Google Workspace Changes

Improving real-time collaboration in Google Docs for assistive technology users

It’s now easier for users of assistive technologies, like screen readers and Braille displays, to keep track of real-time updates made by collaborators in a document. With live edits, you can view a periodically updated summary of collaborator changes in a convenient sidebar.

Accessibility settings are now easier to access on Docs

It’s now easier to discover accessibility features like screen reader support, braille support, and screen magnifier support in Docs. This change will make these settings more readily available by placing the Accessibility settings in the Tools menu.

New insights and collaboration features added to the Activity dashboard in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides.

Google has introduced enhancements to the Activity dashboard across Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides to provide more actionable data. Users can now send follow-up emails to collaborators directly from the dashboard, with the ability to filter recipients based on whether they have viewed the file. Additionally, a new chart has been added to visualize viewing patterns over time, allowing users to adjust date ranges and hover over data points for more detailed insights.

Menu and toolbar updates across Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides to improve item discoverability.

Google is updating the menus and toolbars in the web versions of Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Key changes include moving text formatting to a 'Text' submenu in Docs and Slides, removing the Table menu in Docs and Slides (moving options to Insert and Format), and adding a 'Move' submenu in Slides. Additionally, the Google Docs toolbar now features separate controls for text and highlight colors, and the Insert menu has been reordered across all three editors.

Introducing Activity dashboard in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides to track file views.

Google is introducing the Activity dashboard for Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides, allowing users with edit access to see who has viewed a file and when. G Suite administrators can control the visibility of this data at the domain or organizational unit level through the Admin console, and individual users can manage their own privacy settings to exclude their viewing data from the dashboard.

Quick Access for Google Docs is now available.

Quick Access for Google Docs uses artificial intelligence to suggest relevant files based on signals like Drive activity and information within documents, helping users work with the most up-to-date information and create new material quickly. This feature is available to G Suite Business and Enterprise editions with Google Cloud Search enabled.

Improvements to menus in the web versions of Google Docs editors.

Google is updating the menus in the web versions of Google Docs, Slides, and Sheets to make items easier to find. Changes across all editors include renaming 'Spelling' to 'Check Spelling' in the Tools menu and removing 'Select none' from the Edit menu. Specifically for Google Sheets, 'Filter' is renamed to 'Create a filter' and 'Validation' to 'Data validation' in the Data menu, with various reordering of items in the File, Edit, Tools, Data, and Format menus.

Alt text for shapes moved to right-click menu in Google Docs and Slides.

The option to add alt text to a shape has been removed from the Format menu in both Google Docs and Google Slides. Users can now access this feature by right-clicking on the shape.

Updated menu path for adding page and column breaks in Google Docs.

Google Docs has updated the menu structure for adding breaks. Users now find page and column break options under Insert > Break, rather than directly under the Insert menu.

Improvements to menus and toolbars in Google Docs and Slides for better consistency and discoverability.

Google is updating the menus and toolbars in Google Docs and Slides on the web to make items easier to find and increase consistency. Key changes include renaming 'Lists' to 'Bullets and numbering', moving and renaming 'Show spelling suggestions' to 'Spelling' in the Tools menu, moving 'Document outline' to the View menu in Docs, and removing 'Import slides' from the Insert menu in Slides.

Existing templates now available in additional languages

Existing templates in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides on the web are now available in several additional languages, including Hindi (hi), German (de), Indonesian (in), Japanese (ja), Dutch (nl), and Chinese (zh-CN).

New template categories for Project Management, Sales, HR, and Freelancer Engagement

Google has introduced four new template categories developed in partnership with experts: Project Management in Sheets (with Smartsheet), Sales in Docs (with PandaDoc), Human Resources in Docs (with Zenefits), and Freelancer Engagement in Docs (with Upwork). These templates are currently available in English on the web.

Comment swiping in the Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps

Users can now swipe to move from one comment to the next in the iOS apps for Docs, Sheets, and Slides, as well as the Android app for Slides.

Instant mentions in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides on the web, Android, and iOS

When typing a name or email address in a comment, a list of suggested contacts will appear. Selecting a contact triggers an email notification without the need to type '+' or '@' before the name.

Instant comments in Google Docs on the web

Users can now highlight text or hover over the edge of a page to surface a small commenting icon, allowing them to quickly add a comment to that specific area of the document.