Microsoft has released a new update for the Windows version of its Office productivity suite as part of the Office Insider program. Available to Fast Ring users, the Office Update is rolling out as version 1904 and has build number 11514.20004.
The most notable change in this release is the addition of new icons for built-in productivity apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. The new icons were announced several months ago, and now Microsoft is preparing to make them available to all users worldwide.
What's important to know is that this update also comes with a known issue that knocks icons, with Microsoft saying that pinned icons on the taskbar may not be updated and still appear with the old look. The giant also emphasizes that it hasn't updated all Office icons yet.
“Only product icons have been updated. Core file type icons (e.g. icons for .docx, xlsx, .pptx files) will be updated soon and released when available,” the company says.
Exclusive changes in Word
Microsoft Word also comes with an exclusive enhancement, as Microsoft is adding support for basic collaborative authoring in Word documents that contain macros.
“Tired of being locked out of documents containing macros? The solution is here! You can now simultaneously view and edit .docm files stored in OneDrive,” the feature description states.
At the same time, Microsoft Word comes with three different known bugs and users should check them before installing the update.
First, Microsoft explains that co-authoring only supports the latest builds where the feature is available, then AutoSave and real-time typing aren't working at this time. And finally, users can only co-author the main document with a collaborator, the company says.
All of these improvements are expected to be available to Office users in the coming weeks when the testing phase is complete.
