planning controversial switch from native Outlook for Mac app to web version
<https://9to5mac.com/author/michaelpotuck/> Michael Potuck
As Microsoft looks toward the future, One Outlook is the vision for how
its mail and calendar app will evolve. Notably, the biggest part of that
includes a controversial shift from dedicated Mac and Windows apps to a
web-based app thats platform agnostic.
Outlook for Mac pivoting to web app
Reported by
<https://www.windowscentral.com/project-monarch-outlook-web-universal-email-
client-microsoft> Windows Central, the move by Microsoft is to simplify
Outlook so its just one product that works across all devices. The effort
is codenamed Project Monarch and will offer the same UI and design no
matter if youre accessing it via Mac, Windows, or the web.
The report from Windows Central highlights that the new web-based Outlook
will have a much smaller footprint and be accessible to all users whether
theyre free Outlook consumers or commercial business customers.
Even though it will be a universal web app, it looks like Microsoft is
planning to include native integrations for Mac and Windows like sharing,
offline storage, and notifications.
I understand that its one of Microsofts goals to make the new Monarch
client feel as native to the OS as possible while remaining universal across
platforms by basing the app on the Outlook website.
That goal makes sense in light of Microsoft just launching the new Outlook
for Mac that was
<https://9to5mac.com/2020/09/22/all-new-outlook-for-mac-big-sur-design/>
redesigned for macOS Big Sur back in October and then
<https://9to5mac.com/2020/12/15/microsoft-office-apple-silicon-icloud/>
updating it with M1 Mac support in December.
When it comes to how long this transition will take, Windows Central says a
preview of the new Outlook web app will launch towards the end of this
year and that it could replace Mac and Windows apps sometime in 2022.
However, with the timeline decently far away, the report notes that
Microsofts plans could change.
How will the new Outlook look?
If youre wondering how the new Outlook will look and feel, the report says
to check out the existing Outlook web app. With that hint, its likely Mac
users will lose some of the Big Sur flair that Microsoft features in the
current Outlook for Mac build.
9to5Macs take
This shift could be controversial for all the users that prefer using a
native app. And that may be more the case than ever with Apples M1 Macs
finding their way into the mainstream and users enjoying optimized Mac apps.
But on the flip side, Gmail has been conditioning us to use web-based mail
for years and its understandable that Microsoft is searching for some
efficiency on its end with Outlook. It hopes to bring faster innovation
with this shift.
My thought is that many of the Outlook probably use it because of work and
that there might not be as much preference involved. Personally, I still
prefer to stick with native Mac apps. It will be interesting to watch how
this is received by the masses.
<https://9to5mac.com/2020/02/04/microsoft-outlook-brings-long-awaited-multit
asking-features-to-the-ipad/> Microsoft Outlook brings long-awaited
multitasking features to the iPad
<https://9to5mac.com/author/filipeesposito/> Filipe Espósito
Microsoft in February released an update to the Outlook app for iOS with
full support for iPad multitasking features, including Split View and Slide
Over. This came after the company promised to add these new features
<https://9to5mac.com/2019/10/30/microsoft-outlook-split-view-more/> last
year.
With Split View on iPad, Outlook users can open it side by side with other
apps, so they can read emails while browsing the web, replying to messages,
and more. There is also support for Slide Over, which allows you to quickly
open Outlook over another full-screen application. Users can even open
multiple windows of it simultaneously on iPadOS.
Furthermore, theres now drag-and-drop support for iPad users. With drag and
drop, users can drag files from another app into Outlook, such as photos and
documents.
Multitask like a pro with Outlook, now optimized for Split View on iPad.
Open your mail and calendar side by side or drag-and-drop text into a
message with your fingertip!
You can download
<https://apps.apple.com/us/app/microsoft-outlook/id951937596> Outlook for
iOS and iPadOS on the App Store for free. While the app requires iOS 12 or
later, some multitasking features are only available with iPadOS 13.
<https://9to5mac.com/2021/01/05/google-privacy-details-app-store-apple/>
Report speculates that Google hasnt updated its iOS apps in weeks to avoid
providing privacy details
<https://9to5mac.com/author/chmiller44/> Chance Miller
Apple officially rolled out its new App Privacy labels on the App Store last
month, requiring developers to provide detailed privacy information about
what data is collected from users. Interestingly,
<https://www.fastcompany.com/90591066/googles-ios-apps-havent-been-updated-i
n-weeks-apples-privacy-labels-could-be-the-reason-why> Fast Company has
spotted that Google has not updated any of its iOS applications since the
new App Privacy details became mandatory.
Google privacy details
As background, Apple began requiring developers to submit their new privacy
information to the App Store in
<https://9to5mac.com/2020/11/05/app-store-privacy-labels-developers/> order
to update their apps on December 8. The App Privacy labels themselves became
visible to users on December 14, coinciding with the release of iOS 14.3.
What this means is that in order to release an update to their applications,
developers also have to provide this privacy information. The only way to
get around providing the privacy details is to not update an application,
and that appears to be exactly the strategy Google has taken.
The report from Fast Company notes that the last time Google updated any of
its iOS applications was December 7, one day before Apple mandated that
developers provide privacy details for their applications. This means that
when you visit a Google application in the App Store, you simply see a
message that says No Details Provided.
At the same time, Google has rolled out updates to its apps on Android since
December 7, including multiple updates to the same apps in some instances.
By getting in all its existing apps updates on or before December 7, Google
has managed to avoid filling out a privacy label for any of their apps so
far. You can verify this yourself by launching the App Store app on your
iPhone, selecting any Google-owned app in the store, and then checking its
privacy label on the apps listing. As of the time of this writing, youll
see every Google apps privacy label still reads, No Details Provided. The
developer will be required to provide privacy details when they submit their
next app update.
Whats important to remember, however, is that Google will have to update
its iOS applications at some point. One would hope that this current lapse
in updates is due to Google adjusting its privacy practices to avoid the bad
publicity of having its App Privacy labels raise questions among users.
Whether thats actually whats happening here remains to be seen.
A variety of companies have faced criticism for their App Privacy labels so
far. For instance, the new privacy labels have
<https://9to5mac.com/2021/01/04/app-privacy-labels-messaging-apps/> raised
awareness among the different messaging applications, while Facebooks
<https://9to5mac.com/2020/12/15/facebook-apple-comments-eu/> App Privacy
label is humorously long.
As for what data Google will be required to provide, Apple has emphasized
that there are several different pieces of important information that
developers should remember while preparing the App Privacy nutrition
labels for their applications:
* Developers should identify all possible data collections and uses,
even if certain data will be collected and used only in limited situations.
* Developers answers should follow the App Store Review Guidelines
and any applicable laws.
* Developers are responsible for keeping your responses accurate and
up-to-date. If your practices change, update your responses in App Store
Connect.
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