Improved Dark Theme and Ribbon Tab Text
Office 2016 introduces changes to the Dark color theme that increase readability of the interface.
To change the color theme, go to File > Options. Next to Office Theme, select your option from the drop-down.
Also, for Accessibility purposes, the ribbon tab text is no longer in all caps and hover states on the ribbon tabs have been added.
Tell Me – Natural Language Query
Microsoft has added the "Tell Me" feature, which uses natural language to help you find what you're looking for. The "Tell Me" box sits to the right of the tabs on the ribbon bar in all the apps in the suite, except Publisher, OneNote, and Skype.
Start typing a question in the "Tell Me" box and Microsoft will find the best possible answers it can. The results that display are actually actions you can take directly from the menu.
Quick Shape Formatting
This feature increases the number of default shape styles by introducing new "preset" styles in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Once you draw a shape in your document, you can apply a new preset style to the shape.
To view presets, insert a shape, then select the "More" dropdown in the Shape Styles tool set.
Real-time Document Collaboration
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint now make it easy to have multiple people editing the same document.
To share a document with other people, use the "Share" button on the ribbon bar in the upper-right corner of the Word window. The "Share" pane allows you to save the document to the folder you shared in your OneDrive account.
NOTE: Before setting up your document to share, you need to make sure you have a shared folder in your Office 365 account.
To share the document, enter a person's email address, define permissions and click "Share." The recipient will receive an email notification with a link to view the document.
Improved Backstage (File Tab)
The Backstage screen received an update that makes saving, opening, and browsing for files easier and faster. The "Recent" files list is now categorized by document modification date and the "Browse" button has been elevated for improved visibility and now provides quicker access to the File Explorer.
Modern Attachments in Outlook
Attaching files in Outlook is now easier and more intuitive. When you click the "Attach" button to attach a file to the current email, you'll see a list of recently worked on files, both locally and on OneDrive. This can be very useful considering the file you want to attach is probably one you probably just accessed. The list also includes options to browse your PC or web locations if the file you want is not on the "Recent Items" list.
Additional Office 2016 training available from Microsoft.