(continuing...)
Some of the colors lean toward the DF skill/dwarf colors, and some just make sense to me. (like the dark green for the "outdoors" skill set, or the red(ish) for the metal set.)
This is basically set up around my approach to the game, which is "building". Mining/engraving first, two things that I trade around a lot. Then the white and green are my "CE" mix, my Civil/Combat Engineers - I usually have a sizable percentage of my dwarves with this mix (here, 2 out of the starting 7, in the middle) - Mason, Mech, Woodcutting (so all carry axes, and all go outside at once if/when it's time to cut wood), Plant Gathering (with axe in hand!), one with Architect. My outdoors/axe/masons. They train wardogs, and the red skills (not labors, not selectable) are their standard combat mix.
Then I move to Crafts & Metal, and then down thru Farmer (brown) & Hauling (safety orange). After Hauling is what I call my silver "Service" set - stuff dwarves do (if rarely) for the general good of the community. On my monitor, I can usually see just to "Weaving" without sliding the bar, which is starting the "I don't really monitor this" part of the skills - turn 'em on, let 'em run, hope for the best.
Hauling is laid out as: Farmer hauling,| general hauling | strong/special hauling. I laid it out so "Animal Hauling" is in the service color, just to set it apart - one that isn't part of the others, in my mind.
"Peasant" set at the end, followed by a 2nd Happiness (more to signify the actual end than as a 2nd reference - takes a 2nd "Happiness" w/ a slightly diff name to get it in there a 2nd time.)
I put Spacers (most medium grey, 1 pixel wide) in any set that was over 5 wide, just to improve visual scanning. I also put a dark grey Space at the end of every set - no matter how I mix them around, again it helps divide them visually.
Military:Happiness first, again - don't want to recruit someone who's on the breaking point if I can help it. Faint Spacers to highlight Wrestler and Marksdwarf, the rest is open. (And I really never use Mace.) The green is, again, my "CE" mix, the ones I expect to find outside, or nearby to there. Siege Operator is repeated because I can, and Swim because it fits nowhere else better.
Social:Yep.
I suppose I can upload the files if anyone really wants, tho' I'm not sure where I'd host them for download. (If anyone wants 'em, recommend a site.)