Google announced the Docs “universal @ menu” feature, as a way to add multiple things, from tables and images to formatting, by simply typing “@”.
See also: Google sent 50,000 hack warnings to users this year
This feature is an extension of existing “smart chips” integrations. Google earlier this year launched smart chips, a new @ tag tool for linking information from other Workspaceinto a file. It’s Google’s attempt to change the word processing experience.
Smart Chips started out with a focus on users, but have expanded to include smart chips for files and events. They give Docs users the ability to add information from other Workspace apps, including Gmail/Workspace email address, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Calendar. Typing “@” brings up a list of suggested people, files, and meetings that you can embed in a document.
See also: Google: Blocks ads that promote apps to track your partner
“We’ve added a global insert menu to easily add things like tables and images, in addition to smart chips, directly into Google Docs. Just type “@” and you’ll see a list of suggested files, people, meetings, and different content items and formats to insert into your work. You can also search across all available items,” Google says in a Workspace updates blogpost.
Google's demo shows how typing @ now displays a list of categories that can be inserted into a document, including people, templates, files by name, and various list formats.
See also: How to enable dark mode in Google Search
It's the latest addition to Google Workspace's collaboration-level "Smart Canvas" for Docs, which was released in May. The global @ menu is rolling out to Google Workspace as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers.
