OFF95: Changing Image or Name for Office Shortcut Bar Button

ID: Q131185

The information in this article applies to:

SUMMARY

It is not possible to change the image or name for a button that you have added to a toolbar on the Office Shortcut Bar by using Customize command on the Office Shortcut Bar. When you drag a file to a toolbar, a button appears on the toolbar with the same image and name that the file icon uses. When you create a toolbar from an existing folder, the buttons on the toolbar use the same image and name that each corresponding file in the folder uses.


MORE INFORMATION

You can use the Customize dialog box to change the appearance of the Office Shortcut Bar: for example, you can use this dialog box to display or hide toolbars and buttons, to turn ToolTips on or off, to use large or small toolbar buttons, and to choose whether or not to animate the toolbars. However, you cannot use the Customize dialog box to change a button image or name (ToolTip text). To change the image or name used by a button on a toolbar on the Office Shortcut Bar, you can use the following appropriate steps:

Button On Toolbar Created as New, Blank Toolbar

When you add a button to a toolbar that you created as a new, blank toolbar, a shortcut for the file or folder you created the button for is created in the OFFICE\SHORTCUT BAR subfolder in the folder to which you installed Microsoft Office. For example, if you created a toolbar called "My Applications" and added a button for the application "My Program," a shortcut for "My Program" is automatically created in C:\MSOFFICE\OFFICE\SHORTCUT BAR\MY APPLICATIONS. This shortcut is used for the button image and name on the toolbar.

To change the image or name used by a button on a toolbar you created as a new, blank toolbar, do the following:

  1. In Windows Explorer or My Computer, locate the folder to which you installed Microsoft Office, such as MSOFFICE. Double-click this folder.


  2. Double-click the Office subfolder. Double-click the Shortcut Bar subfolder.


  3. Double-click the subfolder for your toolbar, such as My Applications.


  4. Right-click the shortcut icon for the button that you want to change, such as My Program, and click Properties. Click the Shortcut tab. Click the Change Icon button. Select a new icon for the program and click OK. In the Properties dialog box, click OK.


  5. Right-click the shortcut icon for the button that you want to change, such as My Program, and click Rename. Enter a new name (ToolTip) for the button on the toolbar.


The button appears on the toolbar with the image and name (ToolTip) that you created in the steps above.

Changing the Image Used By a Button if Button is for Shortcut

If a button on a toolbar on the Office Shortcut Bar is for a shortcut, you can quickly change the image used for the shortcut (and therefore the button as well) by doing the following:

  1. Right-click on the button that you want to change.


  2. On the menu that appears, click Properties, and then click the Shortcut tab.

    NOTE: If the Properties dialog box does not contain a Shortcut tab, the button was not created from a shortcut. To change the image for the button in this case, see the "Button on Toolbar Created for Existing Folder" section below.


  3. Click Change Icon.


  4. Click the icon that you want to use. You can use the Browse button to locate additional icons. In the Properties dialog box, click OK.


Note that this changes the icon used by the shortcut that this button represents, but not the actual file that is represented by this button.

Changing the Image Used by a Button if Button is for MS-DOS Program

If a button on a toolbar on the Office Shortcut Bar is for an MS-DOS program, you can change the image used for the button (and the program as well) by doing the following:

  1. Right-click on the MS-DOS program button (such as the MS-DOS Prompt button on the Programs toolbar) on the Office Shortcut Bar. Click Properties.


  2. In the program Properties dialog box, click the Program tab.


  3. Click the Change Icon button. In the Current Icon list, click the new icon that you want displayed for the program (use the Browse button to locate additional images) and then click OK.


  4. Right-click on the Office Shortcut Bar, and then click Refresh Icons.


Button On Toolbar Created For Existing Folder



If a button on a toolbar is created for the file itself instead of for a shortcut, for example if you created the toolbar for an existing folder, use the following steps to change the image or name for the button:

  1. Right-click the desktop. On the menu that appears, click New, and then click Shortcut.


  2. Click the Browse button. In the Files Of Type list, click Programs or All Files (depending on the type of file that you want to display as a button on the toolbar). In the list of files, click the file that you want to add to the toolbar. Click Open.


  3. In the Create Shortcut dialog box, click Next. In the Select A Title For The Program dialog box, enter the name you want to use for the button. Click Finish.


  4. Right-click the new shortcut icon (on the desktop) and click Properties. Click the Shortcut tab. Click the Change Icon button. Select a new icon for the program and click OK. In the Properties dialog box, click OK.


  5. Drag the shortcut icon from the desktop to the toolbar.

    The new button appears on the toolbar with the image and name (ToolTip) that you created in the steps above.


  6. (Optional) If you want to remove the shortcut icon, drag the shortcut icon from the desktop to the Recycle Bin.


To hide a button on the toolbar in the case where the new button that you added duplicates a button that did not have the desired image or name, do the following:

  1. On the Microsoft Office Shortcut Bar menu, click Customize.


  2. Click the Buttons tab.


  3. In the Show These Files As Buttons list, clear the check box next to the file that you want to hide. Click OK.


Additional query words: OSB 


Keywords          : offwin 
Version           : 7.00
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        :

Last Reviewed: June 10, 1999