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Icon, Dropdowns, and Hybrids

July 23, 2021 - by

Icon, Dropdowns, and Hybrids

Problem: The ribbon introduces several new types of controls.

In this figure, the Table and Pictures icon will invoke a command. The Shapes and Screenshot icons are dropdowns that lead to a flyout menu.

The Insert tab of the Ribbon offers icons that do one thing: Pivot Table, Recommend Pivot Table, Table, Picture. Then there are icons where the bottom half is a drop-down: Shapes. Finally, there are smaller drop-downs where you have to open the drop-down to get to any commands.
Figure 24. A mix of dropdowns, icons, and hybrids.

However, the Paste icon is actually two icons. The top half will do a default Paste. The bottom half leads to a flyout. You can’t really tell which icons are a hybrid of icon and dropdown until you hover over the icon with your mouse.

The Paste icon is an example of a hybrid. The Top half of the icon performs a normal paste. When you hover over the icon, you see a horizontal dividing line. Click below the line for a drop-down menu with special ways to paste.
Figure 25. When you hover, a horizontal line divides the icon.

The other new type of control in the ribbon is a gallery with three arrows at the right side. The first and second arrows in the gallery will scroll through choices one row at a time.

If you click the bottom arrow, the gallery will fly open to reveal all of the choices.

The Word Art Styles gallery initially shows three icons. At the right edge are three arrows. Up arrow for up one row. Down arrow for down one row. The final arrow opens the entire gallery.
Figure 26. Galleries have three arrows on the right edge.

Additional Details: Several icons have an upper (icon) half and a lower (dropdown) half:

  • Paste on the Home tab
  • Insert on the Home tab
  • Delete on the Home tab
  • Bring Forward on the Page Layout tab
  • Send Backward on the Page Layout tab
  • AutoSum on the Formulas tab
  • Data Validation on the Data tab
  • Macros on the View tab
When the Word Art Styles gallery is open, all 15 styles appear.
Figure 27. Use bottom arrow to open the gallery.

This article is an excerpt from Power Excel With MrExcel

Title photo by Austin Park on Unsplash