Tip # 318: Don’t hack the button

In a comment for Tip #33, a reader asked why I recommend creating a new command bar button, rather than modifying the action of the standard ribbon button.

The reason I recommend creating a new button rather than modifying the standard button is for several reasons:

1. The recommendation was technically unsupported, as the multi-action button is not documented in any official source. it is more unsupported if you modify the standard button behavior.
2. A custom button is less likely to get overwritten by other solutions, such as ISV solutions that include the standard ribbon button.
3. A custom button is less likely to break or get overwritten in an upgrade.
4. I forget what I do and plans change. 5 years from now, we may have totally new people using the system. They take training and learn about the standard button, but wait, ours behaves differently. By going with a custom button, it is clear that our custom two feature button is different, so you can avoid embarrassing calls to support.

So that is why I would take the time to create a new button rather than modifying the existing one.