Tag Archives: Editors

Easily customize theme colors in Sheets and Slides

Quick launch summary

Now it’s easier to find and select theme colors in Sheets and Slides, the two Google Editors that support themes.


The theme colors section is now at the top color picker, and the “theme” placeholder has now been enhanced to show the name of the theme. Now you can easily identify your company brand and use the theme colors of the brand.


To select theme colors, go to any color picker dropdown and click the edit button for your theme color palette. In the theme color sidebar, select a color from the dropdown to begin editing. Note that color changes apply only to the current theme you selected and will not create a new theme.


Example of selecting customized theme colors. In this case the theme is named “Simple Light.”


We hope this new feature will help you customize your presentations in Sheets and Slides and enable you to incorporate your company’s brand colors.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: This feature will be ON by default. There is no end user setting for this feature.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on August 17, 2021


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers 
  • Available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Your progress is automatically saved as you respond to forms and quizzes

What’s changing

When responding to a Google Form, Quiz, or Quiz assignment in Classroom while signed into your Google account, your progress will automatically be saved as a draft for 30 days from your last edit, or until your submission is complete.

Gif showing a form being filled out and saved



Who’s impacted

End users


Why it matters

This highly requested feature helps ensure you won’t have to start over if:
  • You can’t complete a form or quiz in one sitting,
  • You have to switch between multiple devices,
  • You have low internet connectivity.

Additional details

Form owners and editors can disable this feature for responders to a specific form. You may want to disable the feature on forms that are:
  • Used for repeated data entry,
  • Embedded in websites,
  • On certain shared devices, such as registration or information kiosks.

To disable this feature, within Google Forms, go to Settings > Presentation > Restrictions and select “Disable autosave for all respondents”.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.

Rollout pace

  • Rapid Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on August 3.
  • Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 15.

Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts

Resources

Smart Compose now available in comments for Google Slides, Sheets, and Drawings

Quick launch summary

Last year, we announced Smart Compose in Google Docs, a feature that helps you compose high-quality content faster and more easily. Smart Compose saves you time by cutting back on repetitive writing, reducing the chance of spelling and grammatical errors, and suggesting relevant contextual phrases.

Now, Smart Compose is available in comments for Google Slides, Sheets, and Drawings.

Image of Smart Compose offering a suggestion in a comment
Smart Compose offering a suggestion in a comment.



Getting started

  • End users: This feature will be ON by default and can be disabled by going to Tools > Preferences and unchecking “Show Smart Compose Suggestions.” When enabled, you’ll automatically see Smart Compose suggestions. To accept a suggestion you like, press “tab” or press the right arrow key. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using Smart Compose in Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drawings.

Rollout pace

  • This feature is available now for all users.

Availability

  • Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Frontline, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Nonprofits, Cloud Identity Free, Cloud Identity Premium

Resources

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – July 30, 2021

New updates

Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are fully launched or in the process of rolling out (rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete), launching to both Rapid and Scheduled Release at the same time (if not, each stage of rollout should take no more than 15 business days to complete), and available to all Google Workspace and G Suite customers.


Delegate Information is now available in Gmail Log Search
Email log search now indicates when an email was sent on behalf of the user by a delegate. In cases where a delegate sent the email, the delegate will be listed, along with the sender, in message details in email log search. Delegate information will only be available on emails sent after this change rolls out. | Available to all Google Workspace with Gmail enabled. | Learn more.


New font in Workspace improves accessibility for vision impaired
Now there's a new font in Workspace optimized for vision impaired users.  When you create or want to read a document, set the font to Atkinson Hyperlegible for improved legibility.


Previous announcements 

The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details.


Improvements for braille mode in Google Docs provide a richer, more interactive experience
We've improved how suggestions are announced in braille mode in Google Docs. You’ll now hear detailed suggestion information inline with the rest of the text — this includes whether the suggestion is an insertion or deletion, and the author of the suggestion. | Learn more.



Disabling File Transfer in Google Chat
Admins can now disable or limit file sharing for their users in Chat. Specifically, admins
will be able to specify controls within and outside their organization, and will be able to choose between restricting all files, allowing images only, or allowing all files. | Available to Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, Enterprise Essentials | Learn more.



Alert Center enrichment with VirusTotal threat context now generally available
Earlier this year, we pre-announced an integration between the Alert Center and VirusTotal. Currently, the Google Workspace Alert Center provides admins with actionable, real-time alerts and insights regarding security-related activity in their domain. With the VirusTotal (now part of Google Cloud) integration, admins have the ability to dig into their alerts at a deeper level. | Available to Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals and Education Plus customers. | Learn More.



Use dynamic security groups for group based policies
Google Workspace admins can now use dynamic groups to manage policies for their users in the Admin console. Previously, it was only possible to apply these policies to static groups and OUs. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Cloud Identity Premium customers. | Learn more.



Workspace for Education Plus now syncs Google Classroom courses and rosters with Student Information Systems
U.S. school districts with Google Workspace for Education Plus will be able to automatically set up Google Classroom courses and keep rosters in sync with their Student Information System (SIS). IT admins will do the setup via Clever, meaning teachers will no longer need to manually create classes and invite students to join them. | Learn More.



Enhancements to Google Voice
We’ve made several enhancements to Google Voice, including information and troubleshooting tips for missed calls, the ability to easily redial dropped calls, the ability to delete SMS messages in bulk, and an option to show your Google Voice number as the caller ID when forwarding calls. | Learn more.



Search within a folder in Google Drive on iOS
You can now search for content inside a specific folder in Google Drive on iOS. Simply navigate to the folder you want to search within and select the search bar — you’ll see a list of suggested folders, documents, and users to refine your search results. Select the folder chip before typing your search query. | Learn more.



Assign SSO profile to organizational units or groups with the new SAML Partial SSO beta
Currently, you can configure to authenticate your users using a third-party identity provider — this configuration applies to all users within your domain. Now, you have the option to specify groups or organizational units (OUs) to authenticate a subset of your users using Google. This feature is available as an open beta. | Learn more.



New enrollment privilege and naming updates for Google Meet hardware in the Admin console
We are making two improvements to the admin controls for Google Meet hardware: a new enrollment privilege admins and updates for hardware management in the Admin console. | Learn more.



Use the new Google Meet web app for better meetings on desktop devices
We’ve launched a new Google Meet standalone web app. This Progressive Web Application (PWA) has all the same features as Google Meet on the web, but as a standalone app it’s easier to find and use, and it streamlines your workflow by eliminating the need to switch between tabs. | Learn more.


For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

Improvements for braille mode in Google Docs provide a richer, more interactive experience

Quick launch summary

We've improved how suggestions are announced in braille mode in Google Docs. This change makes it easier for users of assistive technology, including screen readers and refreshable braille displays, to interact with suggestions in documents.

You’ll now hear detailed suggestion information inline with the rest of the text — this includes whether the suggestion is an insertion or deletion, and the author of the suggestion.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled by the user by going to Tools > Accessibility settings > Turn on braille support. Visit the Help Center to learn more about how to Use a braille display with Docs editors.

Additional details

  • Users should make sure to update to the latest versions of their assistive technologies and browsers to fully benefit from these improvements.

Rollout pace


Availability

  • Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Frontline, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Nonprofits, Cloud Identity Free, Cloud Identity Premium

Resources

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – July 23, 2021

New updates

Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are fully launched or in the process of rolling out (rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete), launching to both Rapid and Scheduled Release at the same time (if not, each stage of rollout should take no more than 15 business days to complete), and available to all Google Workspace and G Suite customers.

Gmail now displays the latest emojis
Now you can see all the latest emojis in Gmail, with emojis now rendered in the latest Unicode standard 13.1.

Improved Tabular Data Handling for Gmail DLP
We are improving the way we handle Tabular data files like .csv or .xlsx to best account for the structure of these files. This will result in more accurate content scans. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise, Education Fundamentals, Standard, Teaching and Learning Upgrade, and Plus customers. | Learn more.


Previous announcements

The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details.

Updates to Google Workspace Public Status Dashboard and service status alerts
We're introducing a new Public Status Dashboard experience for Google Workspace. As part of this update, we’re enhancing the functionality of the existing Apps outage alert system-defined rule, which provides email notifications regarding service disruptions or outages via the Public Status Dashboard. | Learn more.


Hangouts to Google Chat upgrade beginning August 16th, with option to opt-out
Beginning August 16, 2021, we will start upgrading users who have the “Chat and classic Hangouts” setting selected to “Chat preferred,” unless you explicitly opt out. Additionally, the “Chat and classic Hangouts'' setting will also be removed for all users in your domain unless you opt out of the upgrade. | Learn more.


Fundamental data regions now available to more Google Workspace customers
Data regions give you the ability to choose where covered data for select Google Workspace apps is stored at rest. We’re introducing a more limited version of data regions, known as Fundamental data regions, which will be available to Google Workspace Enterprise Standard, Business Plus, Business Standard and Frontline customers. | Learn more.


Bulk convert Classic Sites to new Sites using the Classic Sites Manager
Beginning today, you can now bulk convert Classic Sites to new Sites using the Classic Sites Manager. | Learn more.


Block shares from another user in Google Drive
We’re adding the ability to block another user in Google Drive. If blocked, the user will not be able to share any Drive items with you, and items owned by the user will not be able to be shared with you or be shown when you’re browsing Google Drive. In addition, your files will not be available to the user you’ve blocked, even if you’ve previously shared items with them.  | Learn more.



Select multiple tabs in Google Sheets and perform basic actions on the selection
Now you can select multiple tabs in Google Sheets and perform basic actions on the selection (such as moving the tabs together, deleting, duplicating, copying, coloring, or hiding). | Learn more.



Image placeholders make it easy to work as a team with images in Slides themes and layouts
Now when you create a theme in Slides, you can add image placeholders to your layouts. | Learn more. 



Easily collaborate and share Slide presentations with side-by-side viewing in Google Chat
In Google Chat, you can now open and edit a Slide presentation in a side-by-side view. | Learn more. 



For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

Easily collaborate and share Slide presentations with side-by-side viewing in Google Chat

Quick launch summary

In Google Chat, you can now open and edit a Slide presentation in a side-by-side view. By enabling you and your collaborators to directly edit presentations without leaving Chat, we hope to make it easier to transform your ideas into impact.


Image of how Chat users can open a Slide presentation by clicking on the preview thumbnail image in the chat stream.

Chat users can open a Slide presentation by clicking on the preview thumbnail image in the chat stream.

Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: Use this feature by clicking on the document preview thumbnail image in the chat stream. To open the presentation directly in Google Slides, click on the blue link in the chat conversation. Visit the Help Center to learn more about how to Manage your files in Gmail rooms.

Rollout pace


Availability


  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Image placeholders make it easy to work as a team with images in Slides themes and layouts

Quick launch summary

Now when you create a theme in Slides, you can add image placeholders to your layouts. Slides editors can then easily replace these image placeholders with the desired images. This new feature should improve your team’s workflow efficiency, design quality, and ease of formatting.


Gif if how a user creates a slide from a layout that uses image placeholders, they can click directly on the placeholder, select a source for the upload, select the file, and the image is inserted.


When a user creates a slide from a layout that uses image placeholders, they can click directly on the placeholder, select a source for the upload, select the file, and the image is inserted.




Getting started


Image placeholders can be inserted from the Theme Builder View through the Insert menu.

Image placeholders can be inserted from the Theme Builder View through the Insert menu.

Rollout pace


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources





Select multiple tabs in Google Sheets and perform basic actions on the selection

Quick launch summary

Now you can select multiple tabs in Google Sheets and perform basic actions on the selection (such as moving the tabs together, deleting, duplicating, copying, coloring, or hiding). Work in Google Sheets with confidence and make workflows faster as you perform basic actions on more than one sheet at a time.


GIF show how multiple tabs are selected in Sheets to be deleted together.



Getting started


Rollout pace


Availability

  • Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Frontline, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Nonprofits, Cloud Identity Free, Cloud Identity Premium 

Resources

Google Workspace Business Starter and Frontline customers can now collaborate with people who are not using a Google account in Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Sites

Quick launch summary 

We’re making visitor sharing available to Google Workspace Business Starter and Frontline customers, with a limit of five visitor shares per month, per user. 

With visitor sharing, you can share items with non-Google accounts, enabling them to view, comment on, or edit content in Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Sites using a secure pincode. 



Getting started 

  • Admins: 
    • Sharing outside of your organization to users with non-Google accounts will be ON by default if you currently allow users in your organization to send sharing invitations to people outside your organization who are not using a Google account. 
    • Sharing outside of your organization to users with non-Google accounts will be OFF by default if you currently do not allow sharing outside your organization. Use our Help Center to learn more about sharing to non-Google accounts. 
    • Visitor sharing will be controlled by new settings at Admin console > Apps > G Suite > Drive and Docs > Sharing Settings (pictured below). These settings can be controlled at the domain or OU level. 



Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Business customers 
  • Not available to G Suite Basic, Cloud Identity customers, or users with personal accounts 

Resources