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Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – July 21, 2023

2 New updates 

Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are available to all Google Workspace customers, and are fully launched or in the process of rolling out. Rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete if 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.



Including the Alt text option in the Image options sidebar of Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drawings
Currently, users add alternative text to images in Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drawings by right-clicking an image and selecting “Alt text,” which then opens a box for them to input the text. Starting this week, we’re making this feature more discoverable by adding it to the “Image options” sidebar. 
Screenshot of alt text options newly located in the image options sidebar

Reminder: delegators must re-approve contacts delegates by August 2023 
In May 2023, we announced that delegated users can manage contact labels on behalf of their delegator via contacts.google.com. As part of this update, delegators need to review existing delegates, as well as add new delegates. This must be completed by July 31, 2023 or delegates will lose access to manage contacts. Admins can also make these adjustments for users in their domain using the Admin SDK API to remove and re-add the contacts delegate privilege. | Learn more about managing contact labels. 


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.


Ability to create spaces, memberships, group chats, and more using the Google Chat API is now generally available 
Last year, we announced that developers could use the Google Chat API to programmatically create new spaces and add members to those spaces through the Google Workspace Developer Preview Program. Those features are now generally available for all Google Workspace developers. | Learn more about Google Chat API. 

AppSheet Core licenses will be included by default for more Google Workspace editions, along with a new Admin security setting 
We’re expanding AppSheet Core license access to additional Google Workspace editions and also giving Admins a new org-level setting, which controls how users are able to use their AppSheet Core licenses, including whether app data can be shared externally. | AppSheet Core licenses are already included for domain-verified Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Enterprise Essentials Plus, and Education Plus users. AppSheet Core licenses will now be included for domain-verified Google Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Starter, Enterprise Standard, Frontline Starter and Standard, Nonprofits, and Education Standard customers. | Learn more about AppSheet Core licenses. 

Improved meeting room suggestions in Google Calendar 
To better optimize meeting rooms and foster greater collaboration, especially in a hybrid work environment, we’ve introduced an updated structured meeting room setting. The working location set by a user is taken into account for all room suggestions, and in cases where location data is unavailable, proposed meeting rooms will be based on frequently used rooms. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, and Nonprofits only. | Learn more about room suggestions in Google Calendar. 

Introducing membership search and the option to add up to 50,000 members to spaces in Google Chat 
We’re increasing the number of users you can add to a space in Google Chat from 8,000 to 50,000. We’re also introducing the ability to easily search for members within a space. | Learn more about new capabilities in spaces. 

Programmatically read and write working locations for a portion of the day with the Calendar API 
Recently, we introduced the ability for users to set working locations in Calendar that indicate where they’re working for specific portions of the day. Now, we’re adding the ability to programmatically read and write working locations for specific portions of the day. This update expands on the existing reading and writing functionality announced earlier this year. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Education Standard, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade and Nonprofits customers only. | Learn more about the Google Calendar API.

Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog posts for additional details.



Rapid Release Domains: 

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


Programmatically read and write working locations for a portion of the day with the Calendar API

What’s changing 

Recently, we introduced the ability for users to set working locations in Calendar that indicate where they’re working for specific portions of the day. Now, we’re adding the ability to programmatically read and write working locations for specific portions of the day. This update expands on the existing reading and writing functionality announced earlier this year. 


Getting started 


Rollout pace 

  • This feature is available now for all eligible Google Workspace editions. 

Availability 

All developers can use the API, however the working location feature is only available for eligible Workspace editions: 
  • Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Education Standard, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade and Nonprofits customers 

Resources 

AppSheet Core licenses will be included by default for more Google Workspace editions, along with a new Admin security setting

What’s changing 

To bring the power of AppSheet to more users, AppSheet Core licenses will now be included for the following Google Workspace editions: 
  • Business Starter, Standard, and Plus 
  • Enterprise Starter and Standard 
  • Frontline Starter and Standard 
  • Non-profits 
  • Education Standard 


Note that AppSheet Core licenses are already included for domain-verified Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Enterprise Essentials Plus, and Education Plus users. Your Google Workspace instance must be domain-verified to enjoy this feature. 


Along with expanding access, we’re giving Admins a new org-level setting, which controls how users are able to use their AppSheet Core licenses, including whether app data can be shared externally. See below for more information. 


Who’s impacted 

Admins and end users


Why it matters

AppSheet allows users to maximize Google Workspace by building custom applications on top of Google Workspace and other services in their environment, all without writing any code. For example, you can build apps that record facility inspections, document inventory, or manage approvals. 


You can take advantage of AppSheet features and integrations such as:
  • Creating AppSheet-powered no-code Chat apps for Google Workspace.
  • AppSheet databases make it easy for you to organize and manage the data that power your apps directly inside AppSheet. See our Developer Blog for more information. 
  • Building custom automations with email, chat, and push notifications that integrate into your workflows.

By including AppSheet Core licenses in more Google Workspace editions, the power of AppSheet is accessible to more users. Further, Admins will have the security features they need to ensure their users are using AppSheet appropriately in their organization. Visit our Help Center to learn more about getting started with AppSheet as well as our online community to collaborate with other AppSheet Creators.


Additional details

Admins can use the new “Core License Security Setting” in the Google Workspace Admin Console to control features related to whether app data can be shared externally. The setting will apply to the following functions for Google Workspace users using AppSheet Core:
  • Sharing with external app users
  • Connecting to external app data
  • Automation emails to external recipients

The setting applies to all AppSheet Core apps in your domain — for more granular governance, AppSheet Enterprise licenses are required.



  • For Admins with existing AppSheet usage, this setting will be OFF by default to ensure no existing apps are disrupted.
  • For Admins without existing AppSheet usage, the setting will be ON by default.


You’ll begin seeing the new setting in the coming weeks, see the "Rollout" section below for more details.


Getting started

Admins

  • If you’re currently paying for AppSheet Core licenses, they will have to be canceled manually. Impacted customers will receive a notification via email in the coming weeks with more information and next steps.
  • Before changing the Core License Security Setting, Admins should check with their AppSheet creators to ensure any active applications don’t rely on the features controlled by the Core License Security Setting. Admins can get a basic understanding of which users are using AppSheet by running a User Report in the Google Workspace Admin Console.

Partners 

End users 

Rollout pace


Availability

  • AppSheet Core licenses are already included for domain-verified Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Enterprise Essentials Plus, and Education Plus users.
  • AppSheet Core licenses will now be included for domain-verified Google Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Starter, Enterprise Standard, Frontline Starter and Standard, Nonprofits, and Education Standard customers

  • Google Workspace for Education users designated as under the age of 18 are restricted from using AppSheet with their Google Workspace for Education accounts. For more information, use this article in our Help Center about controlling access to Google services by age.


Resources


Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – July 14, 2023

4 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. 


Improved media viewing on Android devices in Google Chat 
We’re introducing a new media viewer in Google Chat on Android devices that significantly improves the media browsing experience. Now, media thumbnails open faster in full screen, repeat playback is quicker, and you can swipe between all of the media in the conversation. We've also added a shared media option that allows users to quickly browse through all media shared in a Chat conversation, which is accessible from the conversation as well as from the full-screen view of every media item. | Learn more about sending & sharing files in Google Chat messages.




Extending long running queries within Connected Sheets
Currently, we timeout any queries that take longer than 5 minutes for Connected Sheets. This week, we extended the timeout time from 5 minutes to 10 minutes for BigQuery and Looker. This means Connected Sheets users will be able to analyze data from queries that scan even larger data sets in Sheets.  


Filter by measures and value in a pivot table with Connected Sheets for Looker
Previously, Connected Sheets users could filter by dimensions in pivot tables, but not measures. Now, Looker users are able to filter by measures in a pivot table, which allows for even more targeted analysis on Connected Sheets. Additionally, Looker users will be able to filter by value in a pivot table on Connected Sheets. | Learn more about measure types on Looker and creating & using pivot tables. 




Add emojis in Google Sheets
Emojis are a great way for people to express themselves across Google Workspace. We’re excited to announce that you can now insert emojis into a Google Sheet by:
  • Typing “@” > “Emoji” > select the desired emoji
  • Going to “Insert” > “Emoji” > select the desired emoji

Scale meetings to 1,000 attendees, with 500 attendees being viewers, now available for Google Workspace Education Plus
In June 2023, we announced viewer mode for Google Meet. For certain Google Workspace editions, viewer mode can be used to scale their meetings to 1,000 attendees, with 500 attendees being viewers. We’re now expanding this functionality to Google Workspace Education Plus customers. | Learn more about scaling meetings with viewer mode.


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.


Add hyperlinks to text in Google Chat
You can now hyperlink text on web and Android when composing or editing a message in Google Chat. This update also includes the ability to copy over hyperlinks from other places like Gmail, Docs, Sheets and Slides. | Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google Accounts. | Learn more about adding hyperlinks to text in Chat.


Paid appointment bookings now available in Google Calendar
To improve upon the current capabilities of appointment scheduling, the Google Calendar feature that allows users to share their availability via a booking page, we're now integrating paid appointment bookings into Google Calendar. | Available to Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, Nonprofits and Workspace Individual only. | Learn more about paid appointment bookings in Google Calendar.


Negotiate time directly in Gmail to schedule meetings faster
We’re adding a feature into Gmail that helps you find convenient 1:1 meeting times with others much quicker. This is especially useful when scheduling time with customers, partners or people in your organization whose Google Calendars are not visible to you. | Learn more about scheduling meetings in Gmail.


Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog posts for additional details.


Rapid Release Domains:

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – July 7, 2023

2 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 customers.



Easily convert email addresses and links into smart chips using the tab key in Google Sheets 
You will now have the option to insert a link and press the tab key to convert the link into a smart chip in Google Sheets. Access this feature when you copy and paste email addresses or links to Google Drive files, Google Maps places, or Youtube videos into a Sheet. | Learn more about inserting smart chips in your Google Sheets. 
Easily convert email addresses and links into smart chips using the tab key in Google Sheets

Revamping the "First Open Experience" in Docs on Android devices 
Last week, we announced a more creation-focused experience when first opening the Sheets and Slides apps on Android devices. We’re extending this to the Docs app, which will now start in edit mode. Additionally, the formatting toolbar will be more visible, you will see an I-beam cursor, and tapping once exposes an on-screen keyboard unless a physical keyboard is attached.
Revamping the "First Open Experience" in Docs on Android devices

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.


Pin links to the top of the navigation bar in the Admin console 
Admins can now pin up to five links to the top of the left-hand navigation menu. This is particularly helpful if there are areas of the admin console you navigate to more than others, helping to save clicks and navigate to relevant pages faster. | Learn more about the top of the navigation bar in the Admin console. 

Customize error messages for Google Chat data loss prevention rules, available in open beta 
For new and existing data protection rules for Google Chat, you can now customize the message shown to users when a message is blocked or intercepted. Previously, the message would be a standard warning, shared for all cases. Now, you can provide more context for users, including what they can do to unblock themselves or links to additional resources. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, Education Plus, the Teaching & Learning Upgrade, and Frontline Standard customers only. | Learn more about customized error messages for Google Chat data loss prevention rules.

Client-side encryption for Google Calendar is now generally available on mobile 
Earlier this year, we expanded the client-side encryption beta to Google Calendar on mobile to help customers strengthen the confidentiality of their data while helping address a broad range of data sovereignty and compliance requirements. Today, we’re happy to announce that client-side encryption for Google Calendar is now generally available on Android and iOS devices for eligible Workspace editions. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers only. | Learn more about client-side encryption for Google Calendar on mobile. 

Adding more flexibility to working locations in Google Calendar 
We’re introducing the option to set working locations in Calendar that indicate where you’re working for specific portions of the day. This will help you more accurately reflect your availability based on the physical location you set, which can change throughout the day. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, and Nonprofits only. | Learn more about adding your working location for part of a day.

Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.


Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – June 30, 2023

3 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 customers.


Revamping the "First Open Experience" in Sheets and Slides on Android devices 
In addition to the recent announcement that documents on tablet and foldables will now be in paginated mode upon first open, there will now be a more creation-focused experience when first opening the Sheets and Slides apps on Android devices. For example:

In the Sheets app, there will be larger tap targets and tapping once exposes the formula bar, tab bar, and a contextual formatting toolbar. 
Revamping the "First Open Experience" in Sheets
In the Slides app, you will now see the filmstrip on the left-hand side and selecting an object exposes the contextual toolbar and an on-screen keyboard. 
Revamping the "First Open Experience" in Slides on Android devices

Paste HTML into document on Android 
In continuing our mission to provide a top-class user experience on large screen devices, we’re introducing the ability for users to paste copied HTML elements into a document on Android. You can now copy HTML elements to clipboard and paste the elements into a Doc, all while maintaining the formatting elements. 


Easily duplicate groups and objects in Google Sites 
Currently, Google Site editors can duplicate a section of their Site, and the duplicated section appears directly below the section it was duplicated from. Starting this week, we’re extending the duplicate feature by enabling you to easily duplicate objects (images, buttons, text boxes) and groups when editing a Site. | Learn more about adding or editing text & images in Google Sites. 
Easily duplicate groups and objects in Google Sites


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.


Quickly access more features during meetings, available for Google Meet on the web 
We’ve introduced a new quick action to access popular features in Google Meet. By hovering the mouse on top of your own video feed, you can access video effects such as immersive backgrounds or fun filters to bring more fun to your meetings and a reframing option to improve your visibility. | Learn more about features in Google Meet. 

Apply background blur when joining a call using a virtual desktop 
If you’re using a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) to join a Google Meet meeting, you can now use background blur and light adjustment. Background blur will intelligently separate you from the background, blurring your surroundings while keeping you clear and in focus. | Available to Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, and Individual customers only. | Learn more about background blur in Google Meet. 

Google Sheets now integrated with mail merge in Gmail 
Mail merge will support Google Sheets in the web version of Gmail. This integration will allow you to link a Sheet with up to 1,500 recipients and use any data column from your Sheet as a mail merge tag. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, Education Plus customers and Nonprofits only. | Learn more about mail merge with Sheets in Gmail. 

Simplified access controls coming to Google Meet beginning July 17, 2023 
We’re introducing simplified controls for meeting access in Google Meet. These will replace the existing Quick access meeting settings and the admin setting to turn Quick access on or off by default will be removed. This update will begin rolling out on July 17, 2023. | Learn more about access controls coming to Google Meet. 

Use polls or Q&As during Google Meet live streams 
If you’re live streaming a video meeting, meeting hosts can now enable the Q&A and poll features, which previously were only offered in traditional Meet meetings. Expanding these features to live streamed meetings will help take your meetings to the next level with a more feature-rich, collaborative experience. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Essentials Plus, Enterprise Starter, Enterprise Plus, Enterprise Standard, Education Plus, and the Teaching and Learning upgrade customers. | Learn more about polls and Q&As during Google Meet live streams. 

Making focus time more productive with new Google Calendar setting 
To increase concentration and bridge the gap between do not disturb and focus time, you can now mute notifications for the duration of your focus time directly in Calendar. | Available to Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Business Standard, Business Plus, Education Standard, Education Plus, and Nonprofits only. | Learn more about the new Google Calendar setting. 

See read receipts for messages in Google Chat group direct messages 
We’re introducing read receipts in group direct messages. With this feature, you can now quickly identify if other members of a group have read your latest message within a Chat stream. | Learn more about read receipts in Google Chat.

Improvements for client-side encryption in Gmail 
We’ve introduced two new features for client-side encryption in Gmail which will help you quickly identify ineligible recipients and any attachments that may be blocked. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Education Standard customers. | Learn more about client-side encryption in Gmail.


Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.


Simplified access controls coming to Google Meet beginning July 17, 2023

What’s changing 

We’re introducing simplified controls for meeting access in Google Meet. These will replace the existing Quick access meeting settings and the admin setting to turn Quick access on or off by default will be removed. This update will begin rolling out on July 17, 2023. 

From a Google Calendar invite or Google Meet itself, meeting organizers will now be able to pick from the following three levels of access: 

  • Open: 
    • Anyone with a meeting link will be able to join your meetings. 
    • No one will have to ask to join. 
    • Anyone can dial in. 
  • Trusted: 
    • Anyone within the meeting hosts’ organization will be able to join without having to ask to join (AKA knocking). 
    • Anyone outside the organization but invited via a Google Calendar event, or anyone invited from within the meeting, will also be able to join without having to ask to join. 
    • Anyone can dial in. 
    • Everybody else will have to ask to join. 
  • Restricted:
    • Only someone who is invited via a Google Calendar event or someone invited from within the meeting by a host will be able to join. 
    • Everyone else will have to ask to join, including participants inside a host’s organization who aren’t included on the invite, and those dialing in.

Additionally, meeting hosts can configure whether guests can join the meeting before hosts.




See below for more information regarding how the new behavior will be applied to new and existing meetings:

Workspace Edition

New Meetings

Existing Meetings with Quick Access “OFF”

Existing Meetings with Quick Access “ON”

Business users

If you use Meet with a paid work account then by default all your new meetings will be set to TRUSTED and your guests will be able to join before you.

Meetings will default to RESTRICTED and your guests won’t be able to join your meetings until you join 

Meetings will default to TRUSTED and your guests will be able to join before you. 


Education users

If you use Meet with a paid school account then by default all your new meetings will be set to TRUSTED  and your guests will be able to join before you. 



Any meetings created via Google Classroom will be set to RESTRICTED and your guests won’t be able to join before you.

Meetings will default to RESTRICTED and your guests won’t be able to join before you.

Meetings will default to TRUSTED and your guests will be able to join before you.



Workspace Individual, Google One Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts

New Meetings

Existing Meetings

By default all your new meetings will be set to TRUSTED and your guests will be able to join before you.

 

Anyone who is invited to a meeting via a Google Calendar invite will be considered as “trusted”. 

For any meetings previously created by you, those will also default to TRUSTED and your guests will be able to join before you. 


You won’t see an option to create Restricted meetings. 


Who's impacted

Admins and end users


Why it matters 

To help ensure your meetings run as smoothly as possible, we made the decision to replace the Quick access settings with a more intuitive and explicit set of controls for meeting organizers and hosts. 


Getting started

  • Admins: 
  • End users: 
    • You can follow this post in our community forum to stay on top of the latest news regarding this update.
    • We recommend familiarizing yourself with the chart above, which explains more about the new default access settings, so you can adjust your settings as needed. 


Rollout pace


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – June 23, 2023

2 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 customers.



Adding flexibility to email collection in Google Forms 
Previously, when creating or modifying a Google Form and editing the “Responses” section, form creators only had the option to toggle the "Collect email addresses" option on or off. If enabled, this meant when users filled out the form, their email was automatically collected with their form submission. To add flexibility, we’ve introduced the ability to choose between the following email collection options:
  • Verified email collection (previously known as automatic email collection)
  • Responder input (previously known as manual email collection)
  • Do not collect
The verified collection option will now require a user to click a checkbox to confirm which email address is being collected upon submission. | Learn more about viewing & managing form responses. 

Adding flexibility to email collection in Google Forms
Gain consensus from collaborators quickly with voting chips in Google Docs 
You can now add smart chips that contain emojis to use as voting indicators in Google Docs. This feature helps teams express themselves while they’re collaborating in Docs by allowing you to rank or compare ideas. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus customers and Nonprofits only. | Learn more about inserting smart chips & building blocks in your Google Doc. 
Voting chips in Google Docs


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.


Launching in beta: programmatically write working locations with the Calendar API 
Available now in beta through our Developer Preview Program, you can write a user’s working location using the Calendar API. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Education Standard, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade and Nonprofits customers only. | Learn more about writing working locations with the Calendar API. 

Enhancing Google Vault file retention capabilities using Google Drive Labels 
Google Vault now supports custom retention rules based on Drive labels. | Available to Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Essentials Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers only. | Learn more about Vault file retention using Google Drive Labels. 

Respond to access requests for Google Workspace files more efficiently 
Users can now review and respond to requests from within the file. Approvers will see a notification dot on the “Share” button if they have a pending access request and a new banner at the top of the sharing dialog. | Learn more about responding to access requests. 

Monitor additional Google Meet hardware issues in the Admin console 
You can now use the Admin console to detect and monitor additional Meet hardware issues, such as: missing display, missing controller, missing default camera, missing default microphone, missing default speaker, and missing default whiteboard camera. | Learn more about monitoring Google Meet hardware issues. 

Use companion mode to check-in to a Google Meet conference room, so everyone can know you by name
If you’re joining a meeting from a conference room, you can use companion mode on your personal device to check in to that specific room. Room check-in allows everyone on the call to easily identify who is in the conference room, rather than simply seeing the conference room name. | Learn more about companion mode check-in with Google Meet.


Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.

Scheduled Release Domains:
Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains:


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

    Launching in beta: programmatically write working locations with the Calendar API

    What’s changing 

    Available now in beta through our Developer Preview Program, you can write a user’s working location using the Calendar API. 


    Using the API to write a Calendar user’s working location values can help you synchronize users' working location with third-party tools. You can easily update users’ working location based on: 
    • When they book a hot desk via a hot desk booking tool 
    • Schedule a trip via a travel booking tool 


    Reading of working locations is already available through the Developer Preview Program. 

    Getting started 


    Rollout pace 

    • This feature is available now for all eligible Google Workspace editions. 

    Availability 

    All developers can use the API, however the working location feature is only available for eligible Workspace editions: 
    • Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Education Standard, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade and Nonprofits customers

    Resources 

    Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – June 16, 2023

    4 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 customers.



    Get more granular views of Google Slides with new zoom settings 
    You can now customize your views in Google Slides with new custom zoom settings that give you the ability to input your desired zoom percent or use the preset zoom percentages in the drop-down menu at the top of your presentation. | Learn more about zooming or changing your document view. 
    Get more granular views of Google Slides with new zoom settings

    Expanding Google Drive log events to additional Google Workspace editions 
    Drive log events, a feature that enables admins to access an audit and investigation page to run searches related to Drive log events, is now available for Google Workspace Business Starter and Essentials Starter editions. | Learn more about Drive log events. 

    Expanding originality reports in Google Classroom to Microsoft Word files 
    Educators can now run Google Classroom originality reports on Microsoft Word files (.docx) to check their students' work for authenticity. The tool will identify uncited content and plagiarism by comparing a file against webpages and books on the internet. | Learn more about turning on originality reports.

    Adding rich text formatting to comments in Google Classroom 
    Rich text formatting is now available for class and private comments in Google Classroom, enabling teachers and students to customize and add emphasis to their content. This highly requested feature includes bolding, underlining, italicizing, and bulleted lists. | Learn more about bold, italicize, and underline text. 
    Adding rich text formatting to comments in Google Classroom


    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.



    Experience better collaboration in conference rooms with new support for whiteboard cameras on Google Meet Hardware 
    To improve upon the whiteboarding experience, provide better meeting inclusion, and foster greater collaboration, we’re excited to announce support for whiteboard cameras on Google Meet Hardware, with Logitech Scribe as the first supported camera. | Learn more about support for whiteboard cameras on Google Meet Hardware. 

    Use Directory Sync to replace the domain name for synced users 
    Using Directory Sync, admins can automatically replace the domain name for synced users and groups in their Google Cloud directory. This means synced Google users and groups can have a different domain name than the domain used in the external directory following a sync. | Learn more about replacing the domain name for synced users. 

    Add or remove client-side encryption from a Google Sheets and Google Slides files 
    You can now simply add or remove client-side encryption to existing spreadsheets in Google Sheets or presentations in Google Slides. This update gives you the flexibility to control encryption as your documents and projects evolve and progress. This feature is already available for Google Docs. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard and Education Plus customers only. | Learn more about client-side encryption in Sheets and Slides. 

    Improving table placements in Google Docs 
    We improved table positioning options for documents set in pages format. These features add more flexibility and control over the layout of text with tables in Docs. Learn more about table placements in Google Docs. 

    View more insights and take quick action via the Chrome Browser Cloud Management home card in the Admin console 
    In addition to the existing cards in the Admin console landing page such as “Users” or “Billing”, we’ve added a card for Chrome Browser Cloud Management. Here you can see quick stats, such as the number of enrolled browsers, and directly perform actions such as enrolling new browsers or managing Chrome extensions. | Learn more about the Chrome Browser Cloud Management home card. 

    Pull rich data from apps directly into Google Docs with third-party smart chips 
    We’re excited to share that third-party smart chips in Docs are now generally available for all users. Since introducing third-party smart chips, developers have been able to build app integrations. Several partners have already created smart chips so users can start embedding content from those apps directly into Docs. | Learn more about third-party smart chips in Google Docs.


    Completed rollouts

    The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.


    Rapid Release Domains: