I posted the paragraphs below on a message board
(http://www.exceluser.com/explore/sur...ey-results.htm)
some time ago. My company's #1 client has migrated to 2007, and are were
forced to do so in order to maintain our relationship. The option to 'stick
with 2003' is not available to us , and 2007 is crippling our productivity.
There is no end in sight, as the custom programming we built in is now gone
forever, and we will lose work due to loss of competitive advantage. I'm not
critical of change, and I'm not trying to hold on to a dinosaur of a program,
so before you blast me, please read below. I just want to find a way to do
what we've done for years now, and are no longer able to do (replace the
standard toolset with one custom-built to do what we do):

In my company, we use Excel as a meeting facilitation tool, and have built a
customized workbook complete with templates we use while conducting
workshops. This allows us to conduct very fluid workshops with real-time
on-screen data capture, and to provide our customers with Excel-based
workshop deliverables within minutes of closing our workshop. In order to
minimize the 'behind the curtain' processes that would normally require
multiple clicks, we have built a set of about 50 specific macro-enabled
toolbar buttons to automate our tasks. This allows us to drive the workshop
rather than drive our spreadsheets. In Excel 2003, we completely hide the
standard and formatting toolbars, and instead use two custom-built bars.

There is nothing in the Ribbon that empowers us in the way that our
one-click toolbars do. Our workshop participants rarely see the machinations
of what we're doing, because we have refined and automated our process well.
We facilitate workshops for a living - 52 weeks a year. Upgrading to Office
2007 has destroyed our ability to use our #1 toolset, and eliminates the
competitive advantage that we built for ourselves. I simply want to build my
own toolbars and have the interface that I want, and I want to eliminate the
Ribbon altogether.

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