Skip to main content This browser is no longer supported. Show
Upgrade to Microsoft Edge to take advantage of the latest features, security updates, and technical support. Windows 7 Ribbons
In this articleNote This design guide was created for Windows 7 and has not been updated for newer versions of Windows. Much of the guidance still applies in principle, but the presentation and examples do not reflect our current design guidance. Ribbons are the modern way to help users find, understand, and use commands efficiently and directly with a minimum number of clicks, with less need to resort to trial-and-error, and without having to refer to Help. A ribbon is a command bar that organizes a program's features into a series of tabs at the top of a window. Using a ribbon increases discoverability of features and functions, enables quicker learning of the program as a whole, and makes users feel more in control of their experience with the program. A ribbon can replace both the traditional menu bar and toolbars. A typical ribbon. Ribbon tabs are composed of groups, which are a labeled set of closely related commands. In addition to tabs and groups, ribbons consist of:
Ribbons were originally introduced with Microsoft Office 2007. To learn why Office needs to use ribbons and the many problems using a ribbon solves, see The Story of the Ribbon. Is this the right user interface?To decide to use a ribbon, consider these questions: Program type
Discoverability and learning issues
Command characteristics
Command scale
Finally, consider this ultimate question: Is the improvement in discoverability, ease of learning, efficiency, and productivity worth the cost of the extra space and the need for tabs to organize commands? If so, using a ribbon is an excellent choice. If you're not sure, consider usability testing a ribbon-based design and comparing it to the best alternative. Ribbons are a new and engaging form of command presentation, and a great way to modernize a program. But as compelling as they are, they aren't the right choice for every program. Incorrect: Please don't do this! Seven most important things
Design conceptsAdapting a ribbon in an existing programWhile you might simply refactor a traditional menu bar and toolbar design of an existing program to a ribbon format, doing so misses most of the value of using a ribbon. Ribbons have the most value when used to present immediate, results-oriented commands, often in the form of galleries and live previews. Results-oriented commands make commands easier to understand and users much more efficient and productive. Instead of refactoring your existing commands, it's better to redesign completely how commands are performed in your program. Don't underestimate the challenge of creating an effective ribbon. And don't take for granted that using a ribbon automatically makes your program better. Creating an effective ribbon takes a lot of time and effort. Being willing to commit the time and effort required for such a command redesign is an important factor in deciding to use a ribbon. The nature of ribbonsCompared to traditional menu bars and toolbars, ribbons have the following characteristics:
By contrast, ribbons provide enhanced keyboard accessibility through keytips, usually with a three-step process:
The nature of rich commandsRich commands refer to the presentation and interaction of commands used by ribbons, without necessarily using a ribbon container. Rich commands have these characteristics:
While ribbons might not be suitable for all programs, all programs can potentially benefit from rich commands. Ribbons always have an Application button and Quick Access ToolbarThe Application button and Quick Access Toolbar provide commands that are useful in any context, thus reducing the need to change tabs. While these three components are logically independent, a ribbon must always have an Application button and Quick Access Toolbar. Given that commands can go in either the ribbon or the Application button, you might be wondering where to place commands. The choice is not arbitrary. The Application button is used to present a menu of commands that involve doing something to or with a file, such as commands that traditionally go in the File menu to create, open, and save files, print, and send and publish documents. By contrast, the ribbon itself is for commands that affect the content of the window. Examples include commands used to read, modify, or use the content, or change the view. If you use a ribbon, you must also use an Application button even if your program doesn't involve documents or files. In such cases, use the Application menu to present commands for printing, program options, and exiting the program. While arguably the Application button isn't necessary for such programs, using it provides consistency across programs. Users don't have to hunt for save and undo commands or program options because they are always in the same place. The Quick Access Toolbar is required even if the ribbon only uses one tab. Again, while arguably such programs don't need a Quick Access Toolbar (because all the commands are already present on the single tab), having a customizable Quick Access Toolbar provides consistency across programs. For example, if users are in the habit of clicking the Print command, they should be able to do so in any program that uses a ribbon. Organization and discoverabilityBy providing tabs and groups, ribbons allow you to organize your commands to aid discoverability. The challenge is that if the organization is done poorly, it can greatly harm discoverability instead. There should be a clear, obvious, and unique mapping between your commands and the descriptively labeled tabs and groups where they reside. Users will form a mental model of the ribbon after using it for a while. If that mental model doesn't make sense to users, is inefficient, or is incorrect, it will lead to confusion and frustration. Your most important goal in designing a ribbon is to facilitate finding commands quickly and confidently. If you do not accomplish this, your ribbon design will fail. Achieving this goal requires careful design, user testing, and iteration. Don't assume that it will be easy. Here are some common pitfalls to avoid:
In this example, you can change paragraph borders through the Page Borders command, even though there is a more direct path on the Home tab. If users looking for paragraph borders were to stumble across this unexpected path, they might easily assume that it's the only path.
TabsThe best first step is to review the standard ribbon tabs. If your program's commands map naturally into the standard tabs, base your tab organization on these standards. On the other hand, if you program's commands don't map naturally, don't try to force it. Determine a more natural structure, and be sure to perform a lot of user testing to make sure that you've got it right. For non-standard tabs, consider these issues:
The Home tab is an exception to these considerations. While you don't have to have a Home tab, most programs should. The Home tab is the first tab, and contains the most frequently used commands. If you have frequently used commands that don't fit into the other tabs, the Home tab is the right place for them. If you can't determine a meaningful, descriptive tab name, it is probably because the tab isn't well designed. If your ribbon organization just isn't working, reconsider your tab design. GroupsDividing commands into groups structures the commands into related sets. The group label explains the common purpose of its commands. There are a variety of factors to consider when determining groups and their presentation:
In this example, the Font and Paragraph groups are more noticeable than the Clipboard group, because they are what the eye sees first when moving up from the document. In this example, the Tracking group receives the most attention, in part because the highlighted Review tab acts as a focal point.
PreviewsYou can use various types of previews to show what will result from a command. By using helpful previews, you can improve the efficiency of your program and reduce the need for the trial-and-error learning approach. Live previews also invite experimentation and encourage creativity. Here are some of the different types of previews that you can use:
In this example, the Font drop-down list shows each font name using the font itself. In this example, realistic thumbnails are used to show the different watermarks.
In this example, Microsoft Word changes the Styles gallery to reflect the current styles. In this example, Word changes the Text highlight color and Font color commands to indicate their current effect.
In this example, the Page Color command performs a live preview by showing the effect of the color options on hover. Live previews are a powerful feature that can really improve your users' productivity, but even simple static previews can be a big help. Scaling the ribbonScaling a toolbar is simple: if a window is too narrow to display a toolbar, the toolbar displays what fits and makes everything else accessible through an overflow button. A goal of rich commands is to take full advantage of the available space, so scaling a ribbon requires more design work. There is no default ribbon size, so you should not design a ribbon with a particular width in mind. You have to design layouts with a wide range of widths and realize that any one of them could be the one most of your users will see. Scaling is a fundamental part of ribbon design, not the last step. When designing a tab, specify the different layouts for each group (up to three) as well as the combinations that can be used together. The ribbon will show the largest valid combination that fits the current window size. Toolbars scale using an overflow button. There is no default ribbon size. The smallest size is a single pop-up group icon.GuidelinesGeneral
Using tabsGenerally, having fewer tabs is better, so remove tabs that don't help achieve these goals.
Contextual tabs
Modal tabsStandard ribbon tabsWhenever practical, map your program's commands to these standard tabs, given in their standard order of appearance. Regular tabs
Most programs don't need the Review and Developer tabs. Standard Contextual tabs
If you have contextual commands related to format, design, and layout, but not enough for multiple tabs, just provide a Format tab. Standard groups
Standard ribbon groupsWhenever practical, map your program's commands to these standard groups, which are given within their associated tabs in their standard order of appearance. Main tab
Insert tab
Page layout tab
Review tab
View tab
Commands
Presentation
Interaction
GalleriesUse a gallery if:
Use an in-ribbon gallery if:
Thumbnails in galleriesChoose the smallest standard gallery thumbnail size that does the job well.
For in-ribbon galleries:
For drop-down galleries:
Command previews
Icons
Enhanced tooltips
For labeling guidelines, see Enhanced tooltip labels. Access keys and keytipsKeytips are the mechanism used to display access keys for commands displayed directly on a ribbon. Access keys for drop-down menu commands are indicated with an underlined character. They differ from menu access keys in the following ways:
For shortcut key guidelines, see Keyboard. Application buttons
Quick Access Toolbars
Dialog box launchers
LabelsTab labels
Contextual tab and tab set labels
Group labels
Command labels
Enhanced tooltip labelsApplication button labels
DocumentationWhen referring to ribbons:
Examples:
Which of the following commands allows you to increase or decrease the viewing area of a drawing?Increases or decreases the magnification of the view in the current viewport. You can change the magnification of a view by zooming in and out, which is similar to zooming in and out with a camera. Using ZOOM does not change the absolute size of objects in the drawing.
How do you change an object line thickness and display it on your screen?To change the Lineweight of all objects on a specific layer you will use the Layer Properties icon to bring up the Layer Properties Manager dialog box. You will then select the option of line weight and a new box should appear you then will be able to change the line weight.
Which quick key is used to display and hide the AutoCAD text window?Function key [F2] is the quick-key is used to display and hide the AutoCAD Text Window. 8.
|