Three New Teams Features To Look Forward To

The use of Microsoft Teams has just exploded in the last few years, and it now boasts 270 million people using it every month.

Of course, it was the right tool at the right time when we all rushed to working from home at the start of the pandemic.

But the growth of Teams has continued, even if some believe the growth has slowed down a little recently.

Teams is so important to some businesses, that the owners and managers wonder how they ever managed without it.

Teams gives us the ability to stay connected wherever we’re working and to collaborate on projects with no fuss.

Because it’s part of the Microsoft 365 package, it’s the logical solution to keep a team working together in the hybrid work age.

One of the things that makes Teams so special is Microsoft’s commitment to constantly making improvements and adding features. They’re not just making the core features better. They’re helping all of us be more productive and less distracted.

Over the past few months, we’ve seen new features such as a virtual whiteboard you can use to throw around ideas in a video meeting.

Also, new and improved chat features, such as pinning chats to the top. You can also filter messages more easily. And change your view to allow you to focus just on the task you’re working on.

There are always more new features in development to make the experience even better.

There are three new features being released soon that we’re excited about.

The first is due for release later this month. This feature feels like it should have been there from day one. When you rename a Teams channel, it will automatically change the name of corresponding SharePoint folder.

This will help to make everything a lot more organized and will save you time hunting for the right folder.

Then in June, a new Chat With Self feature will be released. This will allow you to send yourself notes, messages, files and images. How have we lived without this feature for so long?! We think this could be a real game changer.

And finally, an improvement to Teams calls you can make from your browser, rather than the Teams app. It should be the same experience with the same features in both.

Of course, there are many other updates being released throughout the rest of the year. With Teams, there’s always an exciting new update on the way.

If you need any help setting up Teams, so it’s customized to your business, get in touch.

Must-Try Windows 11 Customization Features

Windows 11, the newest operating system from Microsoft, is a breath of fresh air for PC users. Designed to provide a personalized experience, it offers many ways to change your PC’s interface, from how windows look to how apps can be accessed. Here are some Windows 11 customization features that will give you more control over your PC settings.

Change your theme

The easiest way to customize Windows 11 is by changing your theme, including your desktop background and lock screen image. Just right-click anywhere on your desktop, then click on Personalize. This will lead you to the Personalization menu, where you can preview and choose different backgrounds and themes. You can even create new themes by using images from your gallery. You can also see more themes in the Microsoft Store by clicking “Browse more”.

Use dark mode

If light or bright colors are not your thing, Windows 11 is here to the rescue. To change your desktop’s colors, right-click on your desktop, choose Personalize, and click Colors. Then, select Dark under “Choose your default Windows mode”. This changes the colors of your taskbar and Start menu. If you want to change the color of your apps from white to black, pick Dark under “Choose your default app mode”. To restore your default settings, follow the same procedure under “Choose your default app mode” but click Light.

Create virtual desktops

Having trouble separating work files from personal files? Try creating a virtual desktop. You can do this by clicking on the Task view icon on the taskbar. This will display all your open windows. Just drag any window to the “New desktop” space on the lower part of the screen to create another desktop. Repeat the process if you want to add more windows to the new desktop. To add more virtual desktops, hover over the Task view icon and click on the + sign. To remove a virtual desktop, hover over the Task view icon and click the X button on the desktop you want to delete.

Try snap layouts

Snapping is not a new feature, but Windows 11 makes it more efficient by letting you snap any app or window wherever you are on your PC. Access snap layouts by hovering over a window’s maximize button or pressing Win + Z. You can then see which layouts are available to you, and pick the one that best suits your needs.

Reorganize your Start Menu

You can also personalize how your apps are arranged on the Start menu. For one, you can rearrange applications by dragging them anywhere around the Start menu. Or, if you won’t be using a particular application, simply right-click the tile and select Unpin from Start. On the other hand, if you want even faster access to your most-used apps, right-click on an app and choose Pin to taskbar.

Disable all your notifications

Some people prefer to receive notifications, but some don’t. If you’re one of the latter and wish to never see notifications ever again, click on the gear icon on the taskbar to open Settings. Then, choose System > Notifications. From there, you can switch off whatever app notifications you don’t want popping up on your screen.

Personalize your Windows 11 PC however you like by using some or all of these options. If you want more ways to customize your device or if you need information on anything Windows 11-related, give us a call.

Slow Wi-Fi On Your Phone? Here are 5 Reasons Why!

f you’re like most people, you rely on your smartphone for a lot of things. You might use it to check your email, browse the internet, or make phone calls. So when your phone has a slow internet connection, it can be really frustrating. In this blog post, we will discuss five of the most common causes of slow internet on mobile phones and tips on how to fix these issues.

Router location

One simple yet overlooked reason, why your phone may be experiencing internet lag, is because of your Wi-Fi router’s location. Although Wi-Fi has a range of up to 230 feet, the signal gets weaker the farther you are from the router. Large objects like doors and walls situated in between your phone and the router can also weaken the transmission.

It’s recommended to place your router in a centralized location, preferably away from concrete and masonry walls or other big objects like a fireplace. As the router signal radiates from all sides, if it’s blocked by even just one large object, your Wi-Fi signal will weaken significantly and, consequently, impede your phone’s internet speed.

Wi-Fi noise

Electronic appliances typically emit wireless signals at a frequency similar to your router’s, which is 2.4 GHz. So if you live in an apartment complex or have a lot of electronic devices in your home, you may experience interference that can slow down your Wi-Fi. One way to fix this is to place your router in a central location away from other electronic devices.

You can also try changing the frequency or channel that your router is broadcasting on. To do this, you will need to log in to your router’s settings page, then look for a page or tab that says “wireless settings” or “channel.” From there, you can select a different frequency. For most routers, this will be 5 GHz. But before you do this, make sure that your phone supports 5 GHz, otherwise, it won’t be able to connect to the Wi-Fi.

Fluctuating network speed

Another reason for your phone’s slow internet connection could be fluctuating network speeds. To check whether this is the cause of slow internet speeds, ask these questions:

• How many devices are connected to the router?
• What are these devices using the internet for?

Increase your router’s internet bandwidth speed if there are many users and all of them are either streaming movies or downloading computer games or software updates. This will allow every phone connected to your network to enjoy faster internet speeds.

Poor VPN connection

Using a virtual private network (VPN) is a great way to improve your security and privacy when browsing the internet. But if your VPN connection is slow, it can also impact the speed of your internet connection. To fix this, try connecting to a different VPN server or switching to a different VPN protocol.

You can also try disabling your VPN. This will make your browsing experience faster, but it will also make it less secure. So only do this if you are connected to a safe network, such as your home or office Wi-Fi.

Full browser cache

Your mobile browser’s cache saves data from earlier searches in order to display faster results of similar searches in the future. Although your phone becomes more efficient for that particular search, it also makes your phone much slower when you do other things that require connecting to the internet.

You can clear your cache manually or use a cache cleaner app to get rid of useless data and optimize your phone’s internet speed. If you decide to download a cache cleaner app, make sure that it is trustworthy so you don’t accidentally download a malware-infected program.

There are many reasons for your phone’s lagging internet speed. If your business relies heavily on a speedy mobile internet connection and you’re unable to fix the problem, call our experts today. We’re always ready to help you.

MS Excel 2021 for Windows: Great new features and functions to leverage

Microsoft Excel makes it easy to create budgets, track inventory levels, and analyze sales. This software can handle huge amounts of information, making it an extremely useful tool for storing and analyzing data. No wonder Excel has become a staple in offices worldwide over the years. Its latest version, Excel 2021 for Windows, is packed with even more powerful features and functions that you can enjoy.

Features exclusive to Excel 2021 for Microsoft 365

The following new features are available for Excel for Microsoft 365, but not its long-term servicing channel (LTSC) version, which was formerly known as the “perpetual license” version.

• Co-authoring – lets you work simultaneously with other users on the same Excel workbook and see each other’s inputs in a matter of seconds
• Threaded comments – allows you to have better discussions with other users in an Excel workbook, thanks to the ability to reply to comments inline
• Visibility of active co-authors – lets you see the other users who are also working with you and where they are in the workbook

XLOOKUP function

Similar to the VLOOKUP, HLOOKUP, and INDEX+MATCH functions, XLOOKUP searches for an item in a range or table and returns the matching result. However, XLOOKUP is more powerful than other lookup functions since it requires only three basic parameters to perform the search:

• The value you are looking for
• The list that should contain the value
• The list where the result should come from

XLOOKUP can search anywhere in the data and find the result, not just on a specified column or row like with the VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP functions. Moreover, XLOOKUP finds the exact match by default, so you don’t have to indicate “True” or “False” in the formula.

LET function

The LET function allows you to assign names to calculation results. For example, you can apply names, such as “monthlySales” and “totalSales” to an associated value, which makes formulas easier to read. The LET function supports up to 126 name/value pairs. Take note that the names work only within the scope of the LET function.

To use the LET function, you need to provide at least three parameters:

• Name
• Associated value
• Calculation that uses the name and associated value pair/s

For example:

=LET(x,1,x+2) → x+2 → 1+2 → 3

6 New dynamic array functions

For the longest time, Excel allowed users to use just one formula per cell. However, this has changed with the recent introduction of dynamic arrays wherein any formula that returns an array of values automatically spills into neighboring cells.

To leverage dynamic arrays, Excel 2021 for Windows introduced six new functions:

• FILTER – filters data based on the predefined criteria
• SORT – sorts a cell range by a specified column
• SORTBY – sorts a cell range by another range or array
• UNIQUE – takes out unique values from a range of cells
• SEQUENCE – creates a list of sequential numbers
• RANDARRAY – creates an array of random numbers

XMATCH function

The more powerful successor to the MATCH function, XMATCH looks for a specified item in an array or range of cells and then returns the item’s relative position in vertical or horizontal ranges. It can also return a value in an array.

The XMATCH function assumes that you want an exact match, so it requires only two parameters (i.e., lookup value and lookup array) to work. However, you can add an optional third parameter to change the default matching type to “next smaller,” “next larger,” or “wildcard match.”

XMATCH has another optional parameter that allows you to indicate whether to search from the top or bottom of the lookup list, or whether to conduct a binary search on ascending or descending values.

These are just some great new features you can leverage in Excel 2021 for Windows. For more Microsoft Office productivity tips, consult our IT experts today.

Some Of Your Staff REALLY Want To Work From Home Permanently. Here’s How You Can Make It Happen

Remote working has really come of age in the last two years.

Many people have loved it, while others realized they preferred an office environment.

But would you hazard a guess at how many people would like to make remote working a permanent option?

According to a new report, a whopping 96% of employees want to solely work from home, even when the pandemic is over.

They’d be willing to take a pay cut to make that happen.

But wait – it gets even more shocking.

Of these people, a third said they’d be willing to sacrifice HALF of their monthly wage to do so.

Not only that, but they’d give up their health benefits and even paid time off.

Are you as shocked at those figures as we are?

In terms of work/life balance, some people have never had it better. And now that things are slowly recovering, they’re not going to give it up without a fight.

Many of your people might not want to go back to the stress, the distraction, the commuting…

And it’s likely some of them don’t want to leave their beloved pets on their own!

As an employer, giving the option to make remote or hybrid work permanent seems like an ideal solution. You’ve already seen that your people can be trusted to do a great job wherever they work. You may even have seen an increase in motivation and productivity.

Your business could even cut down on some of its fixed costs – office space is a big saving.

Of course, there’s more to consider than how much you trust your team to continue doing a great job. Or how much you could be saving on office space.

If you haven’t already done so, you’ll need to make sure that everyone’s home working set-ups are suitable.

If you’ve only had temporary work-from-home measures in place for the last 2 years, it’s time to make them official.

The first priority is to look at data security.

How do your people access your network? Do they have the right security measures installed on their devices? Are their home networks protected from unauthorized access? Can you stop their children from using company devices?

But it’s not just security that you need to consider.

Look at the collaboration tools you’re using. If your team is unlikely to be in the same place at the same time, should you invest in a better solution to make sure communication doesn’t suffer?

As well as reporting on salary sacrifices, the report also found that nearly 2 in 5 people feel ignored in video meetings.

Upgrading their equipment and devices might be the answer. Professional quality webcams and microphones can help by making sure video quality is high and that voices are heard.

Don’t forget that older laptops or desktops will need to be upgraded every few years to make sure they’re performing well and costing you less to maintain.

If you’d like any help making sure your home working setups are right for permanent remote workers, just give Net Activity a call.