Here at D365experts, we’re often asked about PowerApps. While many seem to have heard about PowerApps, the majority still aren’t sure what they are and how they link into Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. With so many questions surrounding what they are, what they do and even how they work, we thought it would be a great idea to explain everything with a tell-all article. Here’s our very own explanation about PowerApps, their benefits and why so many are choosing to work with them within Business Central.
Microsoft PowerApps: The 101
PowerApps were released back in January 2017 so they’ve actually been around for quite a while. Despite their presence over the last two years, there still a number of you whom are somewhat struggling when it comes to understanding this amazing technology. PowerApps however, are actually not only super easy to use but also hugely beneficial when used correctly.
At its very core, PowerApps is an initiative from Microsoft which gives developers and non-technical users to create Mobile Apps from selected templates and that run on everything from iOS to Android and even Windows. They also work on practically any Internet browser. Traditionally, when creating an app, you would usually need to develop an app for each system you wish it to run on; think one for iOS, one for Android and one for windows etc.
This would mean triple the work along with triple the costs and even triple the resources. With PowerApps you can say goodbye to extra work and extra costs as PowerApps itself takes care of the differences for you. You no longer need to consider each different operating system as PowerApps allows you to run your apps regardless. It really is as simple as it sounds.
PowerApps & Ease Of Use
PowerApps allow you to leave behind the rigidly siloed enterprise apps of yesterday and move forward into a modern world and it starts by bringing to its users a much more user friendly interface. With a simply drag and drop interface, users can add and delete different controls as they wish.
Think media, forms, screens and more. Whether you want to connect to external data sources or even store data within the app directly, you can, allowing you to create new processes that are centred around your customers and driven by further enhanced data. Once you’ve created the app, it’s down to you to publish it offering you total control.
The artificial intelligence within the application mean there’s no need for your IT team to enter code or dive deep into the creation of your business based apps. There’s a strict, “no-code” functionality within PowerApps so while for some this could seem rather limiting, it actually makes PowerApps far more accessible for the majority.
PowerApps is also part of the `Microsoft Power Platform` along with Microsoft Flow and Power BI, all of which will be discussed in our next article.
Contact D365experts Today For PowerApps Information
While the PowerApps functionality may not meet all of your needs when it comes to current app functionality, you can rest assured that Microsoft’s endless stream of updates will ensure that new features and enhancements will continue to arise opening up the possibility of reduced limitations further down the line.
If you’d like more information on PowerApps or the Microsoft Power Platform simply contact our team today. We’ll show you how to incorporate PowerApps into your business and just how easy it can be.
