Since tech support has indicated that docked vertical toolbars between the TOC and the work/view/layout area will not be accepted for enhancement, as a workaround I would like to be able to orient any toolbar in the vertical direction, and then I can float them over the abutting edges of the TOC and work/view/layout/area to approximate the docked situation. I also want to be able to control the width or number of buttons, or at least reduce it to one. Currently only the Layout toolbar comes in the vertical orientation, and it can only be made one button wide by removing some of the existing buttons.
I first saw vertical toolbars running between the TOC and work area on an ESRI presenter's computer and I've now used them for years. They take up the less valuable horizontal space (which there is much more of with wide aspect monitors) and they are close to the "action" requiring less mouse movement.