Google introduces new formatting sidebar for Docs, Sheets, & Slides

Image: Google

Google ditches the clunky toolbar for some of its tablet-based productivity apps. Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides on Android slates now boast a streamlined formatting sidebar for effortless document styling. You can access essential options like line spacing, columns, and clear formatting with fewer taps and more clarity. No more hunting for settings—the sidebar stays put even as you type, letting you focus on your creative flow. This update brings the Android experience closer to the web, giving you desktop-level control on the go. 

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Google will let you 'follow' Google Slides collaborator

Source: Google

If you're working on a presentation with a colleague or classmate, it'll be much easier to follow along with the changes made to your Google Slides file. The app will let you "follow" a collaborator to see what they're working on. You can click on their avatar in the Slides toolbar to see what slide they're on. You can also stop following them by clicking on the avatar again. You will also stop following the collaborator if they refresh or leave the presentation, when you make edits yourself, click on a different slide, or enter the Slideshow mode.

The feature is already rolling out for all Google Workspace customers, G Suite Basic and Business customers, and those with personal Google accounts.

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Google’s new feature to help you avoid editing important work documents with your private account

You wouldn’t exactly want your co-workers or client to know your personal email accounts, now would you? Especially if they show a side of you that you wouldn’t want them to know. Well, Google is hoping to come to your rescue with a new “account awareness” feature. This new account switching tool is coming to Docs, Slides, and Sheets. It’s still accessible at the top right corner of your account. But instead of showing you the list of accounts you have, you see a small box with the text “You’re currently signed in as [x].” And if you want to see your other accounts, you can click on “Change account” at the bottom of the pop-up.

All G Suite editions will have this feature on by default. Those with the rapid release domains will get the new switcher in 15 days or less, while those with scheduled release domains will get this later this month.

Source: Google

Dropbox tests Google Docs integration in its app

Dropbox and Google have partnered to help make their products work better together. Now, we’re seeing one of the results of this partnership. Dropbox Business customers can be part of an open beta program that will let them edit Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides right from Dropbox app. It works similar to the Microsoft Office/Dropbox integration where you can create new Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides files right from within Dropbox. The interface will be the same as what you get if you use Google, but if you want to stay within Dropbox, this lets you do so. It can help with collaboration, or at least, give Dropbox users more options to create or edit files in its service.

The integration also has these files showing up on your PC or Mac if you have the Dropbox app installed. It’ll also let you search for files without being limited to file name. You can search in the text. And, if you prefer, you can open Microsoft Office files in Google’s tools. The edits will be synced to the original file and the document type will be preserved so you can still choose to open it in Office if you want to. Dropbox’s native sharing tools are also available for Google Docs. So, when you click the share button in a Google file saved in Dropbox, you have the option to share two links. One grants edit access and the other just read only. You can also protect files to just be viewable within your organization. The feature will be coming to other Dropbox users later this year.

Source: Engadget