For those times when text messages and emojis just aren't enough, Microsoft has given Teams users another option for communicating with co-workers: the ability to send short video clips using the chat feature.
It's one of the few updates to Microsoft's collaboration platform unveiled at its Inspire partner event on Tuesday, including adding "story" posts with the new business social network Viva.
The video clip feature can be accessed by clicking a small video camera icon in the Teams text chat area, next to the "Send" button. From there, a popup screen allows the user to record a short clip and change the duration before posting it to Teams chat. Similar to a feature launched last year by rival chat app Slack, it offers an alternative to writing a message, either to save time or to convey meaning more efficiently.
Colleagues can then view the clip whenever they want, adding an asynchronous element to the instant messaging platform.
Following the announcement of PowerPoint Live last year and the Live Share for Teams SDK two months ago, Microsoft also introduced Excel Live. This brings the app to the Teams meeting screen for co-editing, where participants can upload a spreadsheet and make changes to the document in real time without switching between apps or having to open Excel separately. Alternatively, if a user already has a spreadsheet open in a meeting and wants to import it into Teams for their colleagues to work on, they can do so by clicking the "Share" menu and selecting the "Work as a team" option. .
Excel Live will be available for public preview in late August.
Some previously announced features are now generally available: Teams Connect, shared channels, which enable communication with external Teams users, and collaborative annotations. The latter brings tools from Microsoft's Whiteboard app to Teams screen sharing to let participants interact with content during a meeting.
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