Microsoft Changes Office 2007 Interface Again 300
daria42 writes "Microsoft has modified its interface for Office 2007 yet again, after complaints from beta testers that the 'ribbon' system took up too much space on screen. The article discusses the resistance the new interface is likely to prompt in old users of the software, both at a personal and corporate level. From a format perspective, there are other changes to expect as well." From the article: "Hodgson also confirmed that Microsoft is working on tools to help enterprises automatically translate existing documents into new file formats being introduced in Office 2007. 'We've been asked by a lot of customers to provide tools to do mass migrations,' he said. 'There will be tools that will take a million documents and migrate those to the new formats.' One likely incentive for that migration will be reduced storage costs. Microsoft claims that file sizes for the new Office 2007 XML-based formats are up to 75 percent less than existing Office formats."
Call me old fashion... (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm sure lots of people are gonna respond to that with a resounding "YES", but I personally have gotten used to what it is. It took me years to learn the ins and outs of Office after computers stopped coming bundled with MS Word. Even now, I've done away with that side-by-side view in Outlook 2003 and moved everything back to the same way it was in 2000. This goes the same for most other programs which throw in an abundance of menus and graphics to try to make things TOO user friendly. Nine times out of ten, if there is an option for the "traditional view", I'll take it.
I dunno, maybe I'm just living in the past. I still use vi on Linux, I still use Notepad in windows whenever I can, and I don't feel any desire to get used to any "ribbons" flying across my screen.
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"A man is asked if he is wise or not. He replies that he is otherwise." ~Mao Zedong
Reduced Storage Costs (Score:5, Insightful)
Judging from past conversions, you'd better keep the original version close at hand, because when the conversion doesn't look right, you're going to have people wanting the original. So now you're dealing with 25% more storage - the original files as a safety copy, and the new 'improved' conversions. Hmmm.
Tie a ribbon around me - I'm hooked (Score:5, Insightful)
I've been using Word for about 10 years and have come to know its little foibles and workarounds and sub-sub-sub menus. That being said, the SECOND time I used Word 2007 I was able to teach others how to use it! It's an absolute triumph of GUI design and I'm really enthusiastic about its final release. I'm also dreading the coming of February when my free beta expires and becomes unusable.
And on the topic of mass migration - don't go nuts with that, Microsoft. Even if a company wants to implement Office 2007 among its entire ranks, interoperability with other shops who will be reluctant to upgrade (due to cost of licensing and training) will mean that
Re:Call me old fashion... (Score:5, Insightful)
You know, there is a chance that his thing might actually make your life a lot more comfortable...
Granted, this is Microsoft, so you'd have a point if you said "not very likely", but you should at least give it a try
Using vi isn't a good example of living in the past btw. It may be hideous and horrible and I certainly wouldn't go anywhere near it, but if you know how to use it properly, it's pretty damn useful and will remain so for many years to come.
Notepad on the other hand... has it even learned to do syntax highlighting yet?
Re:New Document Formats? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Call me old fashion... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Too much room? (Score:5, Insightful)
Monitors are wider these days. It's vertical screen real-estate that users will notice more. At least in the old Office versions, I can completely remove toolbars or combine the ones I use into one custom toolbar. The ribbon still bugs me, and making it an auto-hide just adds a step to typical usage.
Nothing was really "broken" about the old system, it just needed more consistency and easier configurability. Changing to a completely new and unproven design just increases training costs for businesses and slows adoption of their new version.
Hang on. (Score:3, Insightful)
I really hate the UI changes in each version of Office and wish there was a "classic" setting that causes a default skin to be displayed with everything in a standardized spot. Why? Because when my mother/sister/neighbour's cat purchases a new computer it inevitably comes with a new version of Office that has features senselessly 'hidden' in different spots. It causes no end of agony to help these poor users adapt. After all, most people need little more than a glorified typewriter with spell-checking. Microsoft should offer "Office Extrasimple Basic" for folks like these.
Of course, they'd market it in a way that encouraged people to upgrade "just in case they need the ability to do something powerful."
Re:Call me old fashion... (Score:5, Insightful)
I dont care about the interface, I am worried about the new slew of "helpers" they put in there that will do what you dont want them to do, change your formatting, start a bulleted list when you dont want to, "help you" because you are not doing it the microsoft way, etc...
Personally, a word processor that has NO features is perfect. put on the screen EXACTLY what I type, dont screw with my margins, dont adjust my tabstops, etc... Fun part is they make it intentionally hard to disable all that useless crap.
I guarentee that Office 2007 will come with twice the amount of that garbage in it.
Re:Call me old fashion... (Score:5, Insightful)
I guess these are examples of the ideal way to improve things: you don't have to relearn anything to use the improvement, it's just magically better. A shame that so few software improvements follow this path. I guess improved font rendering, faster speed, or better reliability are examples.
Re:What about the bloat? (Score:5, Insightful)
This is what I've always said about ... (Score:4, Insightful)
Many people claim to be sick of MS and the intrusiveness and high costs of being legal, but when they try Linux they complain that it's not Microsoft.
Well, now it looks like, with this new Ribbon thing, users will complain because, according to the article, there will be inconsistency between MS applications - some will have the ribbon, some won't.
It's not even whether or not the ribbon is a bad thing, it's that people don't like learning new things.
Re:A million documents? (Score:5, Insightful)
Vendor lock-in, Vendor lock-in, Vendor lock-in
As bad as DOC is, at least it's been reverse engineered to death and is compatible with the bulk of most modern word processors.
Ribbons, menus... seriously, c'mon (Score:5, Insightful)
In any given hour of work in Word or Excel, do you know how often I use menus, buttons or anything outside the actual document/worksheet space? Maybe once or twice for Word, maybe only a little more for Excel. The reason? Shortcuts, people, shortcuts.
How office-monkeys can sit in their Dell Hells day after day, doing the same crap over and over again, without learning
a) to touch type and
b) how to do things a bit quicker and easier with the keyboard
is absolutely beyond me.
What do I need from my UI? Leave it as it is. I have exactly two toolbars in either Word or Excel, and use a fraction of each (if I'm that concerned about screen space, I'll customise more carefully). Anything beyond my capabilities with keyboard and the odd button, I will happily use a menu for. Anyone who tells me how much easier and more intuitive Ribbons are to use, I say this: I've tried it, and I found them exactly as useful as the current UI, ie not at all.
No, this is not a "I don't need no stinkin' upgrades" rant. This is a "For God's sake, people, learn to use the tools you have properly and you'll work quicker, easier and not give a damn about this either" tirade.
To the obtuse jackass who modded me flamebait: (Score:3, Insightful)
What it hasn't done is give anyone any compelling reasons to upgrade. Someone needs to explain precisely how this "ribbon" feature adds value. What does it say about the product as a whole when it's THE most talked-about aspect of the new version? Is the product so stagnant that the only way to get people to eye it as a purchase is to shuffle around the UI a bit?
That's what I was trying to point out, and hopefully spur some discussion about. That's NOT flamebaiting.
Re:Call me old fashion... (Score:3, Insightful)
Besides, let's keep in mind that MS needs to do something to entice the user to upgrade - when 2003 resembles and pretty much works exactly like 97, businesses often feel no incentive to upgrade. But a complete overhaul in the product - both in format (and perhaps ODF support????) and in UI - may be more exciting for buyers.
People, as a group, resist change. But often said change is for the serious better (OS9 to OSX?) and having used the new interface, although there is a learning curve of some degree, I can see that they've put in some serious thought and really put the most commonly used tasks right up in your grill.
Now if we could just get Apple to redo the Finder...
Re:A million documents? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Call me old fashion... (Score:4, Insightful)
Wow, what a load of shit. Anything that helps keep control of the car, especially in slippery conditions is a good thing. It doesn't take much to slip, even going slow. My car's advanced traction control is pretty good at stopping fishtailing for example.
People need to realise they are steering a couple of tonnes of sheet steel and upholstery at breakneck (50mph) speed. It shouldnt be too easy, and it shouldnt be taken lightly. All these 'driver aids' simply make people more complacent.
No, driving should not be taken lightly, but having safe guards when the unexpected occurs is a good thing. No one will ever drive perfectly.
However, more and more people drive as if the ABS etc are there to be taken advantage of all the time. If on a dry day you see your ABS light flickering all the time as you drive, you are driving too fast and braking too hard.
I know lots of people that have ABS (pretty much everyone I know, actually) and not one of them drives like this. ABS only kicks in when you'd leave a nice little tire streek if your car didn't have ABS. To say that people are just slamming their brakes at every light is absurd. I've seen plenty of shit driving, but no one is purposefully breaking like that for the hell of it.
Please, get over your fear of technology. Its there to help us out, and for the most part it does a very good job.
Re:Too much room? (Score:2, Insightful)