Microsoft has rolled out a major update to Office for Mac. Office for Mac is now built from the same codebase as Windows, iOS, and Android operating systems. The update includes real-time collaboration and automatic cloud saving features.
Office 2016 for Mac was released by Microsoft in 2015, and it has often lagged behind Windows in terms of features. With this new structure, it could only mean one thing and that is bridging that gap. With a shared codebase, everything may not be the same, but it will be easier for Microsoft to support all the platforms.
Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for Mac will now support real-time editing. A thumbnail in the upper-right corner of the apps will showcase everyone who is collaborating on a shared document. In Word and PowerPoint flag icons will indicate areas where edits are taking place, while PowerPoint will also highlight any modified slides.
All the three core apps now also store files automatically in the cloud. Alongside the shared files, users can also view the updates others make instantly. Users also get the option to roll back to previous versions by going to version history.
Apart from the major updates, here are a few nitty gritty updates that you will also find:
- Excel gets more charts such as funnel, sunburst, and histogram. It also has a new Map chart type that turns geographic data into a map with just a “few steps.” Excel also gets better support for PivotTable charts, and faster formula calculation.
- PowerPoint gets a new QuickStarter feature that enables users to create an outline of content with suggested speaking topics, among other things. It also includes basic video editing tools, where users can trim the beginning and end of video clips. Users can now use a mouse as a laser pointer on PowerPoint.
- Microsoft Outlook brings support for Google Calendar and Contacts. It has also added simpler archiving and deleting feature where users can swipe across the trackpad to delete or archive a message.
