3 new Sway capabilities for Office 365 subscribers

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3 new Sway capabilities for Office 365 subscribers

In the 10 months since Sway’s general availability, we’ve seen great interest in our digital storytelling app, with millions of Sways created to date! We’ve seen music companies, design firms and small businesses use Sway for company presentations, client pitches and employee newsletters. We’ve watched teachers use Sway to advance student learning in dynamic and engaging ways in their classrooms. And Sway has become an easy and enjoyable way to share travel, dining and personal experiences with others.
We make sure to listen to the Sway community and continually add relevant and enjoyable experiences for you. As we work toward this goal, we are excited to release three new features for Office 365 consumer, work and education subscribers based on feedback we’ve heard from you. These features are now available in Sway on the web, and they will roll out to the Sway app for Windows 10 in the coming months.
Add passwords to Sways
Previously, Office 365 work and education customers have been able to limit sharing of Sways at the organizational level, so that only people in your company or school can view your creations. Starting today, all Office 365 subscribers can add an extra layer of privacy by setting passwords for your Sways. This ensures that only people with the password can view your work presentations, school reports or travel journals.

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Enjoy enhanced content limits
We received numerous requests to be able to put more text, photos and other content in your Sways. And our own data shows us that our Office 365 subscribers typically create longer and more robust Sways with higher amounts of videos, tweets and other embedded content. So we’ve worked to increase the content limits for Office 365 subscribers so you can create longer-form works with more multimedia to convey a richer story in the boardroom, the classroom or your home.
Remove the informational footer in Sway
Finally, we’re enabling all Office 365 subscribers to remove the informational footer at the end of your Sway to help you achieve a more polished look. You can now tap the Share icon and uncheck the Show Sway branding in this Sway checkbox to create a more professional look for your creations.

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The Sway team is excited to provide ongoing value to our Office 365 subscribers and will continue adding new, exclusive Sway features over time. To learn more about monthly updates released across the Office apps for Office 365 subscribers, check out the New to Office 365 in June blog post.

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New to Office 365 in June

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New to Office 365 in June: Microsoft Planner general availability, inking on Android devices, security features for Office 365 and more

By Kirk Koenigsbauer as written on blogs.office.com
June has been another busy month of updates across our Office apps on Windows, Mac, iOS and Android. We reached new milestones for Microsoft Planner and GigJam. We are also introducing Office 365 Advanced Security Management, new datacenter regions and the next cumulative feature update to Office 2016.
Office inking works on more devices and apps
In January, we added new inking capabilities to Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote on Windows desktops and iPad. This was another step forward in making writing and drawing with your finger, pen or stylus more intuitive and powerful as a primary input in Office apps. This month we expanded inking on Android devices beyond OneNote to Word, Excel and PowerPoint for Office Insiders. Inking is also now available in Word, Excel and PowerPoint on Windows Phones and is coming to iPhone next month.
Inking is now available in Office on Android tablets and phones.

Inking is now available in Office on Android tablets and phones.

We’re expanding Shape Recognition to Excel on Windows PCs and Excel for iPad, and it will arrive in Excel for iPhone with next month’s inking release. Shape Recognition transforms rough hand-drawn shapes to perfect looking shapes, which in Excel can be used to easily build attractive dashboards, create custom button links and more. Shape Recognition in PowerPoint will expand beyond PCs and iPad to also be available on iPhone next month. Shape Recognition for Word is coming soon.

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For the desktop, we brought the Draw tab and instant inking to Visio for subscribers on Windows PCs. You can now easily annotate and draw your feedback on complex diagrams and process flows. We’re also addressing a top OneNote for Mac user request with a phased rollout of trackpad-based inking, plus support for third-party stylus- and pen-enabled drawing tablets and displays.

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New Sway capabilities for Office 365 subscribers
Sway is a digital storytelling app that makes it easy and enjoyable to create and share visually striking presentations, newsletters, personal blogs and more. Sway became generally available last August, and since then we’ve been excited to see the creativity expressed in the millions of Sways made by professionals, students, personal bloggers and more. Now, beyond the free version of Sway, Office 365 consumer, work and education subscribers can create more robust, professional Sways and control sharing more granularly with these three new features:
Password-protect your Sways—Control who can view your Sways by adding password protection. On top of organizational-level sharing for Office 365 work and school users, anyone with an Office 365 account can add password protection for extra security and peace of mind.
Higher content limits—Create longer, more robust Sways containing more images, videos, graphics and more. This is great for longer-form content such as company trainings, student projects and travel reports.
Remove end-of-Sway footer—To customize the appearance of your content even more, you can now remove the informational footer at the end of your Sways.
Office 365 subscribers can now create more robust Sways and add password protection.

Office 365 subscribers can now create more robust Sways and add password protection.

Stay on top of your travel and deliveries with Outlook
We’re adding new experiences in Outlook to help you stay on top of your travel plans and package deliveries. Outlook already automatically adds events from your email to your calendar. Soon you’ll see simplified summary cards for those events in your inbox and calendar, highlighting the most important details. You’ll be able to take quick action to check in for flights, change hotel reservations and track packages. And you’ll get dependable and actionable reminders to stay on top of flight check-ins. These experiences have started rolling out to Outlook for Mac and Outlook on the web. They will be coming soon to Windows, iOS and Android, as well as the Windows 10 Mail and Calendar apps. Learn more about these new travel and delivery experiences.
Microsoft Planner is generally available
Microsoft Planner has started rolling out to all eligible Office 365 commercial customers worldwide. Planner introduces a new and improved way for businesses, schools and organizations to structure teamwork and get more done. Teams can create new plans; organize, assign and collaborate on tasks; set due dates; update statuses and share files—all while visual dashboards and email notifications help with progress tracking. Read more about Planner, including customer stories. Get started with Planner in a few easy steps.

GigJam Preview is now open to all
Earlier this month, we announced the broad availability of the GigJam Preview to everyone on Windows, Mac, iPhone and iPad. GigJam is for people with a co-working mindset. It empowers you to spontaneously and ephemerally involve others in your work. Summon all the live information you need from across apps, then divvy it up by circling what you want to share and crossing out what you don’t. Control what others—inside or outside your organization—can see or even co-work on with you in real-time. Visit aka.ms/gigjam and the App Store to get started, and share feedback in UserVoice. We’ll continue to update GigJam based on your input. We’re targeting general availability as part of Office 365 for later this year.

New Deferred Channel build, Office 365 regions and security capabilities for commercial customers
This month we have a number of updates for our commercial subscribers that provide more flexibility, manageability and control for their organizations:
New Deferred Channel buildThe second Office 365 Deferred Channel build is now available. This build effectively combines the February Office 2016 release with the last four months of security updates. The Deferred Channel option reduces the frequency of feature changes to the Windows desktop apps and provides IT with extra time to validate add-ins, macros, custom line-of-business applications, etc. Learn more about what’s included in this month’s release in the Office 365 Client Release Notes.
Office 365 datacenters in Canada and South KoreaEmbrace a cloud-first world on your terms. A new Office 365 datacenter region is now generally available in Canada, offering in-country data residency, failover and disaster recovery for core data at rest to customers in Canada. We will also expand the Microsoft Cloud to include a datacenter region in South Korea. These new datacenter regions join a growing list that includes Japan, Australia and India, as well as recent announcements of expansions in the UK and Germany.
Office 365 Advanced Security ManagementEarlier this month, we introduced Advanced Security Management, a new set of capabilities powered by Microsoft Cloud App Security, to provide enhanced visibility and control over your Office 365 environment. Monitor security incidents and identify high-risk and abnormal usage with threat detection. Tailor Office 365 with granular controls and security policies. Gain visibility into Office 365 and other productivity cloud service usage with an app discovery dashboard.
Watch this episode of “From Inside the Cloud” for more details:

Learn more about what’s new for Office 365 subscribers this month at: Office 2016 | Office for Mac | Office Mobile for Windows | Office for iPhone and iPad | Office on Android. If you’re an Office 365 Home or Personal customer, be sure to sign up for Office Insider to be the first to use the latest in Office productivity. Commercial customers on both Current Channel and Deferred Channel can also get early access to a fully supported build through First Release. Thanks for your continued feedback and support!

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3 ways Power BI can help your sales team succeed

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3 ways Power BI can help your sales team succeed

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With an ever-evolving market and a massive amount of data available, your sales team’s job of knowing their customer base isn’t easy. A multitude of information streams in every day. Sorting through data sets, spreadsheets and a dozen apps can slow them down—hindering the growth and success of your company. In fact, 90 percent of sales reps associate missed opportunities with the inability to leverage all available information.
Instead of solely focusing on dissecting the customer data in front of them, sales reps should be looking to data visualization to pull out insights not apparent at first glance. Microsoft Power BI in Office 365 can help by enabling your sales reps to collect, unify and visualize all their data in one place. It’s cloud-based and compatible with 59 different applications, which simplifies the process.
Here are three ways data visualization can transform your sales process:
1. Instant reports—Companies are always trying to find new ways to increase productivity. For a sales team, that can mean eliminating difficult and time-consuming manual reports and replacing them with a technology partner that can sort through data from myriad sources and produce actionable insights. Pipeline reports and sales trends can be generated in hours, minutes and sometimes seconds—instead of days—leaving you plenty of extra time to review and develop thoughtful strategies.
2. Data share across departments—For your sales team to succeed, your company’s other departments also need analytical success. Because Power BI supports nearly 60 applications, different departments can import the data they’ve collected to share with each other and provide deeper insight. When a sales team can see where marketing efforts have succeeded, for example, they can more effectively realign their strategies.
3. Quota management—In an ever-changing market, setting realistic quotas proves challenging, especially when your sales success depends on variables like region, month and customer segment. Power BI eliminates the difficulty by gathering past and present data—in one place—so you can set attainable goals for the future.
Your sales team already knows how to close a deal. Help them get there faster with the insights gained through data visualization.

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Stay on top of your travel and deliveries with Outlook

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Stay on top of your travel and deliveries with Outlook

Places to go, people to see. Pack your bags.
Travel can be stressful, even when you’re planning to go somewhere for fun. Staying on top of travel plans and package deliveries can become time-consuming and a hassle.
First, Outlook began automatically adding events from your email to your calendar. Now, we have more new experiences to help you stay on top of your travel plans and package deliveries, including the ability to:
•Verify your travel reservations and package delivery details with ease using simplified summary cards in your inbox and calendar.
•Check in for flights, change hotel and rental car reservations or track packages at the touch of a button.
•Stay on top of your flights with reliable reminders.
These features are rolling out to Outlook for Mac and Outlook on the web today and will soon be coming to Windows, iOS and Android, as well as the Windows 10 Mail and Calendar apps.

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Smarter email, simpler reservations
Travel itinerary emails are complicated to read because they contain so much more than just your reservation. It especially gets complicated when the itinerary includes multiple flights, hotel reservations and rental car confirmations. Outlook now displays the most important information from travel itineraries and puts them in an easily readable summary on top of your email

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Quick actions at your fingertips (or a click of your mouse)
In addition to helping you see your travel plans at a glance, the summary cards provide you with quick actions for the key things you need to do. No more hunting for the check-in link in a long confirmation email or trying to find where to change your hotel reservation. It’s now just a tap or click away in the summary card above the email to go directly to the provider’s specific web page for the action.
All your travel info, automatically added to your calendar
In addition to smarter email experiences, Outlook automatically adds travel events to your calendar with the same summary cards for each step of your trip detected in the reservations. The events include everything you need to know, such as date, time, locations, confirmation number and a few other key pieces of info you might need at your fingertips. You can go to the original booking email with a single click from the calendar event in case you need to look up more details.
Travel updates and cancellations happen—for good or not so good reasons. Either way, Outlook automatically keeps the events on your calendar updated with new information from your travel provider.

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Helpful check-in reminders to keep you on time
Timing is everything and it can mean the difference between getting the seat you want or settling for one you really don’t want. Not all airlines are great at notifying and reminding you when it’s time to check in for your flight. Outlook will always send you a reminder email exactly 24 hours in advance with a link to the airline’s check-in experience. What’s more, you can set an Uber ride reminder so you always get to airport on time.
And three hours before your flight takes off, we’ll remind you again, so you can plan to be at the airport on time.
And never miss package deliveries!
We know travel is not the only thing you need to keep track of, so we are also adding package tracking experiences. When you receive a shipping confirmation email, we’ll summarize the most important info in a card above the email and automatically add an event to your calendar (for non-commercial accounts) to provide quick actions.

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Introducing free Skype Meetings

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Introducing free Skype Meetings

We’re pleased to introduce free Skype Meetings—a new online meetings tool that provides small businesses with real-time audio and HD video conferencing. Skype Meetings includes collaboration features like the ability to share screens and content during meetings.
Watch this video to see Skype Meetings in action:

With Skype Meetings, you can quickly set up meetings and share a personalized URL that participants click to join the meeting. During the meeting, participants can IM, share their screen or PowerPoint presentation or use the laser pointer and whiteboard features to make it more engaging and productive. The meeting organizer also gets professional meeting controls such as the ability to mute the audience in order to be heard.

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Anyone in the U.S. with a business email address and whose organization doesn’t already have Office 365 can sign up for free Skype Meetings at www.skype.com/meetings. Once you sign up, you can set up meetings for up to 10 people for the first 60 days and up to 3 people thereafter. All you need is a device with an Internet browser, a microphone, speaker and camera, which are included on many devices.
If you have an Office 365 business subscription that includes Skype for Business, then you already have richer online meetings capabilities, such as the ability to conduct large group meetings for up to 250 people and the ability to IM anyone in your organization at any time—not just during meetings. In addition, Skype for Business is integrated with other Office 365 apps to enable you to do things like schedule a Skype meeting from your Outlook calendar, see your colleagues’ presence, and initiate an IM or start an audio or video conversation within apps like Outlook, Word and PowerPoint.
Start a free meeting today at go.skype.com/meetings

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For More Info on Microsoft and other Cloud Solutions, Contact Us Today at 800-208-4037

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View the version history of an item or file in a list or library

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View the version history of an item or file in a list or library

If a list or library on your site tracks versions, you can view version history for items or files, providing you have Read permission to the list or library. The version history contains information about when the item or file was changed, who changed it, and information about what was changed. In libraries, the version history might also contain comments written by the people who made changes.
You can view version history in either of two ways:
1. In the list or library on your site
2. In the Microsoft Office Backstage view of a Microsoft Office 2010 document
View version history within the library or list
You can view the version history of any item or file in any list or library on your site to which you have Read permission. Some document libraries are set up so that anyone can view all versions, whether major or minor, and other libraries limit viewership of minor versions to people who have specific permissions. Major versions are always in whole numbers, such as 1.0, 2.0, and so on. Minor versions are denoted by decimals following a major version number, such as 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 and so on.
Note: Minor versions are available only in libraries, not in lists...
In general, major versions are those that have reached a certain milestone, such as the end of a chapter, or a draft that is ready for review. Minor versions are usually interim updates to a file while it is being developed. The author may not want the file to be seen by other people until it reaches a certain state of readiness.
1.Navigate to the list or library that contains the item or file you want to explore.
2.Hover over the item or file for which you want to view the history, click the arrow that appears, and select Version History from the drop-down list.

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The Version History dialog box opens.
Note: If you do not see the Version History command, your list or library may not be tracking versions. For more information, see the administrator or owner of your site.
1. The most recent minor version. 2. A comment left by the last person who checked in the file. 3. The first version of the file. The first version is always numbered 1.0.

1. The most recent minor version.
2. A comment left by the last person who checked in the file.
3. The first version of the file. The first version is always numbered 1.0.

1.To view a particular version of a file, look at the time and date listings in the Modified column of the Version History dialog box and click the one that interests you. The item or file opens up in a separate window where you can view it.
2.Close the item or file when you have finished viewing it.
3.To return to your list or library, close the Version History dialog box.
View version history from within a Microsoft Office document
If you are working with a Microsoft Office 2010 document, such as a Word, Excel, or PowerPoint file, you can view version history from the Backstage view rather than returning to the list or library to view the history.
The following example is from the Backstage view of a Microsoft PowerPoint file. It shows both a major and a minor version.

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The next example is from a Microsoft Word file. Only major versions appear in this version history. This could mean that only major versions are enabled in the document library, or it could mean that you only have permission to view major versions, not minor ones.
 1. The current version of the file 2. A version that has a comment from the person who checked in this version. Hover over the icon that is next to the author’s name to view the comment.


1. The current version of the file
2. A version that has a comment from the person who checked in this version. Hover over the icon that is next to the author’s name to view the comment.

1.Navigate to the document library on your site that contains the file you want to open.
2.Hover over the file name until you see the drop-down arrow and then click Edit in . In the above example, you would select Edit in Microsoft Word.
Note: If your library requires check-out of files, or if you prefer to check out the file, you must check it out before you open it.
3.In the application, select the File tab to expose the Backstage view. The version history appears next to the Manage Versions button, as shown in the two examples above.
4.From the list, select the version you want to view. That version will open up so you can view it

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You can simply view the file or, while it is open, you can choose to make it your current version by clicking Restore in the yellow banner at the top of the file, or you can compare the selected version to the current version by clicking Compare.

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5.Close the selected version when you are finished viewing it. A message box will ask if you want to save the file or not. You can either save it to your local drive or click Don’t Save.
6.To continue working in the file you originally opened, select one of the other tabs at the top of your document, such as Home.

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The 5 insider secrets to mobile productivity in 2016

The 5 insider secrets to mobile productivity in 2016

Creating a mobile workforce with a high level of supportive technology is one of the best things an organization can do to engage its employees. Specifically, a recent study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit showed that companies with high rates of mobile enablement experienced a 16 percent increase in productivity as compared to those with low rates.

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That’s because busy professionals are constantly on the go—whether traveling to yet another meeting or juggling work and home lives. But just because employees aren’t in the office tied to their computers doesn’t mean they can’t use their time wisely. It’s not uncommon to have lots of “dead time”—waiting in line for coffee, commuting on the subway, waiting for 15 minutes in the school pick-up line—that could be used differently, if only they had the tools to do so.
But if employees have a smartphone or tablet, they already possess the most important tool in their business tool belt. In fact, according to Wrike’s 2016 Mobile Productivity Report that surveyed 850 professionals, 43 percent said their mobile device was “very critical” for work. And 44 percent of respondents use their device for work-related business more than 20 times each day.
Most of us make great use of our phones and tablets to respond to business-related emails, texts and calls when we’re on the go. But there’s so much more you can do with your mobile device—even if your organization doesn’t provide top-notch mobile technology.
Increase your mobile productivity in 2016 by following these five insider tips:
1. Take advantage of recent app updates that allow for a more immersive mobile experience. App developers are constantly changing their creations, fixing bugs, adding new features and improving functionality and security. Just because an app hasn’t met all of your mobile workforce needs before doesn’t mean it won’t in the future. Keep your apps updated so you’ll always have access to the latest bells and whistles—and greater work-from-home productivity.
2. Discover how to multitask on mobile devices. When you’re on a computer, it’s easy to switch between tasks and run several applications at once. For example, you can watch a video and check the weather without the video stopping. It’s also possible to peruse your favorite social media site, read an email that just came in and return to your social media site without skipping a beat. For a long time, that wasn’t possible on mobile devices—but now, some offer limited multitasking. Explore options like app switching, split screen viewing and more on your mobile device.
3. Discover how to work offline on mobile apps. As we all know, internet connectivity isn’t available everywhere we go. And when you’re working on business-critical applications, losing your connectivity isn’t an option—or is it? There are actually several apps that will work offline. Some allow for short network loss or intermittent connectivity and use a “store-n-forward” method to store user data temporarily while connectivity is down. Others are designed to be used during an extended network loss—days, in some cases. Explore your options and increase your mobile productivity enormously.
4. Expand your phone storage in creative ways to carry more data for offline work. Your mobile productivity is limited by how much storage your device can handle. But there are plenty of simple ways to accomplish this. The most obvious is to purchase a micro-SD card or an adapter to add an SD card in case your device doesn’t take one. In addition, you can clear your app cache and delete apps you no longer use, since each one takes up storage space on your device. But one of the best ways to gain more storage is to use the cloud. A cloud storage app will automatically back up your mobile device’s data (including files, photos and more), giving you the freedom to free up additional storage space on your device.
5. Use devices like small Bluetooth keyboards or a mouse with your mobile phones. Sometimes it’s the simplest solutions that can impact our mobile productivity the most. Make your mobile device as convenient to use as your computer and you’ll see an instant shift toward increased work-from-home productivity.
Mobile devices have become part of our very core. And with productivity apps continuing on an upward swing, with 125 percent sessions growth in 2015, more and more people are using their mobile devices as a primary way to access email, apps like the Microsoft productivity suite and more. With that trend on the rise, businesses and developers are constantly looking for ways to make our experiences more seamless—inspiring us to make smartphones the smart way to complete tasks easily while on the go.

New Employee Announcement: Shawn Weebe, Project Manager

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Shawn joined the Managed Solution team as a Project Manager on May 31, 2016. He joins us with 20 years of technology experience, including managing projects and people in the IT arena. Shawn earned his MCSE over three versions and also had the opportunity to write questions on the A+ certification exam. He also has his PMP.
An Orange County native, Shawn has now been living in San Diego for the past 15 years. He is married with three daughters, Savannah, Isabella and Ava, along with their dog named Kaiser, two turtles and two guinea pigs. In his free time, Shawn has loved to play soccer for over 30 years. He is also the commissioner of a 15 year old fantasy football league and also has success playing on FanDuel.
We’re excited to have Shawn on board, please join us in welcoming him to the Managed Solution team!
At Managed Solution, we strive to be the best technology based company by investing in our top assets; our people – CAREERS