Customize the ribbon

Minimize the ribbon

You can minimize the ribbon to maximize your work area. In the minimized state, the ribbon appears when you click on a tab, but disappears again when you click on the map. Do one of the following to minimize the ribbon:

Click the Minimize ribbon arrow above the ribbon.

Or

Double-click a tab on the ribbon.

Click the arrow at the end of the Quick Access Toolbar, and then click Minimize the Ribbon.

  • Press CTRL+F1.

 

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Customize ribbon tabs and groups

You can customize the ribbon to:

You cannot rename, re-order, remove or add any commands within default groups. The default commands appear in gray text.

To help you identify a custom tab or group and to distinguish from a default tab or group, the custom tabs and groups in the Customize the ribbon list have (Custom) after the name, but the word (Custom) does not appear in the ribbon.

Open the Customize window

Right-click any tab on the ribbon, and then click Customize the Ribbon.

To see groups and commands:

Show or hide tabs in the application

Change the order of tabs, groups and commands

Commands in default groups (shown in gray) cannot be re-ordered. Only commands in custom groups can be re-ordered.

Rename tabs, groups and commands

Commands in default groups (shown in gray) cannot be renamed. Only commands in custom groups can be renamed.

Create a custom group

You can create a custom group with commands that can be re-ordered or renamed on a default tab or on a Custom tab.

  1. In the Customize the Ribbon Tabs list, select the tab where you want to add the custom group.

  2. Click New Group below the Tabs list.
    New Group (Custom) appears in the tab's list of groups.

  3. Click Rename to enter the name for your new group.
    The notation (Custom) will not appear on the ribbon.

  4. While the new group is still selected in the Customize the Ribbon Tabs list, on the left side of the dialog, use the Choose commands from: pull-down menu to select the group of commands you want to use to populate the new group.

  5. Select a command from the list, then click Add.

  6. Repeat until you have populated the group.

You can re-order and rename commands in the new group.

Create a custom tab

  1. In the Customize dialog, click New Tab below the Customize the Ribbon Tabs list.
    New Tab (Custom) appears in the tab list. The new tab contains an empty group named New Group (Custom).

  2. With the new tab selected, click Rename to enter the name for your new tab.
    The notation (Custom) will not appear on the ribbon.

  3. You can populate the tab with default groups or create custom groups.

Add default groups to a tab

  1. With the tab selected in the Customize the Ribbon Tabs list, use the Choose commands from pulldown menu to select Main Tabs.

  2. To see the groups on each tab, click  , then click  on the group name to see its commands.

  3. Select the group you want to add to the tab, and then click Add.

Remove a tab, group, or command

You cannot remove the default tabs, but you can choose not to display them. You cannot remove commands from default groups.

Remove customizations