Ribbon Tabs and Groups help you organize your user interface; Tabs are clickable, as are DialogBoxLauncher buttons on a Group’s header. However, your end user isn’t going to get far if all they’re doing is navigating and not acting. Tools give action to xamRibbon™ — place a tool inside a Ribbon Group and your end user can perform whatever action you link to that tool. Ribbon Groups aren’t the only area you can place tools; you can also place tools in the Application Menu and the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT).
Tools come in all shapes and sizes, from the standard Button, to the impressive Gallery tool. Most tools derive from their WPF parent, so you’ll get all the basic functionality a standard Button, ToggleButton, or RadioButton control would provide. Ultimate UI for WPF tools, however, give you added functionality by implementing the IRibbonTool interface. When a tool implements the IRibbonTool interface, they gain specific xamRibbon functionality that allows them to be placed and managed on the QAT. This interface is extremely important, especially if you have high aspirations to create your own custom xamRibbon tool .
If we’ve piqued your interest, you can read the following topics to learn much more about xamRibbon’s Tools.