The newest Microsoft 365 application is getting a tasty upgrade
Build your own Microsoft Loop components
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Microsofthas announced a significant upgrade forLoop, a real-timecollaboration tooladded to the firm’sproductivitysuite late last year.
At its annual Build event, Microsoft revealed it will soon preview a system for building custom Loop components based on Adaptive Cards, a framework used by developers to create portable chunks of information.
These custom components will be recommended to end users based on contextual factors, and can be shared across apps likeMicrosoft TeamsandOutlook.
Microsoft Loop
Announced at Ignite in November 2021, Microsoft Loop is made up of three core elements: components, pages and workspaces.
Loop components are best described as live snippets of data - in the form of lists, tables, notes etc. - that move freely acrossMicrosoft 365services. If a team member makes a change to a Loop component in Microsoft Teams, say, that change will be reflected in all other apps in which it is present.
The role of Loop pages, meanwhile, is to act as a flexible canvas that houses various components, files, links and data, while workspaces can be used to gather together all materials relevant to a specific project.
New Microsoft 365 feature could save you from an email disaster>Microsoft Teams update will add a whole new dimension to your presentations>Microsoft is making a big change to some of its developer tools
“For years, the established patterns of work were clear. Communication took place viaemailand content creation was mostly documents,spreadsheetsandpresentations,” wrote Microsoft, when Loop was first announced.
Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
“In the last 18 months, the world has changed, and we have adapted to a new working environment where people had to complement traditional communication tools and in-person collaboration with alternative solutions. But we need to go further. That is why we are reimagining Office, adding new apps to respond to new opportunities, and making Office a universal, interactive canvas.”
With the upcoming update, the door will be opened to a variety of new Loop components, beyond the limited number developed by Microsoft. It will also allow companies to develop components that cater to highly specific use cases unlikely to be covered by more generic tools.
The new system will land in private preview next month, with a full rollout presumably soon to follow.
Joel Khalili is the News and Features Editor at TechRadar Pro, covering cybersecurity, data privacy, cloud, AI, blockchain, internet infrastructure, 5G, data storage and computing. He’s responsible for curating our news content, as well as commissioning and producing features on the technologies that are transforming the way the world does business.
7 myths about email security everyone should stop believing
Best Usenet client of 2024
Belkin’s Travel Bag for Vision Pro has pockets and is way cheaper than Apple’s own case
