Toolbars

Below are several Frequently Asked Questions and answers on the subject of Toolbars in Excel.


Is it possible to copy custom toolbars from Excel 5 to Excel 7?

What options are available using the toolbar?

How can I create a new toolbar?

How do I attach a toolbar to a workbook?

How can I add a button to a toolbar?

How do I use the Button Editor?

How can I assign a macro to a toolbar button?

How do I reset a toolbar I have previously customized?

Are there any shortcuts related to Toolbar customization in Excel and Word?

Are there any shortcuts for toolbar button image editing?

So many toolbars, so little screen space...! How do I get the most from toolbar buttons?

How do I "port" my toolbars from one computer to another?

I deleted a toolbar that has re-appeared automatically. After deleting it again, it appeared again. Could it be a virus?

How do I change the ToolTips on a custom ToolbarButton?

How can I customize my toolbar?

How can I dock my floating toolbar?

 

I was previously using Excel 5 and had a number of customized toolbars. I now have a new PC with Excel 7. Is it possible to copy the custom toolbars from Excel 5 to Excel 7?
Keywords: Custom Toolbar
Posted November 7, 1996

There is a file called excel5.xlb located in your Windows directory. This is where Excel 5 stores the information about your custom toolbar setup. Just open this file in Excel 7 as if you were opening any other workbook and it will transfer over your custom toolbar settings.

What options are available using the toolbar?
Keywords: Reset Toolbar Options Button Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

Excel offers several toolbar options. To access those options, from the menu bar choose View - Toolbars or right click on a toolbar and select the Toolbars command. A list of all available toolbars will appear. At the bottom of the dialog box, you will see the following check boxes:

How can I create a new toolbar?
Keywords: Create Toolbar Add Delete Button Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

You can customize any toolbar by adding or deleting icons using the View - Toolbars - Customize command. However, you can also create your own custom toolbar. This would give a nice touch to applications as well as allow for easy access to often-used procedures.

  1. From the menu bar, choose View - Toolbars
  2. In the Toolbar Name text box, enter the name you want to use for the toolbar
  3. Select the New button--Excel will display a new, empty toolbar and the Customize dialog box
  4. Add the buttons you want for the new toolbar by dragging them to the desired location
  5. Click on Close

How do I attach a toolbar to a workbook?
Keywords: Attach Toolbar Options Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

There may be an occasion when you would like to attach a toolbar to a workbook for clarity and convenience. The procedure for this is:

  1. Open the workbook you want to use and activate a Visual Basic module
  2. From the menu bar, choose Tools - Attach Toolbars--Excel will display the Attach Toolbars dialog box
  3. In the Custom Toolbars list, highlight the toolbar you want to attach
  4. Select the Copy >> button--Excel adds the name to the Toolbars in Workbook list
  5. Select OK

After a toolbar is attached to a workbook, it will automatically be copied into the Excel workspace whenever opened.
NOTE: If you accidently copy a toolbar, you can remove it by highlighting it in the Toolbars in Workbook list and then selecting the Delete button.

How can I add a button to a toolbar?
Keywords: Toolbar Add Delete Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

Excel has many more toolbar buttons than the ones you see on its default toolbars. Most of Excel's features have their own buttons shortening the steps of using the menu bar. For example, there is a Lock Cell button that toggles protection on and off. This method is more convenient than the Tools - Protection - Protect Sheet command.

You can add buttons to a toolbar easily:

  1. From the menu bar, choose View - Toolbars and select the Customize button or right click on a toolbar and select Customize
  2. Use the Categories list to select a button category
  3. Drag the button you want to add from the Buttons section to the toolbar location
  4. Repeat steps 3 and 4 to add more buttons
  5. Click on Close

How do I use the Button Editor?
Keywords: Toolbar Options Button Editor Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

Excel's Button Editor enables you to modify an existing button face or create your own. The procedure is quite simple:

  1. Display the toolbar containing the button you want to edit
  2. From the menu bar, choose View - Toolbars or right click on a toolbar and select Toolbars
  3. With the dialog box open, right click on the button you want to edit and select Edit Button Image--Excel will display the Button Editor dialog box
  4. If you want to start a button from scratch, click the Clear button
  5. Select a color by clicking on one of the boxes in the Colors group
  6. Add the color to the image by clicking on one or more boxes in the Picture area
  7. To clear a box, click on it again
  8. The Preview area shows you what the button looks like at regular size
  9. Repeat steps 5 and 6 to complete the image
  10. Select OK

How can I assign a macro to a toolbar button?
Keywords: Toolbar Add Delete Button Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

When creating or editing a worksheet, Excel provides you with the ability to customize your toolbar for convenience. You can assign a macro to one of Excel's built-in buttons or to one of the custom buttons. Assigning a macro is a simple process.

  1. Display the toolbar that contains the button with which you need to work
  2. From the menu bar, choose View - Toolbars
  3. Select the button
  4. Select the Tools - Assign Macro command or right click on the button and select the Assign Macro command
  5. Proceed to Finish
  1. Display the toolbar you want to use for the custom button
  2. From the menu bar, choose View - Toolbars
  3. Select the Customize button and Custom from the Categories list
  4. Drag the custom button to the toolbar. When you release the button, the Assign Macro dialog box will appear.
  5. Proceed to Finish
  1. Select the macro from the Macro Name/Reference list. However, if you need to record the macro, click the Record button and record as usual. When you finish, Excel will assign the macro to the button you selected and return you to your worksheet.
  2. If a macro was selected from the list, click on OK
  3. Click on Close to return to your worksheet

How do I reset a toolbar I have previously customized?
Keywords: Reset Toolbar Add Delete Button Customize
Posted July 18, 1996

After customizing a toolbar with buttons that accomplish needed tasks, you might want to restore it to its original settings. If you have customized one of Excel's built-in toolbars you can reset it back to its original configuration:

  1. From the menu bar, choose View - Toolbars or right click on a toolbar and select Toolbars
  2. In the Toolbars list, highlight the toolbar you want to reset
  3. Select the Reset button
  4. Click on Close

Are there any shortcuts related to Toolbar customization in Excel and Word?
Keywords: Toolbar Button
Posted April 22, 1996

Here are three shortcuts that should help you save time.

Word 6 and Word 7 allow a shortcut that Excel 5 and 7 do not, namely, moving and copying toolbar buttons without invoking the Toolbars>Customize dialog. You can do it directly by pressing the Alt key! You can press the Alt key and drag any toolbar button from one toolbar to another toolbar. If you simultaneously hold the Ctrl key down (that is, Ctrl+Alt+drag), then the toolbar button will be copied to the destination toolbar. If you drag a toolbar button to the document, a new toolbar is created and the button you dropped is placed in that toolbar.

Our second and third shortcuts work with Word 6, Word 7, Excel 5 and Excel 7. They help while editing toolbar button images using the Button Editor. Normally when you are editing the image, you click on a desired color on the color palette and then click on the pixels where you need this color. Instead, you can also right-click on any pixel in the image to pick the color in that pixel.

Another shortcut is to drag the mouse instead of clicking pixel by pixel. This changes the color (or erases) all the pixels to whatever color the first pixel changes to.

Are there any shortcuts for toolbar button image editing?
Keywords: Toolbar Picture Image Button
Posted April 22, 1996

Here are a couple of shortcuts that should help you save time.

These shortcuts work with the Button Image Editor in Word 6, Word 7, Excel 5 and Excel 7. Normally when you are editing the image, you click on a desired color on the color palette and then click on the pixels where you need this color. Instead, you can also right-click on any pixel in the image to pick the color in that pixel.

Another shortcut is to drag the mouse instead of clicking pixel by pixel. This changes the color (or erases) all the pixels to whatever color the first pixel changes to. Helps to "paint " or "clear" a region. This is useful because, unlike PaintBrush or other image editors, there is no way to specify a background color and use the right mouse button to erase.

So many toolbars, so little screen space...! How do I get the most from toolbar buttons?
Keywords: Toolbar Toggle Shift
Posted April 22, 1996

One way to live with fewer toolbars on display is to use a little-known shortcut. Namely, that many standard toolbar buttons do "double duty" if you hold the Shift key down while you click them. For instance, if you press the Open button on Excel's Standard toolbar with the Shift key pressed, it does what the Save button! And to be doubly sure, before you let go of the mouse button, notice how the toolbar button picture changes to that of the Save button. So what happens if you press Shift and the Save button? Yes, it acts as the Open button! Using this shortcut, you can eliminate almost half of the buttons on most of the built-in toolbars.

As an example, I have removed the Print button and the Sort Descending button from my Standard toolbar. I press Shift and the Print Preview button whenever I wish to Print. Similarly, I press Shift and the Sort Ascending button when I need to sort in descending order.

Here is a partial list of such "two-faced" buttons. Each button in a pair substitutes for the other when used with the Shift key.

Toolbar

Button

Partner Button (Shift)

Standard

Open

Save

Print

Print Preview

Undo

Redo

Sort Ascending

Sort Descending

Formatting

Underline

Double Underline

Align Left

Align Right

Center

Center Across Columns

Increase Decimal

Decrease Decimal

Drawing

Rectangle etc.

Filled Rectangle etc.

Bring To Front

Send To Back

Group Objects

Ungroup Objects

Available to customize

Zoom In

Zoom Out

How do I "port" my toolbars from one computer to another?
Keywords: Toolbar XLB Transfer
Posted April 13, 1996

Both Excel 5.0 and Excel 7.0 (for Windows 95) store the toolbars in a special file in the Windows directory. To transfer all the toolbars from one machine to another, copy and open the relevant .XLB file from your Windows directory. In Excel 5, all toolbars are stored in EXCEL5.XLB but Excel 7 stores multiple .XLB files for each user name.

If you want to copy just one or two specific custom toolbars, attach them to a workbook using the Tools > Attach Toolbars menu option (this menu option appears only when a Visual Basic module is active). When this workbook is opened for the first time on a new machine, the attached toolbars are added to the Excel workspace there.

Yesterday, I deleted a toolbar using View > Toolbars > Delete. Today the toolbar has re-appeared automatically. I deleted it again and verified that it does not appear in the list of toolbars. Now, after a little while, it has appeared again. Could it be a virus?
Keywords: Toolbar Attached
Posted April 13, 1996

It is unlikely that this is a virus. A possible reason for your situation is that one of the workbooks you are working with has an attached toolbar. You can attach a custom toolbar to a workbook by choosing Tools > Attach Toolbars > Copy. This menu option will appear only when a module sheet is active.

When you open a workbook containing an attached toolbar, that toolbar is added to your Excel environment if there isn't already a toolbar with the same name. Even when you delete the toolbar from your environment, the workbook still has a copy stored in it.

To permanently get rid of the toolbar, you have to find which workbook contains the toolbar and delete it. To do this, in each workbook you were working on, activate a module sheet and choose the Tools > Attach Toolbars menu option. If you find a toolbar in the list of attached toolbars, select it and press the Delete button. Of course, attached toolbars are usually there to provide some functionality so double-check if you really wish to delete it.

How do I change the ToolTips on a custom ToolbarButton?
Keywords: Toolbar ToolTip Name Button
Posted January 16, 1996

The tool tip is really the name property of a toolbar button. The ToolbarButton collection in Excel is only referenced by number. You need to count the buttons on your toolbar to figure out the number of the one you want to change. Note that the spaces between the buttons count also. Here's the quick and dirty way to make it happen.

Open the Immediate Windows (View, Debug Window) and type the following:

?Application.Toolbars.ToobarButtons(1).Name

This will return the current name of the first button on the toolbar. To change it, use the same statement with the assignment operator (=) and assign a new name to the button (all on one line):

Application.Toolbars.ToolbarButtons(1).Name = 
"My New Tool Tip"

If you wanted to change some of them using code, here's a code fragment:

With Application.Toolbars
    ToolbarButtons(12).Name = "Baarns Excel to Web"
    ToolbarButtons(14).Name = "Baarns Help"
End With

How can I customize my toolbar?
Keywords: Toolbar Options Button Customize
Posted January 17, 1996

To customize a toolbar with buttons you use often, click the right mouse button on any toolbar, choose Customize from the button groups and drag the buttons you use often to your selected toolbar.

How can I dock my floating toolbar?
Keywords: Floating Toolbar Options Dock
Posted January 17, 1996

Excel allows you to have toolbars docked or floating. If a toolbar has been saved in a floating state you can dock the toolbar on any of the four sides of your screen. To dock the toolbar, left click on the background and drag it to where you want it docked or double-click on its titlebar. To move a docked toolbar to the last floating position it occupied, double click the toolbar background. Double click again to return it to the last docked position. You can reshape a floating toolbar by dragging its borders at any time.

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