Real-Time Co-Authoring Added To Microsoft Office Web Apps

Microsoft responded with its own significant updates to the company’s Web-based Office applications after a major, free update to Apple’s iWork productivity suite for Mac, iOS and Web. More specifically, Microsoft announced that it has now added real-time co-authoring to its suite of Office Web Apps, allowing users to contribute to and edit documents simultaneously. The collaboration tools are now available for Microsoft’s Word Web App, PowerPoint Web App, and Excel Web App.

“New real-time presence helps you see where your co-authors are working in the document so that you don’t create conflicts as you edit,” the company said in a blog post. “Additionally, the new ability to see changes to text and formatting as they happen will help you and your co-authors stay on the same page as your ideas develop and evolve.”

Word Web App has also been improved with new formatting controls, including headers, footers and page numbers. Documents now automatically save and reflect collaborative updates, and the Web-based word processor includes find and replace functionality. Microsoft has also added a new table styles feature, that offers users a number of preset options. And page breaks can now also be inserted into Word Web App for more document control.

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Significant updates were also issued to Microsoft’s Excel Web App, such as sheet protection, which prevents users from selecting or typing in protected cells; status bar aggregates, which show values for multiple selected cells; and reorder sheets, allowing users to quickly move sheets into a desired order. Excel on the Web has also added the ability to drag and drop cells and rename workbooks. And Microsoft has promised that it has “much more in the pipeline,” with additional features expected to be added in the coming months, greatly expanding the functionality of its Web-based productivity suite.

Apple’s iWork platform has been enhanced to work across the Web, on a Mac, and on iOS devices like the iPhone and iPad. In revamping the suite, Apple was forced to change or remove a number of key features, though the company has indicated that a significant number of them will return within the next six months.

Thank you Apple Insider for providing us with this information
Video courtesy of Apple Insider