This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Customizing the Interface
Besides the work area of any Office 2016 application window, the Office 2016 interface mostly consists of the Ribbon and its associated Quick Access Toolbar. These two elements are the royal road to all things Office 2016, so you’ll be less efficient and less productive if these elements aren’t set up to suit the way you work.
Pinning the Ribbon
By default, some of the Office 2016 applications hide the Ribbon to give you maximum screen real estate for your documents, and you display the Ribbon by clicking any tab. If you find that extra click to be a pain, you can avoid it by pinning the Ribbon so that it appears on screen full-time.
- Click any Ribbon tab to display the Ribbon.
Click Pin the Ribbon. The Ribbon appears onscreen full-time.
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Hiding the Ribbon
If you followed the steps in the previous section to display the Ribbon all the time, you might later decide that you prefer the extra screen space over the convenience and want to revert to hiding the Ribbon until needed.
- Click any Ribbon tab to display the Ribbon.
Click Collapse the Ribbon. The Office 2016 application hides the Ribbon.
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Customizing the Ribbon
The Ribbon is handy because it enables you to run Office commands with just a few clicks. However, the Ribbon doesn’t include every command for a given Office 2016 app. If there’s a command that you use frequently, you should add it to the Ribbon for easy access.
In the Office 2016 application you want to customize, select File.
Select Options. The Options dialog box opens.
Select the Customize Ribbon tab.
- Select the tab you want to customize.
- Select New Group. The Office 2016 application adds the group.
Select Rename.
- Type a name for the group.
Select OK.
- Use the Choose Commands From list to select the command category you want to use.
- Select the command you want to add.
Select the custom group or tab to which you want to add the command.
- Select Add. The Office 2016 application adds the command to the custom group or tab. Repeat steps 9 to 12 as needed.
Select OK. The Office 2016 application adds the new groups and commands to the Ribbon.
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Changing the Position of the Quick Access Toolbar
The Quick Access Toolbar offers one-click access to common commands such as Save and Undo. By default, the Quick Access Toolbar appears above the Ribbon. This spot is good if you only have a few commands on the Quick Access Toolbar because the relatively small size of the Quick Access Toolbar means that the host Office 2016 program has enough room to display the document title and application name. If you want to load up the Quick Access Toolbar with many commands, consider moving it below the Ribbon. Doing so gives the Quick Access Toolbar the full width of the window, although it does reduce the amount of space available for your document content.
- Select Customize Quick Access Toolbar.
Select Show Below the Ribbon. The Office 2016 application moves the Quick Access Toolbar below the Ribbon.
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Customizing the Quick Access Toolbar
To get the most out of the Quick Access Toolbar, you need to populate it with the commands that you use most often. Note that you are not restricted to just a few commands. If you place the Quick Access Toolbar below the Ribbon, as described in the previous section, you can use the full width of the window, plus you get a More Controls button at the end of the toolbar that enables you to display a whole other row of commands.
If the command you want to add is on the Ribbon, right-click the command and then select Add to Quick Access Toolbar.
- Select Customize Quick Access Toolbar.
Select More Commands. The Office 2016 application opens the Options dialog box with the Quick Access Toolbar tab displayed.
- Use the Choose Commands From list to select the command category you want to use.
- Select the command you want to add.
- Select Add. The Office 2016 application adds the command to the custom group or tab.
- Select a command and then select Move Up or Move Down to position the command within the Quick Access Toolbar. Repeat steps 4 to 7 as needed.
Select OK. The Office 2016 application adds the commands to the Quick Access Toolbar.
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Setting the Office Background
You can add a bit of visual interest to your Office 2016 applications by applying a background pattern that appears in the title bar.
Select File.
- Select the Account tab.
Use the Office Background list to select the pattern you want to use. Office 2016 applies the pattern to all the Office 2016 applications.
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