topic Re: Ribbon missing tabs and panels in AutoCAD Forum

Ribbon missing tabs and panels

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 01:54:13 GMT

I have AutoCAD 2016 student version installed on my computer. I am at the first level: 2D fundamentals tutorial. For "drawing units setup", it says "on the menu bar" select Format > Units. There is no FORMAT panel on my menu bar. How do I get my menu bar to include the format panel? I've tried everything to locate a customize button in order to get FORMAT on the menu bar. Thanks for any assistance you can provide! Also, I can't figure out how to get the menu bar to place horizontally. I've included a screenshot of what my starting page looks like.

Re: Ribbon missing tabs and panels

chriscowgill7373 — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 01:58:09 GMT

Coupleof things, you have to open a drawing or start drawing first

2nd, how old is the tutorial you are using. The MENUBAR was replaced with the ribbon in 2009 and shouldn't be called for in tutorials any longer. You can turn it on by typing MENUBAR at the command-line and setting it to 1, but that is a legacy mode and really shouldn't be relied on.

Re: Ribbon missing tabs and panels

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 02:34:06 GMT

My mistake! I should have called it the ribbon. The tutorials are for AutoCAD 2016 version. But, you provide no info on how to get the FORMAT panel to appear, or how to reposition the ribbon.

Re: Ribbon missing tabs and panels

WarrenGeissler — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 03:33:14 GMT

First - to re-anchor the ribbon, grab the palette (next to the word RIBBON) and drag to the top of the screen until a line appears all the way across your screen - then release. As Chris said, you need to be in a drawing to do this.

Second - even though you are using 2016, Chris was correct in that your tutorial is making you use the MENUBAR. There is no FORMAT ribbon panel. As Chris said, if you type MENUBAR and set it to (1) it will appear at the top of your screen (Above your now relocated ribbon) and you will see a FORMAT menu. You can use that menubar to complete the tutorial. I would recommend getting a newer tutorial or as you are learning the commands, use the SEARCH feature in your APPLICATION menu to learn where the commands are located in the ribbon.

Re: Ribbon missing tabs and panels

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:36:25 GMT

Okay, I got the menubar to appear with the Format panel. But, the ribbon refuses to cooperate, so I just moved it to dock left. Thanks for your help.