The Teams Interface – Overview

The Teams Interface: Video

            This video lesson, titled “The Teams Environment,” shows the names and locations of the tools in the Teams interface in Microsoft Teams. This video lesson is from our complete Teams tutorial, titled “Mastering Teams Made Easy.”

The Teams Interface: Overview

            The picture below is of the Teams interface. New Teams users should first familiarize themselves with the tools and elements in the program’s environment. Doing this helps you quickly find and use its resources.

            The app bar is the primary navigation tool in the Teams interface. It appears along the left side of the Teams desktop client. It appears at the bottom of the Teams mobile clients in iOS and Android devices. The buttons in the app bar link to different areas of Teams or additional apps. By default, the Microsoft Teams buttons in the app bar are Activity, Chat, Teams, Calendar, Calls, and Files. To navigate to an area of Teams, click one of the buttons in the app bar.

            As you click buttons in the app bar, the panes and windows to the right change, depending on the area of Teams you enter. For example, if you click the “Teams” button, the pane to the right of the app bar changes to the “Teams” pane. The “Teams” pane is where you can select, edit, and manage your teams. This is also where you will see your team’s channels, where conversations between teammates happen. Similarly, if you click the “Chat” button, the “Chat” pane appears to the right, where you can see your chat history. When you select an item in this pane, like a chat, its contents appear to the right in the larger content pane. If you select a specific channel in “Teams,” you’ll see all the channel conversations to the right, instead.

            At the top of the content window is a series of tabs which let you access content and services in a channel or chat. For example, clicking the “Files” tab lets team members easily collaborate on a document shared in a channel or chat.

The Teams Interface – Overview: A picture of the user interface in Microsoft Teams. It shows the locations of the app bar, channels, tabs, compose message box, command box, and profile icon.

            The Command Box runs along the top of the Teams interface. You use this tool to search, take quick actions, and launch apps. To the right of the Command Box is the Profile icon. The Profile icon lets you customize your profile and Teams settings, set status messages, and change your availability settings. In the upper-right corner of the “Teams” area of the app, you can click the “More options” ellipsis to access various channel settings.

            The Compose Message box appears along the bottom of the Teams interface in channel conversations after clicking the “New conversation” button and it also appears in chats. This is where you create posts and messages. The toolbar below the Compose Message box provides tools to format your messages. At the right-end of the toolbar is the “Send” button, which you click after composing your post or message.

The Teams Interface: Instructions

1. The app bar is the main navigation tool in the Teams interface. It appears at the left side of the Teams desktop client. It appears at the bottom of the Teams mobile clients.
2. By default, the buttons in the app bar are Activity, Chat, Teams, Calendar, Calls, and Files.
3. To navigate to an area of Teams, click an app bar button.
4. As you click app bar buttons, the panes and windows to the right change, depending on the area of Teams you enter.
5. When you click a button in the app bar, except the “Calendar” button, the pane to the right of the app bar shows related items.
6. When you select an item in this pane, its contents appear to the right in the larger content pane.
7. At the top of the content window for “Teams” and “Chat” is a series of tabs which provide access to content and services in the channel or chat.
8. You use the Command Box at the top of the application to search, take quick actions, and launch apps.
9. To the right of the Command Box is the Profile icon, where you customize your profile and Teams settings, set status messages, and change availability settings.
10. In the “Teams” content window, you can click the “More options” ellipsis in the upper-right corner to access channel settings.
11. The Compose Message box, where you create posts and messages, appears at the bottom of the Teams app in channel conversations after clicking the “New conversation” button and it also appears all the time in chats.
12. The toolbar below the Compose Message box provides tools to format messages.
13. At the right-end of the toolbar is the “Send” button, which you click after composing a post or message.