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Thanks for hosting this AMA! Here's a few questions from me:
- Will this update change anything about the inherent functionality of Chats vs Channels? For instance, it is currently impossible to start "Posts" (aka: threads) in Chats whereas it's possible to do so in Channels. Will this remain a limitation when choosing whether to opt for a Channel vs a Chat?
- Will this update affect the amount of possible Chats/Channels that can be pinned? I do remember facing limits in the past related to the amount of chats I could pin, making it very easy to keep losing track of other chats that didn't get recent discussion.
- Will this update provide more granular notification management for Chats? Chats proliferation is very hard to deal with given the notification settings are not granular enough compared to the ones that are available for Channels. This forces people to go into Busy/Do not Disturb mode way more often than I'd like to see.
- Are there any immediate plans related to improving the user experience for more tech-savvy users? For instance, we've noticed surprising and significant shortcomings when it comes down to streamlining communication by using shortcuts and trying to mostly navigate around places / performing actions with the keyboard without having to constantly switch over to the mouse is pretty much impossible compared to other communication software out there.
- Are there any immediate plans to improve the activity feed reliability? More often than not users have to read notifications at least twice before they get appropriately marked as read. Additionally users are notified of messages they already read and answered within a thread of "Post" replies, and the notification goes off anyways and has to be separately dealt with to get it gone, which is frustrating and shouldn't happen. Users that reply in a thread/chat shouldn't have to deal with cleaning up notifications older than the last message they wrote in the thread/chat.
- When will a feature to disable auto-away status be finally made available? It is concerning that users are automatically set to away while attending live/recorded trainings, attending meetings on Zoom, jotting down notes on paper etc. without the option to remain available if they desire to. This negatively impacts communication as people are less likely to contact each other if they see the other party is "Away" when they didn't mean to be away and they really aren't away after all.
- When can we expect the Public Early Access preview to be available?
- Are there any plans to make Emojis and especially Custom Emojis more usable? Using Custom Emojis especially is quite tiresome and involves several clicks/actions, why can't we have autocompletion and shortcuts to start searches without having to switch over to the mouse? The user experience feels quite poor compared to other communication software out there.
What is Microsoft's long-term strategy with Teams/Channels? How is the Product Team thinking about their role in an end user's daily communication/collaboration? What should be the first tool a user picks up?
dianahsuMicrosoft
Hi Matt, group chats are intended for ad-hoc collaboration on specific topics, while channels are intended for durable collaboration. So, I might spin up a group chat to talk with colleagues on another team for some questions I have for them. I might use a channel for ongoing collaboration with my team, where we have a meeting series for monthly reviews and where we store our shared files.
Is there a limit to the number of chats, teams, and channels that can be pinned or grouped together in a Section? Is there a limit to the number of Sections that a user can have?
- Shikha_Varshney
Users can create up to 50 custom sections, each section can have up to 50
conversations. I would check out https://adoption.microsoft.com/files/microsoft-teams/chat-and-channels/Microsoft-Teams-new-chat-and-channels-experience_User-guide.pdf . It is the best documentation I have found so far.
It states that there is a maximum of 50 sections with 50 items per section.
How can we access the new version of Teams on PC and mobile (Android or iOS iPhone)? Not getting any option to use the very latest version on PC. Have tried to do what is stated here: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftteams/public-preview-doc-updates?tabs=new-teams-client. I Have also joined the Windows insider program? Unfortunately cannot participate in the AMA today
- Shikha_Varshney
TrondSletvold Thanks for your feedback. Can you please confirm the policy setting (from the list below) you're using for "Show preview features" so that we can guide you accordingly?
- On for users in Current Channel (Preview) (default)
- Users can opt in
- Off
- On for everyone
One of our users has tried this option but doesn't like it, how do we roll it back?
- Shikha_Varshney
Users can customize the experience from More list options (…) at the top of the chat and channels list choose Customize view. User can choose to view chat and channels separately in the Chat and Teams apps like before.
- dianahsu
Hi Paul, you can tell the user to go to Settings > Chat and channels > switch to Separate. This will separate Chat and Teams entry points.
This is the thing I am most concerned about with this change. People are going to either love it or hate it and very little is being done to communicate how users should "think" about the change.
Thank you for setting up this AMA.
I might be wrong in my interpretations, but this change will be “drastic” in several organizations that have spent time on change management to clearly explain the distinction between all conversation spaces in Teams.
Here are some questions I have and that I will certainly be asked…
- The new interface looks very similar to Slack’s interface. Are you trying to turn Teams into Slack?
- With the merging of all chats, does the notification bell, which also includes filters, still have its utility?
- With the merging of all chats, don’t you fear that the mix between group conversations and team channel conversations (put on the same level) will create confusion among users who already have difficulty distinguishing between group conversations, standard channel conversations, and private channel conversations? The notion of short-term/medium-term/long-term becomes very blurred for users.
- With the merging of all chats, how will a novice user in Teams understand that for some conversations they have the ability to add whoever they want, and for other conversations (those of the teams) they won’t have the ability to do so?
- With the merging of all chats, what will happen to the specific editing features of team channel messages? I’m thinking of announcements… I think of the user who won’t understand that in the chat block some messages can be fully edited (subject/header) and for other messages (group chat) they cannot be.
- With the disappearance of the Teams app, will the Teams & Channels section only show active channel messages with the user unable to see the entire channel structure within the team?
- With the disappearance of the Teams app, how will a user be able to see all the teams they are part of without being limited only to the view of teams where there is active communication? What about very long scrolling if there are many teams…
- With the disappearance of the Teams app, will private channel icons and shared channel icons be visible?
- With the disappearance of the Teams app, doesn’t this endanger the structuring and proper distribution of communication in different channels within the teams?
- Why don’t you provide controls for the administrator? I understand that this will be deployed by default and that it will be up to the user to revert back. In my opinion, it would be more interesting to implement a policy to deploy by waves of users. The change will be less brutal. What do you think?
- Will there be a forced transition to this new experience in the long term?
Sorry if I was long with these questions, but I’m sure I’m not the only one asking them…
Thank you in advance for your answers.
- Roshin Ramesan
Great set of questions, answers below.
Chats continue to be for lightweight, back and forth between smaller groups. And channels for durable collaboration with small to large groups. Bringing them together is to help users stay on top and collaborate effectively.
The new interface looks very similar to Slack’s interface. Are you trying to turn Teams into Slack?
The new chats and channels experience is designed based on the user feedback we received from Teams users, to help users stay on top of all their conversations and collaborate effectively. The experience is flexible and adaptable, users can choose to keep chats and channels together or separate.
With the merging of all chats, does the notification bell, which also includes filters, still have its utility?
Yes, as it includes notifications outside of messaging, including apps, calendar invites and more.
With the merging of all chats, don’t you fear that the mix between group conversations and team channel conversations (put on the same level) will create confusion among users who already have difficulty distinguishing between group conversations, standard channel conversations, and private channel conversations? The notion of short-term/medium-term/long-term becomes very blurred for users.
The experience for each is distinct and clarifies the scope. This is similar to how the experience is in Activity for example, when the user switches from activity in chat to channel.
With the merging of all chats, how will a novice user in Teams understand that for some conversations they have the ability to add whoever they want, and for other conversations (those of the teams) they won’t have the ability to do so?
The experience of each clarifies this, no change in how chats and channels behave in Teams.
With the merging of all chats, what will happen to the specific editing features of team channel messages? I’m thinking of announcements… I think of the user who won’t understand that in the chat block some messages can be fully edited (subject/header) and for other messages (group chat) they cannot be.
No change in behavior of how chats and channels work.
With the disappearance of the Teams app, will the Teams & Channels section only show active channel messages with the user unable to see the entire channel structure within the team?
The default view shows the teams and channels structure. User can choose to view only channels they are interested in. They’ll still have a way to get to see team and all its channels. User can also choose to keep Chat and Teams app separate.
With the disappearance of the Teams app, how will a user be able to see all the teams they are part of without being limited only to the view of teams where there is active communication? What about very long scrolling if there are many teams…
In addition to previous reply, there are new experiences like sections, filters, Goto (Ctrl/Cmd + G) that help users navigate to their teams and channels quickly.
With the disappearance of the Teams app, will private channel icons and shared channel icons be visible?
Yes, no changes to private and shared channels.
With the disappearance of the Teams app, doesn’t this endanger the structuring and proper distribution of communication in different channels within the teams?
No, no changes to what channels are meant for and how they work.
Why don’t you provide controls for the administrator? I understand that this will be deployed by default and that it will be up to the user to revert back. In my opinion, it would be more interesting to implement a policy to deploy by waves of users. The change will be less brutal. What do you think?
We evaluated this carefully, including with customers in private preview and decided that giving users the control was the best so they can decide which configuration works best for them.
Will there be a forced transition to this new experience in the long term?
All users will be upgraded to the new experience once they become eligible.
A lot of these responses to the change in the Teams App disappearance is "no change to how chats and channels work" and I feel like that is the team missing the question. You are stating that the functionality has not changed but the main question they are trying to hit at is that as IT Admins and Support, we have trained users based on the clear cues of different apps to direct them on where to have what conversations. Now, with the collapse of chats and channels into one space AND channels no longer visually live under a Team name (and do not have the subscript of favorites today when moved into a section or favorites) user will have an increasing difficulty in understanding what is what type of conversation space. So, with the following questions from above, what guidance is given on reeducating users and encouraging continued adoption of Teams? What updated adoption information can be shared with IT Pros and Partners?
With the merging of all chats, how will a novice user in Teams understand that for some conversations they have the ability to add whoever they want, and for other conversations (those of the teams) they won’t have the ability to do so?
With the disappearance of the Teams app, doesn’t this endanger the structuring and proper distribution of communication in different channels within the teams?
Hi there, this does look interesting however it also feels like it could be quite a big change for some of the colleagues I support in my role as IT Training Manager. A couple of questions/concerns if I may:
- Will this be available in education? Increasingly I'm finding some really useful features are not coming with education licences, so this is always my first question when I'm working at upcoming new features.
- Is there a way of a business controlling when this update goes out so that colleagues can be prepped and primed to help reduce disorientation?
- Re the point above, if I was able to get my hands on this before my colleagues it would make it easier to work out how much of an impact this update might have.
Thanks in advance.
- Roshin Ramesan
Thanks for the question.
Will this be available in education? Increasingly I'm finding some really useful features are not coming with education licences, so this is always my first question when I'm working at upcoming new features.
The new chats and channels experience is not available to Teams Education customers currently. Users in EDU have a tailored experience for class teams, and we are looking to bring this at a future date.Is there a way of a business controlling when this update goes out so that colleagues can be prepped and primed to help reduce disorientation?
There are no admins controls for this experience. Microsoft has made available admin and user guides, and there is a self-service onboarding flow for users to learn and configure the experience that works best for them.Re the point above, if I was able to get my hands on this before my colleagues it would make it easier to work out how much of an impact this update might have.
The new experience is rolling out to Teams public preview and targeted release, anyone who wants to try it out can do so! Note: experience is not available for EDU customers and users.
The comms for this says this is coming to Public Preview and Targeted Release in mid-November. Can you clarify the time differences (if any) for targeted release for specific users vs. targeted release for entire tenant? Are both types getting it in November?
- Derek_Snook_MSFT
Yes, all users in Targeted Release (entire tenants, if that tenant is all set to Targeted Release; or individuals if only individuals are specified for Targeted Release in a tenant) will get the new experience during the November roll out.
- Derek_Snook_MSFT
Roll out has started today to Targeted Release and Private Preview., The roll out will progress over the coming days before reaching everyone in these channels, and includes Windows, Mac, Web, iOS, and Android.
Our organization has specific needs regarding notification management in Microsoft Teams. We have a few questions about the upcoming functionality:
Will it be possible to mute individual channels or group messages? If so, can we set these mutes for a specified duration?
Is there an option to hide all meeting chats or make them less noticeable? Some of our team members find these chats to be a bit overwhelming and/or cluttering and would appreciate a way to manage them better.
Will there be a quick toggle function for switching between the old and new UI? I think that would be really helpful in the adaption phase.
Thank you for addressing our concerns!
- NogaRonen
Helene,
Thank you for your questions:1. To mute chat conversation, click on the ellipsis and select 'mute' on that menu. For channels, from the ellipsis you can select Channel notifications to adjust the notification you receive from the specific channel. You can also trun on/off notifications from a specific channel post.
2. We've introduced new filters such as “Unread,” “Chat,” “Channels,” “Meetings,” and “Muted”. So if you want to catch up only on chats or channels you can select the relevant filter to help you.
3. To toggle between the two experiences: open Settings->Chat and channels and select combined and separated view.
- Will a recording of this event be available after? I'm no longer able to attend but am very interested in the content.
Yes. It will become available shortly after the broadcast ends, on this same event page - and you can use this link to get to the event before, during, and after: https://aka.ms/Teams/NewChatChannels/AMA.
