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Google rebuilds Sheets with offline mode and better performance

Google rebuilds Sheets with offline mode and better performance

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Google New York Chelsea Office (STOCK)
Google New York Chelsea Office (STOCK)

Google is launching a new version of its Sheets spreadsheet site today that it says is faster, more powerful, and can work offline. With the addition of offline mode, Google now has a much more formidable competitor against productivity giants like Microsoft Office. Its three main tools — Docs, Slides, and Sheets — all work offline now, allowing travelers to rely on Google's sites to have their files ready and editable whenever they're needed.

Alongside adding in offline mode, Google says that the new Sheets has been rebuilt from the ground up to make it much faster. It removes size and complexity limits on columns, cells, and formulas, and it tries to make using those formulas a bit easier by displaying examples of them as you begin to enter one. The new version of Sheets won't be replacing the old one immediately, but Google says that anyone who wants to try it will be able to just by turning it on in the site's settings menu.