The New Microsoft Office User Interface Overview:
The New Microsoft Office User Interface Overview
Published: September 13, 2005
Office "12" UI Frequently Asked Questions
When planning the next release of the Microsoft Office system of products, we took on the challenge of making the core Microsoft Office applications easier to work with. Taking into account extensive usability data and recent advancements in hardware and software, the team has delivered the most significant update to the Microsoft Office user interface (UI) in more than a decade. The result of these efforts is a user interface that makes it easier for people to find and confidently use the appropriate features they need to get the results they want.
Figure 1 - The next version of Office will present a streamlined, uncluttered workspace that minimizes distraction and presents commands in a more easily accessible way.
The next release of Microsoft Office products will present a streamlined, uncluttered workspace that minimizes distraction and enables people to achieve the results they want more quickly and easily. View a larger image.
In previous releases of Microsoft Office, people interacted with the applications through a system of menus, toolbars, task panes, and dialog boxes. While this system successfully provided access to a wide variety of features, it became increasingly challenging to add capabilities in a way that made it easy for people to take advantage of them. The overriding design goal for the new UI is to deliver a user interface that enables users to be more successful finding and using the advanced features of Microsoft Office. An additional important design goal was to preserve an uncluttered workspace that reduces distraction for users so that they can spend more time and energy focused on their work. With these goals in mind, we developed a results-oriented approach that simplifies how users achieve results when working in Microsoft Office.
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Key Features
While the overall look of the redesigned applications is new, early testing indicates that people quickly feel at home in the new UI and rapidly become accustomed to the new way these applications work. The ease with which people use the new interface is due to the simplicity of the new interface features:
Command Tabs
The traditional menus and toolbars have been replaced by a set of Command Tabs. Presented graphically, Command Tabs display the commands that are most relevant for each of the task areas in Microsoft Office Word, PowerPoint, Excel, or Access. For example, Word has Command Tabs for writing, inserting, page layout, working with references, doing mailings, and reviewing documents. Excel has a similar set of Command Tabs that make sense for spreadsheet work: creating worksheets, inserting objects like charts and graphics, page layout, working with formulas, managing data, and reviewing. These Command Tabs simplify accessing application features because they organize the commands in a way that corresponds directly to the tasks people perform in these applications.
The New Microsoft Office User Interface Overview
Published: September 13, 2005
Office "12" UI Frequently Asked Questions
When planning the next release of the Microsoft Office system of products, we took on the challenge of making the core Microsoft Office applications easier to work with. Taking into account extensive usability data and recent advancements in hardware and software, the team has delivered the most significant update to the Microsoft Office user interface (UI) in more than a decade. The result of these efforts is a user interface that makes it easier for people to find and confidently use the appropriate features they need to get the results they want.
Figure 1 - The next version of Office will present a streamlined, uncluttered workspace that minimizes distraction and presents commands in a more easily accessible way.
The next release of Microsoft Office products will present a streamlined, uncluttered workspace that minimizes distraction and enables people to achieve the results they want more quickly and easily. View a larger image.
In previous releases of Microsoft Office, people interacted with the applications through a system of menus, toolbars, task panes, and dialog boxes. While this system successfully provided access to a wide variety of features, it became increasingly challenging to add capabilities in a way that made it easy for people to take advantage of them. The overriding design goal for the new UI is to deliver a user interface that enables users to be more successful finding and using the advanced features of Microsoft Office. An additional important design goal was to preserve an uncluttered workspace that reduces distraction for users so that they can spend more time and energy focused on their work. With these goals in mind, we developed a results-oriented approach that simplifies how users achieve results when working in Microsoft Office.
Top of pageTop of page
Key Features
While the overall look of the redesigned applications is new, early testing indicates that people quickly feel at home in the new UI and rapidly become accustomed to the new way these applications work. The ease with which people use the new interface is due to the simplicity of the new interface features:
Command Tabs
The traditional menus and toolbars have been replaced by a set of Command Tabs. Presented graphically, Command Tabs display the commands that are most relevant for each of the task areas in Microsoft Office Word, PowerPoint, Excel, or Access. For example, Word has Command Tabs for writing, inserting, page layout, working with references, doing mailings, and reviewing documents. Excel has a similar set of Command Tabs that make sense for spreadsheet work: creating worksheets, inserting objects like charts and graphics, page layout, working with formulas, managing data, and reviewing. These Command Tabs simplify accessing application features because they organize the commands in a way that corresponds directly to the tasks people perform in these applications.
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