HomeWinBuzzer NewsMicrosoft Unifies Office Code Base across WIndows, Mac, Android and iOS

Microsoft Unifies Office Code Base across WIndows, Mac, Android and iOS

With the latest update to Office 2016 for Mac, Microsoft has unified its code base, meaning live collaboration, auto-saving, and faster cross-platform feature updates.

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has been trying to align the Office code base for decades, and it seems it's finally here. With the release of for Mac 16.9.0, the company has enabled unification across Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS.

The announcement comes from Erik Schwiebert, principal software engineer in the Apple productivity experience group.

“The shared code is all C++. Each platform has native code interfacing with the OS (ie, Objective C for Mac and iOS, Java for Android, C/C++ for Windows, etc),” he explained on Twitter.

Office 2016 for Mac 16.9.0 Changelog

The insider update brings significant new features, including the ability to edit with others in real time, automatic savings, and more. Here's the full changelog:

  • Word:
    • Edit with others in real time.
    • Autosave. 
    • Quickly access your sites and groups.
  • Excel:
    • Collaborative editing.
    • We save for you!
    • More charts:
    • More functions:
    • Quickly access your sites and groups.
    • Better support for PivotTable charts.
    • Multi-threaded calculation.
  • Powerpoint:
    • Edit with others in real time.
    • We save for you!
    • See what's changed.
    • A quick start to your research – Starting from scratch is hard. QuickStarter automatically creates an outline for your topic of choice with suggested talking points and designs that make your presentation pop.
    • Trim media.
    • Quickly access your sites and groups.
    • Laser pointer in Slide Show.
  • Outlook:
    • Archive or delete with just one swipe – Save time organizing your Inbox by swiping left with two fingers across the touchpad to archive an email or swiping right to delete it.
    • Support for Google Calendar and Contacts.

It's the most significant update to Office 2016 for Mac in some time, and the Office code base unification should enable easier additions in the future. Though its likely features won't match exactly, Microsoft should be able to push out features across multiple platforms more quickly.

You can find a full explanation of the changes here.

SourceMicrosoft
Ryan Maskell
Ryan Maskellhttps://ryanmaskell.co.uk
Ryan has had a passion for gaming and technology since early childhood. Fusing the skills from his Creative Writing and Publishing degree with profound technical knowledge, he enjoys covering news about Microsoft. As an avid writer, he is also working on his debut novel.

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