Question

I set the value of my keytip attribute for a split button to be “CKS” but when I execute the add-on in Outlook 2010, I get the hint that it’s accessible using “Y7“. I’m guessing it’s some default throw-in and an arbitrary number.

How do I force my choice of character combination to be the valid one on the ribbon?

Answer 1

You should be able to use your own shortcuts by using the keytip attribute in the customUI XML for the ribbon, but sometimes the Office programs decide to change it to Y1, Y2 etc., possibly because of a conflict with keytips for the built-in controls.

I don’t have Outlook, but I tried the “CKS” keytip in Excel 2010, both on a tab and on a button, and it worked. Below is the XML used for the Excel ribbon:

<customUI onLoad="RibbonLoad" 
          xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2009/07/customui">
  <ribbon>
    <tabs>
      <tab id="tabTest" 
           label="Test" 
           keytip="CKS" >
        <group id="grpTest" 
               label="Group #1" >
          <button id="btn1" 
                  label="Button #1" 
                  size="large" 
                  keytip="CKS" />
        </group>
      </tab>
    </tabs>
  </ribbon>
</customUI>