Slack adds offline mode, performance boosts and more
Slack’s free app for iOS, Slack – Team Communication, has received a great update making a wide-ranging number of changes to the mobile software.
As of the recent update (version 2.00), users of Slack for iOS can, first and foremost, enjoy support for a brand new offline mode. This means messages in the app will now load up faster when Slack is launched on an iOS device, and they’ll also remain available even when users are offline. Slack 2.00 has also made a number of performance boosts to the app, meaning it should run better on your iPhone or iPad.
An in-app browser allows Slack users to open URLs without leaving the application in version 2.00 (this can be activated in the app’s settings pane), and users can now also long-press on individual links to open a share sheet. There’s also a “swishier team switcher page,” more pixel-packed image previews, super-responsive swiping, and much, much more in the updated Slack. In fact, don’t take our word for it. Here’s a full change log outlining everything that’s new in Slack for iOS, as of version 2.00:
- Long version with added coruscation and explanatory detail…
- Offline support! Messages will now load faster on launch than you ever dreamed possible and remain available when you’re offline.
- A clutch of totally awesome pumped-up performance boosts, including noticeably reduced memory usage and killer speeds throughout the app. Crushed it.
- No more jumping around: You can now open links using an in-app web browser. (Settings > Web Browser > In-App Browser) (Better iPad support coming soon).
- You can now long press on URLs to summon a share sheet, then open the link in an app of your choice (Evernote, Wunderlist or Instapaper, for example), or “Add to Reading List” and save for later. Deferred gratification has never felt better.
- Swishier team switcher page with bonus team icons and a better unread message indicator.
- Sometimes bigger IS better. As proof of this, image previews in channels, groups and DMs are now more pixel-packed.
- Super-responsive swiping when opening the left and right-hand menus.
- Left-handers! Super-responsive swiping when opening the right and left-hand menus.
- A new team directory and channel member search has been added.
- Messages now behave more reliably, even on a spotty network connection. If a message fails to send, you can now try, try, try again (and, with any luck, succeed).
- You can now search for channels and DMs by tapping the “+” buttons in the left-side menu (you can still use the wondrous Quick Switcher by swiping right again, of course).
- Slash commands now autocomplete. And have help text. Or something. Anyway it’s p cool. /shrug
- If you have an email account set up in the native Mail app, you can now report issues directly by opening the right side menu > Settings > Submit Feedback. Support for other mail apps coming soon.
- And many other small changes to the back end, meaning the game is irrevocably changed, and the iOS app will never be the same again. Basically, what Star Wars did for sci-fi, we’ve done to our app. But without Jar Jar Binks.
There are also a large number of significant fixes in Slack 2.00, too, meaning the application should be more reliable than ever before.
Slack, in case you don’t know, is a great team communication platform for groups and businesses. Here at AppAdvice, we enjoy using Slack to communicate with one another (we’re based between several different countries), and the platform’s iOS app provides a great way to keep in touch with friends and co-workers. It supports push notifications, mentions, direct messages, and hashtags. There’s also a pretty decent Apple Watch app available as part of Slack’s iOS offering, too, and this performs well on Cupertino’s smartwatch.
You can download Slack 2.00 free of charge on the App Store now, and it’s optimized for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Check out the revamped app, or see: Apple and record labels still in talks just before WWDC, Powerful automation app Workflow gets even smarter with an update, and Powerful task manager 2Do is free for the next seven days.
