When I first started dealing with the ribbons, it definitely took some getting used to. But isn’t that the case whenever there is any change to a user interface with any program? I think that the contextual ribbon tab is one of them that aggravated me the most in the beginning but now it is one of my favorite features. What changed my mind was when I realized how to utilize the Quick Access Toolbar. I was especially frustrated in the beginning that I would select an object wanting to find out it’s layer and then the home ribbon tab would disappear and the contextual ribbon tab would turn on. Now with the Quick Access Toolbar I can keep the commands that I use most frequently right up at the top. Here is my current Quick Access Toolbar:

What commands do you have in your Quick Access Toolbar?

(Short description of how to add the layer menu to your Quick Access Toolbar located below the cut.)

1. To add the Layer Drop Down Menu (or any other command) to the Quick Access Toolbar just right click on the command in it’s ribbon and select “Add to Quick Access Toolbar”. (You will notice that it defaults to a very narrow size which with layer names longer than 6 characters, it really isn’t that much help.)

2. Right click on the Quick Access Toolbar and select “Customize Quick Access Toolbar”.

3. Click on the double down arrows to the right of “Customizations in All Files”

4. Click on the single right arrow to the right of the [Help] button.

5. Expand the tree to see the “Quick Access Toolbars” and then to your current workspace. You should see the “Layer Combo Control” listed.

6. Click on the “Layer Combo Control” and the Properties pane to the right should show the display minimum width and maximum width. The default is 150 and 200 respectively. I’ve changed mine to 250 and 500 and have been happy but see what works for you!