Microsoft demos real-time co-authoring for Office Web Apps

Posted on 19/06/2013 by Dana Wollman

With Microsoft's Build developer conference kicking off in just a week, we're frankly surprised the company is choosing to release any news ahead of time. Today, though, the firm posted a video showing some changes to Office Web apps. In particular, the preview indicates that these various apps will now support real-time co-authoring, with multiple users making changes at once (yep, just like Google Docs). That's a nice, long-awaited improvement over the current setup, in which multiple users can make changes, but not alongside one another. According to Microsoft, this set of features will roll out over "the next several months." For now, we've got the video preview embedded after the break. And don't be put off by the 14-minute length; the demo doesn't actually begin until five and a half minutes in.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Microsoft

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Source: Microsoft

Microsoft Office Web Apps to receive real-time collaboration, Android support

Posted on 08/05/2013 by Alexis Santos

Ballmer and Co. have just laid out what changes Office Web Apps will see over the next year and beyond, and it's honing in on social features and more. Sure, the productivity suite already has collaborative document editing, but Microsoft is vowing to include real-time collaboration á la Google Drive, where users can see who's currently working on a document while changes appear on the fly. The PowerPoint Web App is already packing the revamped experience, and the Office team promises that the real-time co-authoring will become faster as time goes on.

The OS titan also says it'll incorporate a range of other improvements, including simplified file management, shortening launch times and even a find and replace feature for the Word Web App. In addition to the tweaks, Microsoft revealed that Android tablets will finally be able to access its online suite of tools, as it'll begin supporting the mobile Chrome browser. The firm's given itself the loose timetable of "over the next year and beyond" for the feature rollout, so avid users should sit tight for now.

Filed under: Software, Microsoft

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Source: Office 365 Blog (Microsoft)

Office Web Apps update brings web image pasting, PowerPoint slide editing and more

Posted on 22/02/2013 by Steve Dent

Microsoft's Office Web Apps are great for those with a SkyDrive account and any device with an IE, Firefox, Chrome or Safari browser who don't want to lug the full Office 365 suite around. Since functionality can be a tad limited, however, Redmond's just added more features with the latest update. For starters, you can now copy and paste pictures from the web into Word, PowerPoint and OneNote Web Apps. Other new functions include cursor-following tools in all the programs, the ability to rearrange slides in PowerPoint Web App along with comment viewing, touch-based chart resizing and more in Excel Web App. Microsoft's posted some sample files that work without a SkyDrive account, so if you want to give it a whirl, hit the source.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Microsoft

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Source: Office Web Apps

SkyDrive now hosting over a billion Office files, adds editing without Microsoft login

Posted on 08/02/2013 by Jamie Rigg

Microsoft's cloud storage service SkyDrive has hit a significant numerical landmark: over a billion Office documents are now hosted on it. To celebrate, Redmond has made is a little easier to edit files using Office Web Apps -- you no longer need to sign in using a Microsoft account (unless the sharing party wants you to), so if you've got the right link, you can start tweaking with minimal fuss. A billion Office files sounds like a big number, but we'd really like the details of how many users that's spread over. As many as DropBox? Who knows.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Microsoft

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Source: Microsoft

New Office Web Apps get finalized for SkyDrive, Outlook

Posted on 23/10/2012 by Sean Buckley

As polished and functional as something might be in its preview days, a piece of work isn't done until it is done, and Microsoft's Office Web Apps have finally reached that point. Back in July, Redmond piped out preview versions of OWA and Office 365, focusing on adding tablet-friendly touch controls. Feedback from over 750,000 users and Windows 8's impending deadline helped shaped today's release, readying it for Microsoft's latest operating system, IE10 and iOS 6. A pair of posts on the Office Web Apps Blog detail the new face of Office, including an improved authoring experience, better support for multi-user collaboration, faster performance and more. Read it for yourself at the source link below, or just log into Skydrive and get to work.

Filed under: Tablets, Internet, Software, Microsoft

New Office Web Apps get finalized for SkyDrive, Outlook originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Oct 2012 01:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Office Web Apps integrate touch support on iPad and Windows 8, brace us for an Office 2013 world

Posted on 21/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

Touch-friendliness is a centerpiece for the upcoming Office 2013, but don't fret if you prefer to live in the world of Office Web Apps ahead of time. As of new preview versions of both OWA and Office 365, those using at least an iPad or Windows 8 will see larger, more finger-ready controls by default. The switch also tweaks the text selection, contextual menus and numerous other elements to work properly with the fleshier input, even going so far as to support multi-touch gestures like pinching to zoom. Windows users get a Touch Mode toggle if they'd rather flip back to traditional control methods. While the web support is still experimental and doesn't have a completion date on the horizon, those willing to live ever so slightly on the edge can stay hooked on Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Word without having to use anything so archaic as a mouse and keyboard.

[Thanks, Suraj]

Filed under: Tablet PCs, Internet

Office Web Apps integrate touch support on iPad and Windows 8, brace us for an Office 2013 world originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Aug 2012 15:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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