This article will take a look at Microsoft Whiteboard’s features, tools, and uses.
What is Whiteboard?
Microsoft Whiteboard is a digital, freeform canvas that facilitates collaborative endeavors such as brainstorming, meetings and teaching. When a team uses Whiteboard, they are able to connect visually over the cloud. Whiteboard users work with typing, touch, and pen features to write or sketch concepts, much like using a pen and paper. This application provides users with options for adding images, note grids, and sticky notes to convey important information. Other team members can then respond to these visual communications with instantaneous reactions.
In as many ways as possible, Microsoft Whiteboard strives to mimic the features of a physical whiteboard. For this reason, the app has a low latency and offers users a functionality similar to that of a real whiteboard. It also attempts to elimiate as much lag time as possible so that when multiple team members are working on the same Whiteboard to brainstorm or share thoughts, their ideas appear as close to in real time as possible. Because of its digital design, Whiteboard has surpassed its physical counterpart in many ways. This application includes rich content embedding. It syncs across devices. It also provides a platform with which multiple people can create without bumping into one another.
In addition to its many uses for collaborative creation, Whiteboard is a helpful tool for editing. Teams working with this app are able to perform real-time edits to the canvas, regardless of their physical location. Pre-built templates are available, as well as a robust shapes library, to help streamline creative endeavors. Creators can also choose to draw their own creations such as flowcharts. Best of all, the work created and edited in Whiteboard is saved to the cloud, which means it can be accessed from remote devices and locations.
One of the most impressive Whiteboard features is its fluid components that help users carry the content they create across the Microsoft 365 suite. For example, content created in Excel or other Microsoft 365 apps can be brought into Whiteboard.
Whiteboard Features
The following are some of the main features and tools available on Microsoft Whiteboard:
- Digital canvas
- Reporting and analytics tools
- Diagramming features
- Collaboration tools
- Screen recording
- Visual workflow management features
- Annotation and sketching tools
- Presentation tools
- Templates
New Whiteboard Features
In 2021, a new version of Microsoft Whiteboard was launched. This updated version includes the same features as the prior Whiteboard did, but with more capabilities to aid with teamwork, collaboration, cross-device support, and productivity. Here are a few of the new features that were added to this app in 2021:
- New tools for visual expression were added to Whiteboard. Now, this app includes ink arrows with which users can draw a line and add a point at the end of it. Ink-to-shape features were also added, which provide a way to sketch a shape by hand, and Whiteboard then transforms it into a cleaner, more symmetrical version of the desired shape. In addition, ink straight lines were incorporated that can correct hand-drawn lines.
- Whiteboard, along with all of the latest Microsoft products, now uses the Visual Refresh design language. This gives the app a modern look and feel. It also responds to the device type being used and hides Whiteboard tools that may add clutter to the screen on mobile devices.
- More than 40 new templates are now available on Whiteboard, which can be applied in just a few clicks. Template options range from agile decision-making layouts to Kanban boards, lesson plans, and templates for brainstorming.
- Collaborative cursors allow everyone who is seeing the Whiteboard to view a mouse cursor with their name attached. This feature improves the way teams collaborate and visualize in real time.
Benefits & Challenges of Using Microsoft Whiteboard
Those who work with Microsoft Whiteboard cite both benefits as well as challenges of working with this collaborative canvas application:
Benefits
- Users can build on and expand the boards when using this app, which makes it especially helpful for brainstorming.
- Whiteboard has applications for professional, creative, academic, and personal settings.
- This app can help to create engaging, beautiful presentations and slideshows.
- Most users consider Whiteboard to be easy to use and appreciate that it connects with the user’s Microsoft account.
- This platform provides users with more than simply a way to create a slideshow; it has a variety of options that help presentations to be more engaging for audience members, which makes them more likely to retain the information that’s being shared.
- It integrates well with Microsoft Teams.
Challenges
- Although Whiteboard includes many helpful tools, it also is missing some core features. The tool palette is somewhat limited, and the highlighter tool doesn’t provide opacity adjustments. In addition, the eraser tool is very sensitive and can erase large portions of diagrams with one misplaced click. There are relatively few brush and pen options available on this app as well.
- The handwriting type font is difficult to read in Whiteboard.
- The Whiteboard interface smooths drawings. Some users would prefer this feature to be disabled so that they can keep their own sketches as they drew them without any polishing.
- Sometimes a delay occurs between pen strokes and the resultant line appearing on the Whiteboard.
Despite the few limitations of Whiteboard, most people consider this application to be a powerful and useful tool for teamwork and collaborative projects, especially those that occur remotely.
Get Started Learning Microsoft 365 with Hands-on Classes
Proficiency in Microsoft Office can open professional doors across industries, as well as lead to upward career mobility. A great way to begin learning about Microsoft Office is to sign up for one of Noble Desktop’s Microsoft Office courses. These small group classes are offered in-person in Manhattan, as well as in the live online format. For students and professionals on the go, there are also in-person and live online Microsoft Office courses available through Noble Desktop or one of its affiliate schools. A variety of course options are offered, which span three hours to three days and cost between $229 and $1,785.
If you’re looking to work with the entire Microsoft 365 suite, you can also browse approximately 400 in-person and live online Microsoft Office classes in a city near you to find local and remote study options.