Office Compatible 97 Testing Requirements For Host-Required Products

1. Since most hosted applications cannot comply with the Windows Logo test requirements, they must comply with the following alternate guidelines to participate in Office Compatible 97:
   1. The application must be a 32-bit application.
   2. All UI elements which are present must conform to The Windows Interface Guidelines for Software Design (available from Microsoft Press).
   3. If the application performs file i/o operations, then it must support long file names and the Uniform Naming Convention (UNC's).
   4. Plug and Play event-awareness is recommended, but not required.
   5. If the application is an OLE server, then it must comply with the Windows 95 OLE Self-Registering Server specification:

   • DLL servers must support DllRegisterServer() and DllUnregisterServer()
   • EXE servers must support /RegServer and /UnregServer command line switches
   • Both DLL & EXE servers must support the "OLESelfRegister" VERSIONINFO string.

2. If the application inserts buttons on Office's standard toolbar, they must appear to the right of Office's buttons within the application-specific region of the bar.
3. If the application adds entries to Office's main menu bar, they must appear to the right of Office's entries within the application-specific region of the bar.
4. If the application adds entries to Office's dropdown menus, they must not disrupt the order of the entries which are governed by Office Compatible 97 testing. For example, the application should not insert an entry between Cut and Copy within the Edit menu. As a general rule, entries which relate to new types of objects should be collected within a new menu group (separated from other groups by menu separator bars). For example:

   Wrong Menu Modification:	Right Menu Modification:
   New... New Picture... Open... Open Picture... Close... Close Picture... _____________ _____________	New... Open... Close... _____________ New Picture.... Open Picture... Close Picture...

5. Host-required applications should not confuse Office users by arbitrarily changing the location or appearance of standard toolbar buttons and menu entries. For example, if the application replaces Office's standard toolbar (or if it unobtrusively replaces the standard Office buttons with its own) - as OLE servers sometimes do - then the new bar or buttons (and new menu entries, too) must appear in their standard Office locations. In other words, an OLE server which supports Cut operations must display a standard Office toolbar Cut button, and it must display the button in its conventional location. Similarly, if an OLE server replaces Office's "Format" menu entry with one of its own, then the replacement must be in precisely the same relative location as its Office counterpart.
6. If the application supports Help, then it must include the standard Office Compatible Help Topic.
7. The application must not unnecessarily or disruptively alter the Office user interface, and developers are encouraged to adopt Office Compatible 97 features in their own interface whenever possible.
8. If the host-required application is supplemented by one or more standalone programs which are distributed in the same box, then those programs must either fully comply with the testing requirements for standalone products, or the Office Compatible 97 logo must not be used on the product's box (or in advertising which suggests that the box's contents are Office Compatible).

   This requirement will be waived for simple utilities (e.g., setup or configuration programs) which cannot be reasonably expected to support a full Office Compatible 97 interface. However, developers must obtain Microsoft's approval if they wish to exempt such products from testing. To do so, send email to: OFFCOMP@MICROSOFT.COM.

9. Some host-required applications can be run in a so-called 'full window' mode which gives them total control of the user-interface. For example, some OLE servers which cannot be run in standalone mode can nevertheless be placed in full window mode once their Office host has launched them. In essence, the Office host is substituting for Windows 95 as a platform from which the application is launched. Such products must fully comply with the requirements for standalone products while they are operating in 'full window' mode.

   Templates constitute a special class of host-required product, since in their simplest and most common form they contain no executable code. However, sophisticated templates sometimes contain features such as toolbars or dialog boxes. The only rule which will be enforced for the simplest templates is that they must work with an Office host. But for more sophisticated templates, all of the preceding requirements will be applied if they are relevant. For example, if a template product adds a button to its host's toolbar, then guideline (2) will be enforced.

   Content products such as graphic image files, data files, training products, World Wide Web sites, and similar items generally are not required to meet the user interface guidelines described here. Thus, the only testing requirement for such products is that they must be usable within an Office host. However, as noted for templates, if content products contain user interface elements, they generally must conform to the guidelines described for other products.