How Microsoft Designed the Office Ribbon
creativecrewchannel · Talk · 10 min · 2009 · YouTube title: MIX08 Microsoft Office 2007: The Story of the Ribbon (1 of 10)
Why it's here
HN points to it to explain the design rationale behind the Ribbon and why the older menu and toolbar interface had accumulated too much cruft.
What it covers
Jensen Harris of the Office 2007 design team tells the behind-the-scenes story of the Ribbon at MIX08. He covers early prototypes, mistakes, and the UX principles used to design and validate it.