Stop Clicking Exploring Excel Ribbon Like Newbie

Stop Clicking and Exploring the Excel Ribbon like a Newbie

by John Franco
© 2009 by Excel-Spreadsheet-Authors.com
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www.Excel-Spreadsheet-Authors.com 2 | Page
TOC
TOC ...................................................................................................................................................... 3
INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 4
WHY MICROSOFT CHANGED MENUS FOR THE RIBBON? ........................................................................ 6
UNCOVER THE REASON YOU ARE PULLING YOUR HAIR TO FIND THINGS IN EXCEL 2007 ...................... 11
YOUR EXCEL PRODUCTIVITY IS AT RISK ................................................................................................ 13
WHERE DID THE EXCEL 2003 TOOLS GO IN EXCEL 2007? ...................................................................... 14
3 EASY STEPS TO STOP CLICKING AND EXPLORING THE EXCEL RIBBON LIKE A NEWBIE, TO DO THE
THINGS YOU CAN ALREADY DO IN YOUR SLEEP ................................................................................... 17
ABOUT JOHN .................................................................................................................................. 20
Introduction
I want to share with you 3 simple steps to master the new paradigm
called Ribbon.
Before that, I would like to share some insights about this shift…
Many systems we create are not sustainable in time because of a
single reason: at some point in its history, the initial conditions by
which the invention was created, no longer exists.
The original settings and parameters disappear because new
technology overrides old restrictions. Also because the built-in
structure does not support the new challenges (demands) imposed by
eager and innovative users.
One of the best examples is the restrictions imposed by the
technology to the computing processing capacity. More speed (as
demanded) could not be achieved using the same materials and
systems. Take a look at this brief computing processing timeline…
1. 1940s - Tube based CPU
2. 1950s - The transistor came on the scene
3. 1971 – Intel 4004 microprocessor, silicon gate technology

allowing a higher number of transistors and a faster speed
than was possible before
4. 2010 - Processors based on Intel's 45nm High-k silicon

technology
These turning points are present in every area of human progress. To

illustrate this changing nature of systems, please think for a moment
about these shifts…
Cave - house – apartment building – what’s next
Chariot – car - what’s next
Roman road – highway – Interstate - what’s next
Steam engine – diesel engine – electric motor- what’s next
Ship - Airplane – Space Shuttle - what’s next
Keyboard – mouse – touch screen - what’s next
Keyboard command - Menu – Ribbon - what’s next
You cannot insist on using a system when the conditions change so
dramatically that its use is no longer cost effective.
Don’t quit reading now; we have more important points to discuss…
John Franco
www.Excel-Spreadsheet-Authors.com
Why Microsoft Changed Menus for the

Ribbon?
“Your paradigm is so intrinsic to your mental process that you are

hardly aware of its existence, until you try to communicate with
someone with a different paradigm.”
▬ Donella Meadows
Organization is achieved by putting similar concepts together; the

fact is that the old menu system follows this golden rule. The
inadequacy is that the organizing principle is based on plain
categorization not in related actions.
Let me explain this concept in more detail…
Excel Ribbon has an activity-oriented organization
Think about the Insert menu in Excel 2003; it groups all the tools that
you can imagine could be inserted: Sheets, Columns, Chart, etc.
In the beginning this grouping appears good. It was accepted and

now Excel 2003 users cannot live without it.
The fact is that this system has a critical shortcoming; I will show it
to you now…
Focus for a moment on the Chart command (see menu
above)…Where are the chart related tools? Is charting an activity or
just a command? Don’t you set data series, formatting, etc while you
are working with a chart?
The answer is yes!
So; if you are charting, you need its options at your fingertips instead
of going deep in your toolbar library.
Here’s another critical concept of the new Excel Ribbon…
Excel Ribbon reduces a cluttered interface with contextual
Ribbon tabs
If you are working with charts, the relevant tools are immediately
available in the contextual Ribbon tabs (Chart tools): Design, Layout
and Format. See below…
Design tab:
Layout tab:
Format tab:
The Chart related commands are displayed to its fullest because now
they all are fully relevant, since you are working on charts. They
disappear as soon as you stop working with Charts (the same occurs
with Pivot Tables, Pictures, Tables, etc)
Compare the above arsenal of tools with the tiny and not so
preeminent Chart contextual toolbar of Excel 2003.
Don’t think I am too idealistic…
Here is something that is making a lot of Excel 2007 users pulling
their hair…
Every new solution brings new problems; for example: potable water
brings the problem of waste water disposal.
So the Ribbon has residual problems too…
“For everything you have missed, you have gained something else,
and for everything you gain, you lose something else.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Problem #1 - It generates extra clicks. This occurs because the

Ribbon in Excel 2007 is not customizable (big mistake solved in Excel
2010). For example: to access the Sort command you need to click
twice: Data>Sort. On the other hand, you would click just once in
Excel 2003 creating a custom toolbar.
You can click once to access the Sort command in Excel 2007 if you
add the command to the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT). The
shortcoming remains because you have only one cluttered QAT
instead of limitless custom toolbars tailored to your needs (Excel
2003).
Problem #2 - The Ribbon now occupies extra space on screen.
Although, you can minimize it, you cannot get rid of less frequent
commands from any given Ribbon.
This problem would be solved with toolbar customizing.
Thankfully there is good news; the Excel 2010 version is able
to do that (again).
Don’t believe me?
Here are some screens…
Fully customized your default Ribbon tabs and Groups or create your
own ones…
Have access to your own Ribbon tabs and Groups…
Hide unused Ribbon or Groups
www.Excel-Spreadsheet-Authors.com 10 | P a g e
Uncover the Reason You are Pulling Your

Hair to Find Things in Excel 2007
“He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human
institution which rejects progress is the cemetery.”
▬ Harold Wilson
Menu systems existed until Excel 2003, you are among the users who
lived and grew with this command organization scheme. Now this
system is gone. It takes the same amount of energy to adopt and
move forward as it does to pull your hair and express frustration.
The problem that emerged is this one…We as humans are custom
creatures…for example, if you put the car steering wheel on the left
and then move it to the right or vice versa, everyone will complain.
The menu system makes you feel comfortable not because it is the
best system in the world; it is because you have been using it for
years. Toolbars are the same thing.
The problem is not in the new Ribbon; the fact is that the Menu and
Toolbars systems are hard wired in your brain.
Developers know this fact and they stay close to paradigms between
new Excel version launches. They are aware of massive use, chaos,
commerciality, etc. Even third party software companies attach to
this quite rigid fact.
But there is a time when things need to change; as I said to you in
the introduction, systems are continually getting obsolete. The status
quo must be broken in order for things to evolve.
So…
The mindset of users is the main obstacle to mastering this
new paradigm called Ribbon. You will struggle until you accept the
change and focus on using it. No options to get back. You must
release it in your mind, find closure and move forward.
Customs are obstacles, but they can be changed.
Microsoft is not responsible for this struggle you are having.
They lead the technology, and they are improving. If you see the
change objectively you will say…yes they are improving; just that I
was so comfortable… but remember; at one time, the majority was
quite comfortable traveling by stage coach and steam engine.
This pattern is repeated every time a major shift in customs and ways
of doing things change.
Let me tell you a story…
As a Civil Engineer I didn’t have the opportunity to work in the big
drawing rooms of the past. A drawing took a week to complete; even
with that, the pioneers of CAD (Computer Aided Design) got
resistance because of several reasons:
The need to configure the software
Too much time to get started (newbies spend too much

time doing a line)
And other now-ridiculous arguments
What eventually happened? Now a drawing can be modified

thousands of times with little or no effort. This is the residual benefits
of the initial learning curve. It stays with you and even accumulates.
You should greet and welcome these changes because this is how all
learn and participate in this always new and changing world.
Resistance to change is useless, because change is necessary.
Remember; the only truly consistent thing in life is change.
Let’s stay on the train of technology. Participating in the industry
innovations and mistakes is vital for your computer literacy…a skill all
of us need to prosper now.
Your Excel Productivity is at Risk
“You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the

circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change
yourself. That is something you have charge of.”
▬ Jim Rohn
Productivity is achieved when you use your brain entirely to solve the
more important problems. In other words, you reach your peak
performance when your support tasks like walking, typing, listening
are done in the background of your brain.
For example: once you learn to drive a car, your brain enjoys the
scenery in front of you; you easily drive around obstacles, bad
section of the road, etc. If suddenly, the commands of the car would
be changed; many of the skills and pleasures of driving would stop.
I can’t imagine driving in England for example (I grew up in a left
wheel vehicles country); I think I will not enjoy the driving experience
for the first days.
It happens in software too, once you master the locations of the tools
you need, it becomes automatic so you don’t think about it anymore.
You become productive because you only focus on presenting
the data, writing formulas, etc. instead of searching for tools.
It took you time to wire in your brain where the tools are. This skill is
your asset so it is painful to abandoning it. It causes resistance.
We get too attached to our "comfort zones".
Do you see the same pattern again?
It happens when big changes occur. Excel 2003 menu to Excel 2007
Ribbon is a big paradigm shift.
Comfort also plays a critical role; you repeat things that you are
comfortable with. If a task you used to do comfortably, like finding
things in Excel, is suddenly changed, you feel anger; you will tend to
avoid this pain.
Well…here’s the most important part…
In just a moment I will show how to overcome this frustration in 3
easy steps…
Where did the Excel 2003 Tools Go in

Excel 2007?
“I was an accomplice in my own frustration.”

▬ Peter Shaffer
The Excel 2003 commands are on the different Ribbon tabs and on
the Office button. See below…
As I said to you before, the commands in the menus are

disassociated from the respective toolbar. Not a good thing if you use
those commands in harmony when you are working on a specific task
like writing a Formula, Charting, and working with Pictures, etc.
So…
Ribbons group commands related to an activity. For example
the Formulas Ribbon contains all related commands for working with
Formulas (inserting functions, debugging, managing named ranges,
etc.).
On the other hand, if you see the Formulas related commands on

Excel 2003, you will notice they are scattered...
The Function wizard on Insert menu
The Formula Auditing on Tools menu
The Named ranges on Insert Menu
The Calculating options on the Options dialog box (Tools menu)
Inside a Ribbon, the commands are also organized into Groups; these
frames contain related commands that were previously scattered
unnecessarily.
For example: the Formulas Ribbon tab has the Groups: Function
Library, Defined Names, Formula Auditing and Calculation.
Any other command that does not fit under any of the Ribbon tabs
was grouped on the Office Button.
What is the Office button? The upper left button that now drives a lot
of users crazy. Think about it as the home of all other things you
don’t find on Ribbons. See below…
The Excel Options form under the Tools menu in Excel 2003 is now
located on the Office button.
Then…
How to find things in this new environment?
Although, some features may be difficult to detect, this is the
exception because the organization of commands is quite predictable,
and we will use this feature right now to boost your productivity.
It is time to know the…
3 Easy Steps to Stop Clicking and

Exploring the Excel Ribbon Like a
Newbie, to Do the Things You Can
Already Do in Your Sleep
“Doubt can only be removed by action.”

▬ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Here I will show you a 3 steps formula (Rewire – Explore – Practice)

so you feel like a fish in the water again…
1.1 Rewire
Routine is your first enemy, to get rid of it, please stop looking at the
Excel 2003 system. And be aware that organization of menu is
arbitrary; developers may have invented a tablet, voice command,
one menu, a map, etc.
The good news is that our human brain can wire a new system and
turn it into a new inner game.
Think for a moment in the languages…the words dog in English, perro
in Spanish are arbitrary constructs. We assign meaning to each word.
We can use them later to construct more complex things.
So…
Change your mindset from category driven Menus to activity
driven Ribbons.
Flotation law was not discovered by the contemplation of how things
sink. So you are crazy if you try to master Excel 2007 new Ribbon
paradigm by focusing on the Excel 2003 menu system.
To rewire your brain to Excel 2007 system, focus on it.
Additionally; as I said to you before, the organization of things is
predictable…You won’t find the Print command on the Formulas
tab so take time now and…
1.2 Explore
Complete your wiring-process by exploring the new positions of
things.
Think..."Activity Driven"!
All the tools are now organized under a new principle. So, use the
new paradigm in your mind and go discover where the things you
know are now located. (not 2003/2007 side by side
comparison).
Be aware of the underlying grouping inside each Ribbon, the toolbars
are now under tabs: Home, Insert, Page Layout, etc and the Groups
inside them cluster similar commands.
Here is an important piece of advice…
Once you discover by yourself the new organization, take a common
command you used to use in the older Excel version and ask this
powerful question…
On what Ribbon should it be?
For example…
Let’s take the Formula Auditing command (Excel 2003 Tools menu)
And ask the question on what Ribbon should it be?
Home
Insert
Page Layout
Formulas
Data
Review
View
Add-ins
Button
Yes, the answer is Formulas. Click on the Formulas Ribbon, and then
ask the question…
On what Group should it be?
Function Library
Defined Names
Formula Auditing
Calculation
Yes, the answer is Formula Auditing. Look at it and you will find the
tool you are looking for.
If you can’t find the command, then look in the Home tab. It groups
diverse general categories.
Keep in mind that the system level commands like File menu,
Options, etc are on the Office Button.
1.3 Practice
80% of the rocket fuel is burnt before leaving the atmosphere and
getting into orbit. Not enough progress? Not the case, it is breaking
inertia (gravity).
The same principle applies here; as you start, you will notice a
slowdown in your productivity despite "burning" more time. Once you
break resistance, you will soon experience the productivity levels you
had before and even bigger because this new paradigm works.
The fact that Microsoft uses the Ribbon in its new 2010 version
means we will have Ribbon for at least a few more years.
Ribbon on Excel 2007 has detractors and errors. Microsoft developers
and directors figured out that the inability to customize the toolbars is
causing a lot of trouble to the huge community of Excel 2003 users
(and older versions too).
Let’s celebrate that Excel 2010 has customizable toolbars again!
I hope this report has provided you with some helpful insights to
make the move to Excel 2007/2010 Excel versions and beyond,
without constantly clicking and exploring like a newbie over and over
every day.
I am John Franco - of Ecuador South America. I invite you to visit me

at my blog www.Excel-Spreadsheet-Authors.com where we can
become better acquainted. I will show you many amazing truths
of Excel.
About John
John Franco is native of Ecuador, he is a Civil
Engineer and a Bachelor in Applied Linguistics with
focus on creating systems for work, his long term
objective in life is helping others to gain momentum in
the application of ideas.
For over seven years, he worked as a Civil Engineer
for Norberto Odebrecht Construction Company (the 44th largest
construction contracting firm from around the world according to
Engineering News Record 2008).
During that time, He had an Excel Maven Boss; Nilton Teti, one of
those old-time-Excel-geniuses who makes precious models, uses just
the keyboard and hates BI corporate packages. His almost “religious
fervor” for Excel, and his amazing knowledge, was the source of his
great interest in Spreadsheets.
During all these years he really experienced the professional benefits
of using Excel to accomplish his duties; he says to you that being
skilled in Excel gives you a tremendous advantage at the
office and in your career!
Having always been very entrepreneurial in his nature, he quit his job
at Norberto Odebrecht in order to devote his full passion and
knowledge of advanced Excel methods to others around the world
who can benefit from it.
His first entrepreneurial initiative is the site
www.Excel-Spreadsheet-Authors.com; a blog dedicated to
Mid/Advanced Excel users so they can polish their skills to reach
higher productivity and clarity.
Email him at: john@excel-spreadsheet-authors.com

Stop Clicking Exploring Excel Ribbon Like Newbie

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2. 1950s - The transistor came on the scene

3. 1971 – Intel 4004 microprocessor, silicon gate technology

4. 2010 - Processors based on Intel's 45nm High-k silicon

These turning points are present in every area of human progress. To

Chariot – car - what’s next

Roman road – highway – Interstate - what’s next

Steam engine – diesel engine – electric motor- what’s next

Ship - Airplane – Space Shuttle - what’s next

Keyboard – mouse – touch screen - what’s next

Keyboard command - Menu – Ribbon - what’s next

Don’t quit reading now; we have more important points to discuss…

Why Microsoft Changed Menus for the

“Your paradigm is so intrinsic to your mental process that you are

Organization is achieved by putting similar concepts together; the

In the beginning this grouping appears good. It was accepted and

Problem #1 - It generates extra clicks. This occurs because the

Have access to your own Ribbon tabs and Groups…

Uncover the Reason You are Pulling Your

Too much time to get started (newbies spend too much

And other now-ridiculous arguments

What eventually happened? Now a drawing can be modified

Your Excel Productivity is at Risk

“You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the

Where did the Excel 2003 Tools Go in

“I was an accomplice in my own frustration.”

As I said to you before, the commands in the menus are

On the other hand, if you see the Formulas related commands on

The Formula Auditing on Tools menu

The Named ranges on Insert Menu

The Calculating options on the Options dialog box (Tools menu)

3 Easy Steps to Stop Clicking and

“Doubt can only be removed by action.”

Here I will show you a 3 steps formula (Rewire – Explore – Practice)

I am John Franco - of Ecuador South America. I invite you to visit me

Email him at: john@excel-spreadsheet-authors.com

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