        # Only include category if it's not the default
+        if self.category and self.category != "Other":
+            d["category"] = self.category
+        d["arguments"] = [arg.to_dict() for arg in self.arguments]
+        d["steps"] = [step.to_dict() for step in self.steps]
+        d["output"] = self.output
+        return d
 
     def get_available_variables(self) -> List[str]:
         """Get all variables available for use in templates."""

src/smarttools/ui_urwid.py

@@ -863,14 +863,41 @@ class SmartToolsUI:
 
     def _refresh_main_menu(self):
         """Refresh the main menu display."""
+        from collections import defaultdict
+        from .tool import DEFAULT_CATEGORIES
+
         tools = list_tools()
         self._tools_list = tools
 
-        # Tool list - arrows navigate within, doesn't pass focus out
+        # Group tools by category
-        tool_items = []
+        tools_by_category = defaultdict(list)
         for name in tools:
-            item = SelectableToolItem(name, on_select=self._on_tool_select)
+            tool = load_tool(name)
-            tool_items.append(item)
+            category = tool.category if tool else "Other"
+            tools_by_category[category].append(name)
+
+        # Build tool list with category headers
+        tool_items = []
+
+        # Show categories in defined order, then any custom ones
+        all_categories = list(DEFAULT_CATEGORIES)
+        for cat in tools_by_category:
+            if cat not in all_categories:
+                all_categories.append(cat)
+
+        for category in all_categories:
+            if category in tools_by_category and tools_by_category[category]:
+                # Category header (non-selectable)
+                header = urwid.AttrMap(
+                    urwid.Text(f"─── {category} ───"),
+                    'label'
+                )
+                tool_items.append(header)
+
+                # Tools in this category
+                for name in sorted(tools_by_category[category]):
+                    item = SelectableToolItem(name, on_select=self._on_tool_select)
+                    tool_items.append(item)
 
         if not tools:
             tool_items.append(urwid.Text(('label', "  (no tools - click Create to add one)  ")))
@@ -1089,6 +1116,8 @@ class SmartToolsUI:
 
     def _show_tool_builder(self):
         """Render the tool builder screen."""
+        from .tool import DEFAULT_CATEGORIES
+
         tool = self._current_tool
 
         # Create edit widgets
@@ -1101,12 +1130,50 @@ class SmartToolsUI:
         self._desc_edit = urwid.AttrMap(urwid.Edit(('label', "Desc: "), tool.description), 'edit', 'edit_focus')
         self._output_edit = urwid.AttrMap(urwid.Edit(('label', "Output: "), tool.output), 'edit', 'edit_focus')
 
+        # Category selector
+        self._selected_category = [tool.category or "Other"]
+        category_btn_text = urwid.Text(self._selected_category[0])
+        category_btn = urwid.AttrMap(
+            urwid.Padding(category_btn_text, left=1, right=1),
+            'edit', 'edit_focus'
+        )
+
+        def show_category_dropdown(_):
+            """Show category selection popup."""
+            def select_category(cat):
+                def callback(_):
+                    self._selected_category[0] = cat
+                    category_btn_text.set_text(cat)
+                    tool.category = cat
+                    self.close_overlay()
+                return callback
+
+            items = []
+            for cat in DEFAULT_CATEGORIES:
+                btn = urwid.Button(cat, on_press=select_category(cat))
+                items.append(urwid.AttrMap(btn, 'button', 'button_focus'))
+
+            listbox = urwid.ListBox(urwid.SimpleFocusListWalker(items))
+            popup = Dialog("Select Category", listbox, [])
+            self.show_overlay(popup, width=30, height=len(DEFAULT_CATEGORIES) + 4)
+
+        category_select_btn = Button3DCompact("▼", on_press=show_category_dropdown)
+
+        category_row = urwid.Columns([
+            ('pack', urwid.Text(('label', "Category: "))),
+            ('weight', 1, category_btn),
+            ('pack', urwid.Text(" ")),
+            ('pack', category_select_btn),
+        ])
+
         # Left column - fields
         left_pile = urwid.Pile([
             ('pack', name_widget),
             ('pack', urwid.Divider()),
             ('pack', self._desc_edit),
             ('pack', urwid.Divider()),
+            ('pack', category_row),
+            ('pack', urwid.Divider()),
             ('pack', self._output_edit),
         ])
         left_box = urwid.LineBox(urwid.Filler(left_pile, valign='top'), title='Tool Info')