How do I get rid of ribbons and go back to old office menus?

You can serve the templates at startup with scripts or during regular maintenance at night or through Sharepoint or, if you really really really want to give users a chance to screw them up, put them in their "my documents" folder and just point there (backstage, trust center, trusted location...).

I am sorry you find more enjoyment in whining than in stepping up to the plate when having some challenges spicing up your days and offering you the chance to expand your skills and know-how.

BTW, Corporate templates need to be professionally designed by either an administrative assistant who has both long time experience as a secretary and expert fluency with Word, or by a professional Word template developer in accordance with your corporate benchmarks. They are not documents saved with the .dotm extension, like you may also have immediately assumed.

I do have to wonder what kind of work environment you came out of.

"I am sorry you find more enjoyment in whining than in stepping up to the plate when having some challenges spicing up your days and offering you the chance to expand your skills and know-how."

For many of us, there is no budget or time allowed to "expand your skills and know-how" while at work.  You are spending your time doing your job, and there isn't any play time to speak of.  The poor economy has led to a lot of belt-tightening and reduction in staff so many of us don't spend our days surfing the net or working on our fantasy football teams or building elaborate pranks for fellow employees.  So "spicing up our days" means spending our nights and weekends (and if training is necessary, our vacation days and own money) to fix the problems that Microsoft introduces.  For those who live to work, that is probably fine.  For those of us with lives outside of work, or even families, that means giving family time over to Microsoft. 

And as you note, you still need a professional template developer, so if you have no budget, the rest is a moot point.

It is possible to return to the old interface, but I seriously recommend ...

Recommendation noted.  So, how do you return to the old interface?

 

Like  for many long time users and power users, Word ribbon was a total shock.  I do remember the distress feelings and the frustration of having to look everywhere for my "toolbars".

I also remember wanting to have some sort of midway interface that would allow me to build floating toolbars and such.

It only stopped being annoying when i became CURIOUS and INTERESTED of the new possibilities available.

Except for removed features, you can do all you used to do, better and most of the time, more efficiently on the new UI.

Wanting to progress by going back to the old interface is denying that the world moves on and depriving yourself from new possibilities.

Bruce Lee said something about a cup of tea: you have to empty it to fill it again. You need to start with a clean slate with Word. Frustrating and complaining will not make you learn it faster. And, you are right you have the choice to accept it or refuse it. But saying yes to change is the only way to progress. Whether good or bad.  You can work with us at finding fixes, way around, way to work and improve, or you can just quit. Your choice.

If you just open your mind a tiny bit, you might discover some pretty cool stuff about the Ribbon.

"It only stopped being annoying when i became CURIOUS and INTERESTED of the new possiblities available."

OK. How do you propose that I make the 50 or so people that I support become CURIOUS and INTERESTED in the new possibilities available?  I know that question makes a lot of people uncomfortable because the personal attacks on how the individual is just "scared" of change or "doesn't embrace" the wonderful new ribbon evaporates.  To make the argument that all of the employees of your company are the problem, not the ribbon is a much harder argument to make.

Or is my inability to control the mindset of the people I support also something that you would chalk up to opening my mind a tiny bit?  Does Bruce Lee (widely known for his computer skills) have any little nuggets of wisdom for that?

The old "if you don't like it, you must be closed-minded" is a bit condescending.  A personal attack as a response to a legitimate complaint is shallow, or arrogant, or both.

"You need to start with a clean slate with Word. Frustrating and complaining will not make you learn it faster. And, you are right you have the choice to accept it or refuse it."  At least a bit of honesty exists in admitting that Microsoft is throwing away a mass of institutional knowledge.  Sadly, I don't really have the choice to accept it or refuse it.  Microsoft licensing and the eventual lifespan of computer systems guarantee that.

"But saying yes to change is the only way to progress. Whether good or bad."

That one is painful to read.  If the logic error there isn't obvious, it is hard to find a common understanding.  The whole "change is good no matter what" mantra is fundamentally broken.  If you disagree, take an axe or meat cleaver and remove your right hand (or left one if you are left handed).  That is change.  Bad change, but it is the only way to progress.  If you did not remove your hand, you get the point.  Just because stupid is new, does not mean it is not stupid.

"You can work with us at finding fixes, way around, way to work and improve, or you can just quit. Your choice."

Well, this is kind of why I was seeking a fix.  A way to work around a new interface that gains nothing for the people I support except significant productivity losses.  But the answer you propose (don't complain, just lie back and enjoy it) really doesn't seek a fix, way around, or a way to work and improve.  It only offers accepting the point of contention which is the ribbon GUI.   And I don't know what kind of world you live in, but quitting isn't a viable option if you want to put bread on the table.  It is a reasonable suggestion, if you care only to be glib and dismissive.

If you want to pull out some stats that show how doing the same tasks with a different interface is going to make everything faster and better, be my guest.  At a minimum, at least substanitavely show how the ribbon will eventually save more time than what will be lost as people have to learn the new system. 

Heck, even explain the logic of the ribbon format with the first tier in the hierarchy at the top, the second tier at the bottom, and the third in the middle with inconsistent layouts and groupings, and how that is supposed to make things easier?  Your eyes going from the top, to the bottom of the ribbon and then back up doesn't make it easy to follow.  Or how about repeating the same icons for different functions (yes there are a few of those)?  Or creating an icon for every function, to the point where most of the icons don't give the user a clue as to what they really do?  When you read what they do, you can sort of see why they look like that, but the icon would never have any meaning that could be discerned without the text. 

Pop Quiz:  What do the following icons do: 

1 - Standard page image (rectangle with corner bent) red minus symbol on the page, blue plus sign off the page to the right

2 - Standard page image with corner turned, with a small rectangular box (horizontal) on top and bottom, with a line in the middle and an exclamation point to the right

3 - Standard page, no corner turned with an orange horizontal box at the top, a blue horizontal box at the bottom, and two one column boxes with several lines in the middle

If you can't produce stats, or at least provide some logical rationale as to how any of this is an improvement, your argument has no merit. Simple belief without any kind of substance does not trump logic or fact.

Quiz Answers:

1 - Mark Entry

2 - Update Table or Update Index, it is used quite a bit

3 - Quick Parts (bonus if you know what that is without looking it up)

In the years to come, the ribbon will symbolize that marker - when it came clear to Office users that Microsoft's best days were behind it.  Until Office 2010 the lack of product support was a problem, now it is the Greek tragedy that defines the software/ technology industry.   You can create and peddle a product without concern for the end user, but don't be surprised if the end user figures out your business model and moves on.  This tragedy is a lesson to all who would adopt a business model that does not respect the customer.