Thankfully, this is definitely good news for many Google Drive users, as the latest update to Drive adds the feature, which instantly makes the app a far more useful productivity tool for those who like to keep their documents online and easily accessible amongst multiple devices. With the update, users can tweak fonts, sort data, resize columns, and see changes in real-time – just like with the Drive web app.
You can now create a new spreadsheet or edit an existing one, as you would be able to from the desktop. Google also says that its Drive mobile app now supports better text formatting when copying and pasting on documents.
Elaborating on the latest update, the company executive said, “You can switch fonts, resize columns, sort data, and more,” says software engineer Shrikant Shanbhag. “And just like on your computer, you will be able to see other people’s edits in real time as they are made.”
Thus, whether you have an iPhone, iPad, Android tablet, or other identical mobile device, with the Google Drive app, you can perform a variety of spreadsheet activities that desktop users have enjoyed for quite a while.
Additional changes to the iOS app (version 1.2) include:
- Manage upload progress and see recent uploads in new Uploads section
- Rich text copy-paste within a document
- Improved speed and stability
- Improved contact search for sharing
“Beyond spreadsheets, you may notice a few other modifications to the Drive app, including better text formatting when you paste from one Google document to another,” says Shanbhag. “And from your Android device, you can edit text within tables in documents and add a shortcut on the home-screen of your device to any specific file in Drive.”
Apart from edits and changes that can be viewed live as they are enforced, something highly useful for cooperation purposes. Also, pasting into Google Docs preserves the original formatting, and entering “edit mode” in the Docs editor is as simple as a single tap. Moreover, the new spreadsheets functionality, the Google Drive app along with few other enhancements, will find text formatting to be improved when copying and pasting into a Google document.
In another nifty addition, those relying on Android device can also now edit the text within a table in a documents and as for those who use the service regularly, shortcuts to Google Drive folders and individual files can be added to your device’s homescreen.
While the concept is pretty cool in theory, Google’s implementation of it is a bit backwards. Rather than create a shortcut from inside the Android app, Drive makes you do it from Android’s “Widgets” panel, which does not make much sense.
Google has been steadily busy on a Drive update rampage as of late, having announced yesterday some significant integration between the cloud storage service and Gmail. Also, in October, the company added support for sharing Drive files on Google+.
You can pick up the app from the App Store and Google Play.