Microsoft initially announced Office 2019 at its Ignite conference last year, as the next perpetual license of Office for those hesitant to move to Office 365. The first preview was made available for business users in April, and today, the firm announced that the first preview is available for macOS.
Across all Office apps, users will find the roaming pencil case and ribbon customizations. Focus mode is available in Word, and in PowerPoint, there's morph transitions, in-click sequence, and 4K video export. You'll find new charts and functions in Excel, and focused inbox in Outlook.
As is the case with Windows, new Office 2019 features mainly include things that were already introduced to Office 365 subscribers. However, those that have a perpetual license to Office 2016 haven't received these features.
An included Office for Mac Auto-Update tool will notify users when a new version is available to download. The final public preview build will apparently continue to work for about a month past the official launch date, at which time Mac users who wish to continue using Office 2016 apps will need to pay for the final software. Apr 26, 2018. A MS guy: Outlook for Mac 2016 (march 2017 update - version 15.32 (170309)). If not, you may also try latest insider version if necessary.
Microsoft also says that Office 2019 for Mac includes command line tools for IT admins, allowing them to control how Office updates are delivered, security policies, and preferences for Visual Basic macros.
The apps included in the preview are Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote. To sign up for the commercial preview, you can do so here. The full version will be released in the second half of this year.
To enable or disable the e-mail message Preview pane, also known as the Reading pane, in the Microsoft Outlook software program and the Outlook.com online e-mail service, follow the steps below.
Note
This page only refers to the 'Preview pane' or 'Reading pane' feature in Microsoft Outlook or Outlook.com mail, not the 'Outlook Mail (Preview)' version of Outlook.com. If you have Outlook Mail (Preview), according to Microsoft, there is no way to revert to the previous version of Outlook.com. Please contact Microsoft support for more details and help.
Microsoft Outlook
The steps below are for the Microsoft Outlook software program that is installed on a computer. Keep in mind, these steps may vary slightly depending on the version of Outlook you are using.
Enable Preview pane
Open the Microsoft Outlook program.
Click the View menu or tab at the top of the program window.
Click on the Reading pane or Preview pane option.
Select the Right or Bottom option, depending on where you want the Preview pane displayed.
Above is an example image of what the Microsoft Outlook Preview pane looks like when enabled. The Preview pane in this example is displayed under the e-mail listing and it displays the e-mail message currently selected.
Disable Preview pane
Open the Microsoft Outlook program.
Click the View menu or tab at the top of the program window.
Click on the Reading pane or Preview pane option.
Select the Off option.
Outlook.com (formerly Hotmail)
The steps below are for the Outlook.com (previously known as Hotmail) online e-mail service, available through an Internet browser.
Enable Reading pane
Log in to your Outlook.com e-mail account.
In the menu bar, click the gear icon to the left of your name, as displayed in the picture below.
Select the Options option.
Under the Reading email section, click the Reading pane option.
Select the Right or Bottom option, depending on where you want the Reading pane, and click the Save button.
Above is an example image of what the Outlook.com e-mail Reading pane looks like when enabled. The Reading pane in this example is displayed to the right of the e-mail listing and it displays the e-mail message currently selected.
Disable Reading pane
Log in to your Outlook.com e-mail account.
In the menu bar, click the gear icon to the left of your name, as displayed in the picture above.
Select the Options option.
Under the Reading email section, click the Reading pane option.
Select the Off option and click the Save button.
Additional information
See the Outlook and preview pane definitions for further information and related links.