Microsoft recently released the Office August Preview, which brings a number of new features to Excel.
Those who want aesthetic text customization can also take advantage of new options in the Excel ribbon to play with rich text formatting. Cells can now also be sorted by color.
In terms of data manipulation and visualization, new operations can be run on Power Query groups, and integration between Excel pivot tables and Power BI datasets has been tidied up. Elements is charts can now be deleted in a simpler way with the Delete and Backspace keys, and the formula bar can be expanded to view multi-line formulas with better readability.
The same 14 text and array manipulation functions from the Web version above are supported on the Excel for Windows side and extended to the current channel. insiders in the Beta channel can also use the IMAGE feature to seamlessly insert images into cells, as well as the same Power BI enhancements mentioned above. Another feature is the option to track changes in the workbook, which is very useful in a collaborative environment. Currently, this is only available to Insiders in the CC Preview channel.
"Where the IMAGE feature allows users to insert images directly into cells. Previously, when inserting images into cells, presentations were not seamless because they would float to the top. In addition, users can adjust and rearrange cells to more easily perform tasks such as tracking inventory, creating employee dashboards, or building games and scaffolds. To access this feature, users need to join the preview plan and then type the following in the cell where the image is to be inserted. However, there are several known issues with this update. First, users will not be able to insert images from sites that require authentication. Images may also appear distorted when zooming in and out of images within a cell. Finally, if a device is changed while using this feature, it may result in irregular image rendering."
Some of the same changes have been made to other platforms, the highlights of which are as follows.
Excel for Mac
New Excel functions
IMAGE functions (Beta preview)
Display changes (CC preview)
Android
New Excel Functions
IMAGE Functions (Beta Preview)
iOS
New Excel Functions
IMAGE Functions (Beta Preview)
