Customize Navigation Pane to allow Folder View ONLY - NO BUTTONS!

R

rkenchel

Microsoft Office Outlook 2003

PLEASE bring back the Folder List only view!! All the buttons and flashy "My
Favorites" just cannot replace the elegance, simplicity and efficiency of the
Folder List view. Drag and drop, right-click and open in a new window, views
of long lists of folders (such as individual client folders) are essential to
efficient use.

My Favorites, mini calendar, and the button row just all steal precious
space from a really simple and elegant tool: Folder View. In the new version,
while viewing a calendar, the mini calendar and button row steal more than
30% of the vertical space - precious space!

Shame on the designer who decided: "Although you can remove all of the
buttons from the Navigation Pane and maximize the folder pane space by
dragging the horizontal splitter bar to the bottom of the Navigation Pane, it
is not possible to remove the button row at the bottom."

In our company, in the previous version of Outlook, we disabled the shortcut
view, enabled Folder List view and found that productivity increased
dramatically. Staff could VISUALLIZE WHERE to place items - and where to
retrieve them - QUICKLY. We train our clients how to maximize their staff
productivity through the use of Folder View as well.

Now in the new version it is still possible, but your new features have
forced extra steps - incessant scrolling up and down to find the wanted
folder.

PLUS there is the added distraction of all the visual "clutter" on the new
screen!

We want to see OUR important information, not flashy Outlook buttons, bells
& whistles! We want the efficiency that Outlook (and Office) promises, but WE
WANT THE PRODUCT TO BE TRANSPARENT - never getting in our way as we
accomplish our daily tasks.

Of course it is your product. So feel free to add as many new and cool
features as you wish, but please don't sacrifice the ones your customers
actually find useful.

Respectfully Yours,
Roger Kenchel


----------------
This post is a suggestion for Microsoft, and Microsoft responds to the
suggestions with the most votes. To vote for this suggestion, click the "I
Agree" button in the message pane. If you do not see the button, follow this
link to open the suggestion in the Microsoft Web-based Newsreader and then
click "I Agree" in the message pane.

http://www.microsoft.com/office/com...5410f99e4&dg=microsoft.public.outlook.general
 
D

Diane Poremsky [MVP]

Ctrl+6 show you the folder list view...

You can remove the buttons - click on the little arrow on the bottom row
(collapse the buttons if you haven't already) and remove all the buttons
from view.

Open the Taskpad and the calendars on the left side disappear.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Coauthor, OneNote 2003 for Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)
Author, Google and Other Search Engines (Visual QuickStart Guide)



Join OneNote Tips mailing list: http://www.onenote-tips.net/
 
R

rkenchel

Diane,
Thanks for the reply!

Your suggestions are well intended; however they miss the intent of my
suggestion to Microsoft's Outlook design team. (My message was posted via
Microsoft's contact page under the Feedback > Make a Suggestion link
(http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/contactus.aspx).

My suggestion was to allow the user to invoke the old style Folder View -
WITHOUT the Button Row or mini Calendar. In the current version there is NO
way to disable these items from appearing. Your suggestion to remove the
buttons will decrease the Button Row's size, but not remove it. It still
occupies nearly 7% of the vertical space available when fully minimized.
Likewise the mini Calendar cannot be disabled and occupies 23% of the
vertical space. Together they "steal" 30% of the vertical space.

Your suggestion to enable Taskpad to remove mini Calendar, again
well-intended, does not solve the problem of new Outlook features interfering
with a user's workflow. It does NOT remove the mini Calendar but instead
moves it to the top of the Taskpad, which unfortunately is now in full view.
Plus the Taskpad now "steals" a minimum of 15% of the main calendar's space.
All this while the Taskpad view is not wanted by the user.

The point is that the interface is becoming more complex, busy, cluttered -
call it what you like - and the user cannot disable features or views that
they do not need - either temporarily or permanently. The interface
interferes with the intent of the product which is to allow the user to
quickly and efficiently process their own data using only the features
necessary to accomplish that process.

Hope you see my point. If you have any other suggestions for streamlining
the display, please let me know. Thanks again for your reply!

Regards,
Roger

Diane Poremsky said:
Ctrl+6 show you the folder list view...

You can remove the buttons - click on the little arrow on the bottom row
(collapse the buttons if you haven't already) and remove all the buttons
from view.

Open the Taskpad and the calendars on the left side disappear.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Coauthor, OneNote 2003 for Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)
Author, Google and Other Search Engines (Visual QuickStart Guide)



Join OneNote Tips mailing list: http://www.onenote-tips.net/


rkenchel said:
Microsoft Office Outlook 2003

PLEASE bring back the Folder List only view!! All the buttons and flashy
"My
Favorites" just cannot replace the elegance, simplicity and efficiency of
the
Folder List view. Drag and drop, right-click and open in a new window,
views
of long lists of folders (such as individual client folders) are essential
to
efficient use.

My Favorites, mini calendar, and the button row just all steal precious
space from a really simple and elegant tool: Folder View. In the new
version,
while viewing a calendar, the mini calendar and button row steal more than
30% of the vertical space - precious space!

Shame on the designer who decided: "Although you can remove all of the
buttons from the Navigation Pane and maximize the folder pane space by
dragging the horizontal splitter bar to the bottom of the Navigation Pane,
it
is not possible to remove the button row at the bottom."

In our company, in the previous version of Outlook, we disabled the
shortcut
view, enabled Folder List view and found that productivity increased
dramatically. Staff could VISUALLIZE WHERE to place items - and where to
retrieve them - QUICKLY. We train our clients how to maximize their staff
productivity through the use of Folder View as well.

Now in the new version it is still possible, but your new features have
forced extra steps - incessant scrolling up and down to find the wanted
folder.

PLUS there is the added distraction of all the visual "clutter" on the new
screen!

We want to see OUR important information, not flashy Outlook buttons,
bells
& whistles! We want the efficiency that Outlook (and Office) promises, but
WE
WANT THE PRODUCT TO BE TRANSPARENT - never getting in our way as we
accomplish our daily tasks.

Of course it is your product. So feel free to add as many new and cool
features as you wish, but please don't sacrifice the ones your customers
actually find useful.

Respectfully Yours,
Roger Kenchel


----------------
This post is a suggestion for Microsoft, and Microsoft responds to the
suggestions with the most votes. To vote for this suggestion, click the "I
Agree" button in the message pane. If you do not see the button, follow
this
link to open the suggestion in the Microsoft Web-based Newsreader and then
click "I Agree" in the message pane.

http://www.microsoft.com/office/com...5410f99e4&dg=microsoft.public.outlook.general
 

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