How to Create Custom Icons for the Word for Windows Toolbar

Last reviewed: July 30, 1997
Article ID: Q94257

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Word for Windows, versions 2.0, 2.0a, 2.0a-CD, 2.0b, 2.0c

SUMMARY

You can create custom icons to be used as toolbar button faces in Word for Windows. This article describes the procedure for creating these new buttons.

MORE INFORMATION

To create custom toolbar buttons:

Add the following line to the [Microsoft Word 2.0] section of your Windows WIN.INI file:
```
      LoadToolbarBitmaps=yes
```

Create four bitmap files, named as follows, and place the files in your Word for Windows program directory:

If You Have a VGA Video Display -------------------------------

      V#TBAR.BMP

       Note: In the above filename, # is 1-4. V means VGA, size 468 x 16,
       256 colors.

If You Have an 8514 Video Display ---------------------------------

      8#TBAR.BMP

       Note: In the above filename, # is 1-4. 8 means 8514, size 702 x 21,
       256 colors.

Creating the Bitmap Files

Each bitmap contains 26 toolbar icons, arranged horizontally, one directly after another, as shown in the following diagram:

   ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  /~/---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---
  |   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   |/~/|   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   |
  |   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   /~/ |   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   |
   ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  - /~/   ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---
    0    1    2    3    4    5  <-6-19-> 20   21   22   23   24   25

  Note: If you have version 2.0a-CD of Word for Windows, MultiMedia
  Edition, you can open the V2TBAR.BMP file, supplied with the application,
  to view a sample toolbar button bitmap file.

Each icon should be 18 pixels wide for VGA video displays and 27 pixels wide for 8514 video displays. The four bitmaps contain buttons 0-25, 26-51, 52-77, and 78-103 respectively. These buttons correspond to the buttons in the Button list in the Toolbar window of the Tools Options command. If one of the four bitmap files is missing, or if the button images are the wrong dimensions, Word uses its built-in images for the corresponding buttons. Because Word depends on the order of the toolbar buttons in each bitmap file, you must include all unchanged toolbar buttons in their correct positions to ensure they do not change and to correctly position the new button faces.

You can use Windows Paintbrush to create the four bitmap files. For information on using this accessory, refer to the Paintbrush chapter in your "Microsoft Windows User's Guide."

Several third-party toolbar button editors are available from vendors independent of Microsoft. For information on third-party toolbar button editors, query on the following words in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   tbedit and wopr and toolbar and button and editor

Reference(s):

"Microsoft Word for Windows User's Guide," version 2.0, pages 803-806, 810

"Microsoft Windows User's Guide," version 3.1, pages 329-378

"Microsoft Windows User's Guide," version 3.0, pages 263-313

KBCategory: kbgraphic kb3rdparty kbhowto
KBSubcategory:
Additional query words: winword winword2
tool bar v1tbar v3tbar v4tbar 81tbar 83tbar 84tbar
toolsoptionstoolbar customize modify kbmm
2.0 2.0a 2.0a-CD 2.0b 2.0c
Version : 2.0 2.0a 2.0a-CD 2.0b 2.0c

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Last reviewed: July 30, 1997
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