Network Atlas – Getting back some UI real estate

For those of you that have upgraded to Orion NPM 9.5, I am sure you have noticed one or two changes with what is now called Network Atlas (previously called Map Maker).  For those of you that use Microsoft Office 2007, I am sure the UI looks very familiar.  Overall, we have received terrific feedback, however, some users would like to get some additional UI real-estate back by removing the “ribbon” or top tool bar. I was on thwack the other day and saw this post from one of the Network Atlas Developers michalB here at SolarWinds and learned something new about Network Atlas myself.

I would like to point to a feature in NA that is a bit hidden and may help to those who do not like the Ribbon. The feature is called Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) and as the name states, it provides quick access to selected tools. You may add buttons and Ribbon groups to this toolbar.

The result may look like this:

or even more like a separate toolbar:

· To add a button to the QAT, right click on the button, and select "Add to Quick Access Toolbar".

· To add a Ribbon group to the QAT (like in the first picture), right-click on the group's caption and select "Add to Quick Access Toolbar". Buttons and groups can be removed the similar way.

· To hide the ribbon, right-click on the empty space reserved for the Ribbon tabs (right of the "Help" ribbon tab) and select "Minimize the Ribbon". You can also choose whether to show the QAT below or above the Ribbon.

Please note that the customized layout may not persist after you upgrade.