Google Doc's New Feature Makes it Easier to Draft Emails and Transfer it to Gmail

Sophie Webster, Tech Times 16 March 2022, 11:03 am

Google introduced a new feature for Google Doc so users can easily draft emails using the service's word processor.

The feature is part of Google's smart canvas project, which plans to connect all of the search giant's software, including Google Docs, Google Meet, and Gmail.

Google Doc's Gmail Feature

Similar to Google Doc's other canvas features, the email draft template can be accessed using the Doc's @ symbol, before choosing the "Email Draft" option from the menu, according to The Verge.

Users can draft their email on the service, including the subject line, tagging the recipients, and the body text. When you are ready to send it, you can click on the Gmail icon so you can open the email service.

The feature is beneficial for emails that multiple people need to contribute to, allowing everyone to edit them in a Google Doc and post suggestions and comments.

Also Read: Teens Now Using Google Docs As Chat App

Users can copy and paste text between two Google services, but the whole point of the smart canvas is to make switching between services easier and faster.

Google said that the email draft feature, which it teased back in February, will be available to all Google Workspace customers, and it will be available to anyone on legacy G Suite Basic and Business plans. It will eventually roll out to rapid release domains, but will start appearing for most users starting next week.

Google's Smart Canvas

During Google's I/O event in 2021, the search giant laid out plans to revamp the look and feel of its Google Workspace cloud apps, according to Engadget.

That includes a new look for Gmail that began rolling out earlier this month, search chips for Google Drive, and a set of changes that are expected to arrive for Google Sheets and Docs.

Google called this approach a "smart canvas." It takes hints from productivity apps like Notion to give you options for blending the features of multiple tools in one screen and promoting ways to collaborate remotely with other users.

Integrating its several office apps is an approach that conveniently helps Google increase corporate lock-in to its services, which is a great idea that Microsoft is working in a very similar direction with Fluid framework updates in its own Google Office suite.

In 2021, Google added AI-generated formula suggestions that are called autofill for math, and now, the search giant says its next step is more like autocorrect. The feature is set to roll out to Google Sheets, with promises to help users troubleshoot their formulas and catch errors, according to Android Police.

The features described during the event last year are going to be added to Workspace accounts over the next few weeks, including a pageless format for Google Docs.

Instead of defaulting to a view that replicates a standard-size printed page, Docs content does not have any boundaries, which the search giant says it will expand or shrink to fit whatever kind of screen you are using.

According to Google's support document for the feature, users can select a text width of narrow, medium, or wide when a user views a pageless document.

Earlier this year, Google Docs added a watermark feature so users can easily mark their documents.