[joe_btfsplk]

I whole-heartedly agree with the common sentiment amongst experienced Office
users that the new ribbon menus result in a quantum leap backward in
productivity. I have found that it takes 2 to 4 times as long to perform
common tasks in Excel when using the ribbon menus, largely due to Microsoft's
new preoccupation with forcing users to complete a series of single commands.
As an example, in Excel the simple reformatting of a line on a graph used to
be accomplished by double-clicking on the line, and adjusting all line
characteristics at once. Now, the double-clicking doesn't work, and each
individual line characteristic must be changed individually, in a number of
different windows. It is now mind-numbing. I couldn't afford the loss of
productivity when in Excel 2007, and have reverted back to Excel 2000. I am
considering doing the same for the other Office products, retaining Office
2007 solely to access files from clients who were equally foolish enough to
upgrade.
Frankly, I'm appalled by the tenor of the comments made by Microsoft's
representatives, in which users' distinct dissatisfaction with the
ineffectiveness and inefficiency of the ribbon menus is brushed off as
impatience on our part, and the fact that the classic menus were not offered
as an option in Office 2007. It appears that Microsoft has lost touch with
the vast majority of its users (and proponents), and has decided to "fix"
something that didn't need fixing: the menus. It's time for an upgrade, in
which the classic menus become available.
In the meantime, I'm warding off all my friends and colleagues from
upgrading until Microsoft presents something worth buying (developers'
opinions notwithstanding).