Microsoft mocks its future Office user interface

Microsoft is driving the future of its Office user interface and design today, and it involves some big changes to the traditional ribbon interface. The software giant has been gradually improving Office with its fluid design system for the past few years, adding new icons, a dark mode, and reviewing the ribbon toolbar making it smaller and easier to use. The next stage of Microsoft Office design makes the company focus even more on simplicity.

“The next wave of changes to Microsoft 365 UX will go even further by fading the branding colors of application headers and exploring adaptive drive,” explains Jon Friedman, corporate vice president of design and research at Microsoft. “This allows you to move a simplified toolbar around the screen to where it is most useful, using progressive disclosure to reveal commands contextually.”

Image: Microsoft

This adaptive command will see the Office Ribbon interface replaced by a toolbar that can be undocked to float the nearby actions you are taking on documents with contextual commands. Microsoft is currently exploring how this interface will work, but some of the design details the company is teasing today will be implemented in a year or two, according to Friedman.

“Since its inception, the film has been a signature experience that brings together the intention and command of the user. It originated on the desktop, but since the world and people’s lives are completely cross-platform and multi-device, we are reimagining what context-aware command and intention will be like in the future, “Friedman said in a statement to The edge. “Getting your tape commands to follow your actions and being context aware will reduce cognitive load and increase focus on the task at hand, whether it’s on your phone on the subway or on your tablet on the couch or at your desk “

Microsoft originally introduced its ribbon interface in Office 2007, and the company is now ready to go further. Microsoft has been gradually streamlining the ribbon across mobile and web, but the new shared designs today are certainly a big step beyond the ribbon. Microsoft’s simplified Office interface focuses much more on the actual content you’re creating, rather than the chrome.

Other changes include a simple app icon at the top of apps to indicate which Office app you’re using and the centralized search or command bar at the center of the stage. Microsoft has emphasized this search interface and command bar in Office in recent years, and it is a feature that also exists on Microsoft computers.

Image: Microsoft

“We will further advance our integrated and cross-search to bring relevant information at your fingertips,” says Friedman. The goal of all of these changes is the idea of ​​boosting productivity gains by reducing unnecessary distractions and focusing on tasks. “At all times, we are basing everything we build on in-depth research into the nuances of care,” Friedman explains. “Some moments require prolonged and sustained concentration. Others, like many mobile scenarios, are optimal for micro tasks. By designing for multiple cognitive states, focused experiences across the entire Microsoft 365 ecosystem minimize external distractions, decrease self-interruptions, and accelerate flow. “

It is unclear exactly when these changes will arrive in Office applications, the web, and elsewhere in Microsoft 365. “While some of these changes will be implemented in a year or two, others are still highly exploratory,” says Friedman. Microsoft is also “conducting global studies” to better understand how job needs change during this pandemic and to help the company design its software accordingly.

It is clear that the pandemic has impacted how Microsoft designs Office for the future, and we have already seen many Teams features that have appeared rapidly due to the new work environment. “The future of Microsoft 365 combines our planned trajectory with real-time changes based on the remarkable complexities that 2020 left at the foot of the world,” says Friedman.

Simplification, fewer distractions, and a focus on mobile and the web feel like obvious directions here for Microsoft with its new Office user interface. It’s just a preview of what’s to come for Office today, but we would expect to see much more in the coming months as Microsoft adjusts to the pandemic and its Office product plans and the broader effort of Microsoft 365.