Inside OneNote 2010

Personalizing the OneNote Interface

You can customize OneNote’s user interface by using the same tools available in the other Office 2010 programs, notably the options to fine-tune the ribbon and the Quick Access Toolbar.

The most useful set of personalization options for OneNote reflect the common desire to hide clutter and maximize the workspace as much as possible. This is particularly important when you’re typing class notes or meeting minutes on a notebook or netbook, where screen real estate is severely limited. In that scenario, where access to other pages and sections isn’t necessary, the quickest path to a clean workspace is the F11 key, which toggles Full Page view (there’s also a Full Page View button on the View tab and on the Quick Access Toolbar). In Full Page view, section tabs and page tabs are completely hidden, the ribbon is minimized to just tab headings, and the Quick Access Toolbar remains visible. To toggle back to Normal view, press F11 again. (You can also click the Full Page View button on the Quick Access Toolbar or click the View tab to make its contents visible and then click Normal View.)

For a less drastic solution, you can collapse the Navigation bar and page tabs bar. Click the Collapse Navigation Bar arrow to the right of the Notebooks heading and the matching Collapse Page Tabs arrow to the right of the New Page button above the page tabs bar. With both elements collapsed, the main OneNote window looks like the example shown in Figure 15-14. Note that the section tabs list is invisible and the list of open notebooks is turned on its side. The page tabs bar is still visible, but it’s reduced to its absolute minimum width.

Figure 15-14. Click the arrow at the bottom of the Navigation bar to see additional open notebooks. Use ScreenTips to identify page names and notebook locations.

To restore the Navigation bar and the page tabs bar to their normal widths, click the Expand Navigation Bar shortcut (the arrow just above the first notebook name) and the Expand Page Tabs arrow above the shrunken page tabs bar. In their expanded form, you can adjust the width of either element so that they use less space on a notebook computer or take advantage of the extra desktop real estate on a large monitor. Aim the mouse at the border between either element and the contents pane until the pointer turns into a two-headed arrow, then drag in either direction to widen or narrow the Navigation bar or page tabs bar.

The other personalization options available for the main OneNote interface allow you to change on which side of the screen the Navigation bar, the page tabs bar, and the vertical scroll bar appear. Some OneNote users find it easier to navigate, for example, by moving the page tabs bar to the left side so that the contents of a section appear next to the section tab itself. To adjust this setting, open the OneNote Options dialog box (click File, and then click Options), click the Display tab, and select Page Tabs Appear On The Left.