Microsoft has unveiled three new features to the Outlook Web App that comes with Office 365. The three new features are “Clutter,” enhanced document collaboration, and groups. Let’s dive in and see what these new features are.
Clutter is the codename for a new (optional) feature in Outlook Web App in Office 365 that intends to remove as much unimportant mail, or clutter, from a user’s inbox as possible. While Clutter is still a work in progress, it leverages the intelligence of the Office Graph and looks for how “importantly” or “unimportantly” you treat emails and looks for patterns behind those behaviors. This results in a much smaller, organized inbox.
“For example, if you completely ignored Juan’s email about his recent vacation pictures, that message was likely unimportant to you – i.e., clutter. On the other hand, if you both read and responded to Cathy’s email about her new budget proposal, that message was likely important to you – i.e., not clutter,” Microsoft stated in an official blog post.
Outlook Web App now includes full integration with OneDrive for Business, allowing you to easily share files stored in the cloud as attachments in your email. In essence, when you send an attachment from your computer, you can now automatically upload the file to OneDrive and send it as a link. Files can also easily be attached directly from OneDrive when sending an email in Outlook Web App.
“When you send these links in Outlook Web App, permissions on the document are set automatically. Any recipient on the To: and CC: lines will be able to view and edit the file by default. No manual configuration is needed, it will just work. We also make it easy to change the permissions from the file directly from the email message. You can set permissions to view-only if desired, so no one can edit the file without your permission,” Microsoft explained.
When an email recipient receives a Word, PowerPoint, or Excel file, Office Online is integrated directly into the email experience. This allows for the viewing and editing of documents side-by-side with the original email conversation.
Microsoft has also added a Groups feature to Office Web Apps, which is a collaboration tool that will allow everyone in an organization to work more closely together.
“Starting things off in Yammer, you’ll notice a list of Public Groups here pinned to the left. These are Groups that have either been created or joined. Clicking on a particular group will show the conversation feed for that group. This is where you share information and collaborate with others. A new group can be created from here – in fact, anyone in the organization can create a group from anywhere in Office 365, which empowers everyone to be more productive,” Microsoft explained.
Head over to the VIA link below to read about the three new features. These new features are set to roll out later this year.
Further reading: Microsoft, Office 365, Outlook
