Updates we'd like to see in Docs To Go for BlackBerry 10

Docs To Go has been around on the BlackBerry platform for a long time. Of course, being a business tool, such an app would be a must have one, especially if you need to create documents or view documents as part of your job. So when BlackBerry 10 landed, there was no doubt that we would see Docs To Go become available on that OS too. However, compared to Docs To Go on legacy devices, the BlackBerry 10 version falls short on a lot of features that many users want.

One such user has reached out to us with a laundry list of things he would like added to Docs To Go and we sure a lot of other users are calling for too. We've compiled a list of things we'd like to see added to Docs To Go for BlackBerry 10.

1. Better placement of the Undo icon

This is probably more of an issue on QWERTY keyboard devices due to the smaller screen. When you are in Edit mode or when you start a new document, the Undo icon pops up in the bottom corner (above the keyboard on touchscreen devices). It does cover up words on longer documents. While it's not the biggest issue, the Undo icon could perhaps be put on the bottom bar so it isn't quite as intrusive as it currently stands.

2. Add more options when viewing documents

When viewing a document, you don't really have any options available other than to Share or Edit the document. This goes for Docs, Sheets, and Slideshow (although Slideshow also has an option to Present). Users would like to see more options, such as word count and find. While these options are found in Edit mode, if you were in View mode, you would have to first go to Edit mode then use the Word Count option, which makes the process longer. To make things more efficient, bring those options to View mode too.

3. Change the way you go from View mode to Edit mode

Currently when you open Docs To Go then open a file, it opens up within Docs To Go for viewing. When you go to edit, it opens up Word To Go (or whatever document type app). This doesn't sound like a big issue but it becomes inconvenient for longer documents. For example, if you were reading through a document in View mode and you were deep into that document and spotted a typo or wanted to change things, when you hit Edit, because it opens up a new app, you will be right at the beginning of the document and would have to scroll down to find that typo, which can be a tedious process if it is a long document. On legacy devices, viewing and editing modes were all within the same app and it would switch between wherever you were in the document.

4. Ability to view comments, footnotes and endnotes

A big gripe mentioned by a frustrated user of Docs To Go is that you cannot currently view comments, footnotes and endnotes of documents. It is not something I personally use but I can see why it would be a feature that is needed by many. For example, for documents shared and edited by multiple users, comments and notes may be included and these will not be seen via the app so readers who read the document and need to act or edit it cannot see what co-workers have written as comments.

To add to this, the ability to insert comments wouldn't go amiss either. They seem like basic functions that should be available, just as they were available on the legacy version of Docs To Go. 

5. Ability to jump to top or bottom of document

If you have a QWERTY keyboard device, you can hit 'T' or 'B' to jump to the top or bottom however, even if you bring up the keyboard on touchscreen devices when viewing a document, this does not work. An option for full touchscreen users would be a most welcome addition. Other keyboard shortcuts would be nice when in View mode. Like a shortcut to jump into Edit mode, even a shortcut to see the document word count - a feature that needs to be available via View mode and not just Edit mode, see point number 2.

6. Insert AutoSum, rows and columns in Sheets To Go

Another basic feature that is missing. Though you can workaround this by copy pasting cells, then editing the text, it really should be a feature that should be there already. The ability to create/delete and even rename worksheets is also missing. These are things that are found in the legacy version of Sheets To Go and sometimes makes you wonder why such basic features are missing in the latest version. Even the option to have more formulas would be very welcome.

I don't use spreadsheets much but there is one file that I need to fill every month and find a hard time using Sheets To Go for this. Adding these features would make me use Sheets To Go to edit this file a lot more.

7. Ability to add pictures to a word document

It was quite a shock to see that the ability to add photos was missing from Word To Go. This feature was available on legacy devices and really should have been something that was there from the beginning. Hopefully, this feature is at the top of the to-do list.

On top of that, being able to insert tables would be very welcome. Again, all things that can be done on the legacy version.

8. Ability to create Presentations

As of right now, you can only create a new Word To Go file or a Sheets To Go file. There is no ability to create a Slides To Go file. It is just a viewer. You can work around this by keep a blank file around and just edit it each time to make new ones. However, it would be more convenient to just straight up be able to create a new one each time you need to do so.

I can see why Slides To Go is just a viewer right now. Most of the time the slide presentation would have been created and made on a desktop machine and the presentation would just be viewed via the BlackBerry. However, there may be times you need to start creating a slide presentation and you could start drafting from your BlackBerry. At the same time the ability to add slides or images into a presentation is missing. Not good if you need to make edits to a slideshow before a presentation.

9. Save document as a PDF

Search BlackBerry World for the term 'convert to PDF' and there are a few apps that come up. Some of them use the word convert but I haven't seen one that actually converts a word document to a PDF. So, BlackBerry should just put this feature into Docs To Go. Being able to scan to PDF is all good and well but sometimes being able to save a document as a PDF is just as an important feature.

10. Don't close down Docs To Go when you hit Edit

This is a point that could really attach itself to point number 3 but can also stand as a point in itself. Unlike Docs To Go on legacy devices, it seems that Docs To Go itself acts as the viewer. When you hit 'Edit' it opens up the editor for whichever type of file you want to edit, i.e. Word To Go if you wanted to edit a word document. When this happens Docs To Go closes. Once you've made your changes and saved it, you then tap 'Close'. This then closes down Word To Go. All is good and well if you have no more documents to view or edit. A problem arises when you need to view or edit other documents, all apps have been closed, so you then need to navigate to Docs To Go and reopen it and start the process again. It's not very efficient or convenient. Keeping Docs To Go open would probably be the best way to go or find a way to edit within Docs To Go to keep things simple.

Have we missed any? Are there other things you would like to see in Docs To Go? Hit up the comments and share them.