In our previous discussion, we explored the impressive updates that graced PowerPoint and Teams. Today, we’re poised to delve even deeper as we uncover a treasure trove of updates spanning across the entirety of the Office 365 toolkit. Let’s dive into the latest enhancements across these powerful tools!

Word

Assigning Tasks

Let’s kick off our exploration with a remarkable new feature: the capability to assign tasks directly within Microsoft Word. Envision a scenario where your students are engaged in collaborative document creation, and as the instructor, you’re imparting your insights. With this innovation, you can seamlessly employ the “@” symbol to mention and allocate specific writing segments to designated individuals. Gone are the days of elaborate explanations—now, by simply appending the student’s name after the “@mention” within your comment, you can effortlessly leave notes and task assignments. The targeted user will be promptly notified of their action item within the Word document, streamlining the entire communication and task delegation process.

Search

Frequently, I find myself resorting to the “Find” button when navigating through lengthy Word documents. Do you share this habit? However, it’s frustrating when these searches fall short due to a lack of desired results stemming from the precise terms you initially inputted. This is a common challenge that numerous Word users encountered, and many provided feedback to Microsoft urging for an improvement.

Responding attentively to user concerns, Microsoft has taken a proactive stance to refine and enhance the search experience within your documents. Their mission is to make the process of searching Word documents on Windows a more seamless and intuitive endeavor, aligning it more closely with the concept of smart search practices.

Leveraging the advancements already present in Word for the web (which has been offering this feature for some time), Microsoft has extended the same robust search functionality to Word for Windows (and Macs), ensuring that the enhanced outcomes experienced on Word for the web are seamlessly replicated in the offline Microsoft environment. Parallel to the web search experience, this rejuvenated feature synergizes formidable web search methodologies, encompassing indexing, querying, and document comprehension.

However, Microsoft’s efforts didn’t stop there. They have harnessed the power of AI (Artificial Intelligence) advancements to elevate the search capability even further. This transformation empowers Word to address a broader array of search queries beyond the confines of rigid “exact matches.” For instance, the search function has now evolved to recognize correlated matches, encompassing various word forms, synonyms, and even near-accurate approximations (typos included).

OneNote

While the landscape of updates in OneNote may not have been rife with groundbreaking changes, there’s a particular enhancement that stands out in my view: the refined Math Practice tool. This tool assumes the role of a mentor, aiding students in comprehending and solving complex math problems, while also offering supplementary practice opportunities through the power of artificial intelligence and interactive forms. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of this update, I invite you to watch the video provided below, which showcases the latest advancements in OneNote. Notably, the spotlight shines on the math practice tool at the 3:35 mark.

Other Updates:

Every tools has received some updates and most are not as significant as the ones we focused on above. Watch these videos to learn about others that I am not including for this blog post.

Outlook

Excel

Whiteboard

Let me know your thoughts and opinions on my thoughts and opinions in the comments below. Next post we are going to dive into a couple of cool tools that are really great and incredibly useful.