Pointers at Glance
- Microsoft Teams users can now send short video clip messages when text messages and emojis don’t cut the conversation.
- This feature can be accessed by clicking on a small video camera icon in the Teams text chat box next to the “Send” button.
Microsoft introduced another option for communicating with colleagues on Microsoft Teams. It is a feature to send short video clips using the chat function for the times when text messages and emojis don’t cut the conversation.
During its Inspire partner event, Microsoft unveiled several updates through its collaboration platform, including the addition of “stories” posts with the new Teams-based Viva Engage enterprise social network. The video clip feature is one of them.
Users can access the video clip messages feature by clicking on a small video camera icon in the Microsoft Teams text chat box next to the “Send” button. From there, a pop-up screen allows a user to record a short clip and edit the length before posting it into the Teams chat. It provides an alternative to typing out a message to save time or convey meaning more effectively, similar to a feature launched by rival chat app Slack last year.
Colleagues can then view the clip adding an asynchronous element to the instant messaging platform, whenever they want.
Following the announcement of PowerPoint Live last year and the Live Share SDK for Microsoft Teams two months ago, it also unveiled Excel Live. It brings the app into the Microsoft Teams meeting screen for co-editing, with participants able to load a spreadsheet and make changes to the document in real time without shifting between apps or opening Excel separately.
Alternatively, consider a user who already has a spreadsheet open during a meeting and wants to bring it into Microsoft Teams for colleagues to work on that spreadsheet. The user can click the “share” menu and select the “Work Together in Teams” option.
Excel Live will be out for public preview at the end of August.
Now, a couple of previously announced features are also generally available. They are:
- Teams Connect Shared Channels, which enables communication with users of external Teams and collaborative annotation.
- The other one brings tools from the Whiteboard app of Microsoft into Teams screen-sharing to allow participants to interact with content during a meeting.
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