AX1172

About custom task panes and ribbon tabs

Using custom task panes and ribbon tabs, you can provide your users with a user interface designed especially for them.

Defining custom task panes and ribbon tabs

Task panes and ribbon tabs are stored as AXL files in the Task Panes Library and in the Ribbon Tabs Library respectively. Task panes and ribbon tabs are created in a very similar manner. Both use a multi-level structure, with top-level "sections" that can contain one or more child items.

  • In the task pane environment, the top-level section is displayed as a gray header bar which can be collapsed and expanded to access the child items in the section.
  • In the ribbon environment, the top-level section is displayed as a ribbon group, and the child items in that section display as buttons in the group.

The following example shows how the same basic structure is rendered as a ribbon tab and as a task pane.

Task panes and ribbon tabs can contain the following items:

  • Links to file groups, files, and folders in Axiom Software, so that users can open these items from the task pane or ribbon.
  • Various Axiom Software feature commands from the Command Library, so that users can launch the feature from the task pane or ribbon.
  • Plain text items for header and group titles, and for instructional text (such as in a task pane that provides instruction for a process).

Security permissions apply to all items in task panes and ribbon tabs. If a file or feature is placed in a task pane or ribbon tab, but a particular user does not have the appropriate security permissions for that item, then that user will not be able to use that item. The item will either be hidden or it will display as grayed out, depending on whether the Show restricted item option is enabled for that item in the task pane or ribbon tab.

Common uses of custom task panes and ribbon tabs

The most common use of custom task panes and ribbon tabs is to provide users with a custom user interface. For example, you may want to streamline the user interface so that end users only see the specific Axiom features that they need to use. You can do this by customizing the "built-in" Axiom ribbon tab, and/or by creating and assigning additional custom ribbon tabs and task panes to users and roles.

For example, some clients might want to create a very simple version of the Axiom ribbon tab for their end users, something like the following:

End user roles could be assigned this simple ribbon tab, while administrators and power users continue to use the default Axiom ribbon tab. Notice in this example that no file groups are listed on the ribbon and there's no Reports button—this sort of design would depend on users accessing their plan files and reports via links on the home page, or by using the Explorer task pane or a custom task pane. This example is intentionally very simple to illustrate the full range of possibilities between the default ribbon tab and a minimal one.

Other typical uses include:

  • Providing easy access to certain files, such as a list of frequently-used reports. This list could be presented in a reporting task pane so that users do not need to navigate the Reports Library to access these reports.

  • Providing user instruction for various processes. For example, you could provide a task pane that walks the user through the steps needed to open their plan file, edit their plan file, and then submit their plan file for review.

    NOTE: Custom task panes do not provide full process management; they are intended more as a casual guide for users. If you want to define a process with enforced task order and ownership, including an audit trail for when a task was completed and by whom, then you should use the Process Management feature. See Process management.

The following is an example task pane that could be made for end users to complete their budgets. Although it would be possible to do this as a ribbon tab, use of text instruction for a process is better suited for a task pane.

The next example task pane would be intended for administrators and other finance "power users." It collects all of major files and utilities that these users need to manage the budget process.

Assigning custom task panes and ribbon tabs to users and roles

The primary method of using custom ribbon tabs and task panes is to assign them as startup files in Axiom security to certain users and roles. When a custom ribbon tab or task pane is assigned as a startup file, then it automatically opens when the user starts Axiom Software.

Axiom Software provides certain "built-in" custom task panes and ribbon tabs that are automatically assigned to the Everyone role by default, such as the Axiom ribbon tab or the Explorer task pane. You can use these built-in items as is, or you can customize them as desired and change their security configuration. For more information, see Built-in task panes and ribbon tabs.

For task panes only, you can also choose to give users and roles direct access to certain task pane files in the Task Panes Library (by granting permission on the Files tab of Axiom security). These users can then open these task panes "on demand" as needed. This is a good option for task panes that only need to be used occasionally rather than all the time. Ribbon tabs cannot be used in this way because the contents of the ribbon are determined at startup. It is not possible to open a ribbon tab in the ribbon "on demand".

For more information, see Assigning ribbon tabs to users and Assigning task panes to users.