Next Level PowerApps SPS St Louis

Next Level Forms with
PowerApps
www.thrivefast.com@aprildunnam

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About Me –
April Dunnam
š Microsoft MVP
š Owner & Lead Developer at ThriveFast
š Active blogger and speaker
š President of Oklahoma PowerApps &
Flow User Group
š Concert junkie and karaoke queen
š You can find me at :
Twitter: @aprildunnam
Blog: www.SharePointSiren.com
April.Dunnam@thrivefast.com

Key Objectives
š Basics
š What is PowerApps
š Types of Apps
š SharePoint Integration
š Tips & Tricks
š Lessons learned
š Additional functionality
š New Features
š Learning Resources

What is
PowerApps?
š A Rapid Application
development
environment that
allows business power
users to create
applications
š InfoPath
Replacement
š Not just for SharePoint
š Connect to over 100 +
Services/Data Sources “Build Business Apps, Fast!”

How does it work?
+
=

Excel vs
PowerApps
Functions

Excel Functions Available in PowerApps

Declarative vs Imperative Logic
Declarative Logic
š Excel, PowerApps, SQL, HTML
š Declarative = WHAT
š Define Dependencies
š Logic automatically performed as values
change – the app recalculates
Imperative Logic
š JavaScript, C#, VB
š Imperative = HOW
š Define procedural steps
š Logic is event driven, executive

Declarative vs Imperative Logic
“I’m byWalmart. Howdo I get toyour housefrom here?”
Mr. Imperative Mrs. Declarative
“My
address is
298 W Skelly
Drive, Tulsa,
OK 74146”
“Go out of the
north exit of the
parking lot and
take a left. Get
on I-44 East until
you get to the
Yale Exit…”

Types of PowerApps

Canvas vs Model Driven – Visuals
Canvas Model Driven

Form Factors
š PowerApps are not
“Responsive”
š Have to select if you want a
Phone or Tablet Layout
š Use Tablet Layout for Desktop
app
š Tablet form factor can be
used on phone if you switch to
landscape mode
š Can’t change the form factor
once you create it!

Important Controls
š Forms
š Bind to a data source to show a group of fields
š New, Edit or Display Mode
š Cards – Building blocks of forms, the fields in your data source
š Galleries
š Allows you to show a list of information from a data source
š Choose from a template or make your own
š Data Tables
š Displays data from a data source in a tabular format

Elements of a Card
š Useful card properties:
š Required – true or false
š DisplayMode – Disabled, Edit or View
š Visible – true or false
š Inside a card by default:
š ErrorMessage – An error message shows if there’s an error when users fill out the form,
like when a required field is missing
š DataCardValue – The main control, such as text box or drop-down
š DataCardKey – The label, name of the control
š StarVisible – An asterisk that automatically shows if the required property is set to true

Demo
Formulas in PowerApps

SharePoint Integration
How to use PowerApps with your SharePoint data
+

PowerApps Options for SharePoint
SharePoint Customized
š Can only open from SharePoint
list, not in PowerApps Gallery
š Only works for lists (not libraries)
š Can’t embed in a page
š Can’t move between
sites/environments
Standalone App
š Appears in PowerApps Gallery
and Mobile
š Works for lists and libraries
š Can embed in SharePoint
Page
š Use anywhere

Creating
PowerApps using
SharePoint Data
š Just like in InfoPath
you can either
customize the
default SharePoint
List Form (SharePoint
customized app) OR
you can create a
separate app and
add SharePoint as a
data source (Stand-
alone app)

Switch back to
default SharePoint
form
šSite Settings à
Form Settings
šChoose to retain
custom form or
delete it

Standalone SharePoint Apps
Option 1
š Use “Create an App” from your
SharePoint list.
š Creates all the screens and galleries for
you based on your data
š Uses the Phone layout by default
Option 2
š web.powerapps.com
š Create a blank app
š Gives you a blank canvas.
Can add SharePoint as a
data source
š Can choose Phone or
Tablet layout

Adding Data to SharePoint
SubmitForm
šEasy to use and configure
šUseful for simple scenarios
šDependent on use of a
Form Control
šSubmitForm(CustomersFor
ms);
Patch
šBetter for complex scenarios
(multiple data sources, etc)
šAllows you to Patch together
separate controls not tied to
a form control and add to
SharePoint
šPatch( Customers, Defaults(
Customers ), { Name:
“Contoso” } )

Embed
PowerApps in
SharePoint Page
š Can only add to a
Modern Page
š Go to the Details
Page in the
PowerApp and
grab the Web Link

Demo
Creating a SharePoint Customized and Stand Alone App

To Take Your Apps to the Next Level. Advanced Topics and Lessons Learned.

Have a Naming Convention for Controls
š When you add controls to your app they are given generic names such
as Dropdown1 or DataCard2
š You should give all your controls relevant names, especially if you are
going to reference them in formulas
š Pick a standard naming convention. I like the following naming
convention:
š [Abbreviated Type of Control]+[Name of Field]
š For example, you have a dropdown field that holds a list of states. The
name would be drpStates

Use Advanced Settings for new Features
Stage On by Default? Who should use it? Use with confidence?
Experimental • No.
• Authors must opt in.
• Early adopters.
• Light documentation:
private invitations, forum
posts, blog posts, side notes
in docs.
No. It may change
significantly or go away
completely.
Preview • Yes, only for new apps.
• Off for existing apps.
• Can be turned off.
• Everyone.
• Fully documented.
• Blog post announcement.
• Time to move existing apps.
Yes. Only minor
changes from here.
Shipped • Yes.
• Cannot be turned off.
• Everyone. Yes.

Speed up your apps with Concurrent()
š Allows you to run functions at the same time (concurrently)
š Improves start up times because you’re not having to wait for each
consecutive function to complete
š https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powerapps/maker/canvas-
apps/functions/function-concurrent

Using Cognitive Services in your apps
š Computer Vision API
š Describe/Analyze an image
š OCR text from an image
š Face API
š Face Detection (Gender, Age, etc)
š Emotion Identification (happy, sad, etc)
š https://azure.microsoft.com/en-
us/services/cognitive-services/
š Text Analytics API
š Sentiment Analysis (positive, negative)
š Keyword detection
š Language detection
š QNA Maker
š Power chatbots
š Create question and answer pairs

Connecting to
SharePoint
Document Libraries
š Document libraries
aren’t fully
supported in
PowerApp yet.
Coming soon!
š Work-Around: Type
in Doc Library Name
š To Open File:
Launch('{Link}')

Error Handling
š IfError( Try, Catch )
š Notify( Message [, Type ] )
š Patch now returns errors

Tip: Pin Your Apps to the Home Screen
š PowerApps have to
run through the
PowerApps app
š Make your apps
seem more like a
traditional
phone/tablet app
by pinning to the
home screen

Offline Mode
Collect data into a local collection
Save collection to the local device with SaveData
š Doesn’t work when Web Authoring, must use native studio or players
Reload collection from the local device with LoadData
š Can do this from OnStart
Use Connection to determine network status before refreshing data or pushing changes
When reconnected, push to the data source with Patch
š Can use ForAll to Patch only records that have changed
Constraints on how much data can be stored offline
š Test on the devices you expect to use

Tip: Comment Your Formulas
š Yes your formula’s count as code!
š Formula’s can get long and complex
š Help others who need to maintain your app by adding helpful comments
explaining what your formula’s are doing. Use // to add a comment
š https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/comment-your-powerapps-code/

Tip – Embed
PowerApps in
Teams
š Microsoft Teams is a
platform that combines
chat, meetings, notes,
files, etc
š You can add
PowerApps as a tab in
Teams so you never
have to leave the
Teams app

Tip – Skip the Rules Section
š The rules pane is *supposed* to make conditional logic easier but
not to me
š Simply directs you to where to

Tip: Re-Publish Your Apps
š PowerApps are only backwards compatible up to 6 months
š Microsoft recommends updating and re-publishing your apps every
6 months
š https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powerapps/maker/canvas-
apps/save-publish-app

Do More with Flow
š PowerApps can start a Flow
š Pass parameters to Flow
š Return data to your PowerApp
š Allows you to extend your app. For example, call a Flow which uses
an HTTP request to return some information from another system
š If there’s something you can’t do natively in PowerApps, see if you
can augment with Flow

Tip: No External User Access
š PowerApps can only be used by authenticated users
with appropriate licensing
š If you have a SharePoint list form customized with
PowerApps and share that list with an external user,
they will get an error!
š To vote this functionality up:
https://powerusers.microsoft.com/t5/PowerApps-
Ideas/Make-non-work-school-accounts-usable-with-
powerapps-many/idi-p/743

Tip: Rounded Images
š PowerApps can only be used by authenticated users
with appropriate licensing
š If you have a SharePoint list form customized with
PowerApps and share that list with an external user,
they will get an error!
https://powerusers.microsoft.com/t5/PowerApps-
Ideas/Make-non-work-school-accounts-usable-with-
powerapps-many/idi-p/743

Tip: PDF View for SharePoint Files
š Native document viewing not enabled yet
š Work arounds required to view documents from SharePoint
http://www.cleverworkarounds.com/2018/06/30/some-seriously-powerful-and-
free-pdf-functionality-in-powerapps-and-flow-part-1/ and
http://www.cleverworkarounds.com/2017/09/29/its-not-a-proxy-its-a-floxy-a-way-
to-display-sharepoint-pdfs-in-powerapps

Tip: Conditional Formatting with Lookups
š Create Lookup Collection of status/color code pairs
š ClearCollect(ccStatusColors,
š {Status:"Not Started",Color:"#cccccc"},
š {Status:"In Progress",Color:"#f4b642"},
š {Status:"Completed",Color:"#008a00"},
š {Status:"Delayed",Color:"#f40000"}
š )
š Lookup and compare:
ColorValue(
š LookUp(
š ccStatusColours,
š Status = ThisItem.Status,
š Colour
š )
š )

Performance Considerations
š When deploying your app to a large number of user, one has to keep in mind the
connectors are throttled. PowerApps currently support 600 requests per minute per user
and up to 30 concurrent calls per user.
š Ref: https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/performance-considerations-
with-powerapps/

Delegable Data Sources
š Common Data Service - Yes
š SharePoint - Yes
š SQL Server - Yes
š Dynamics 365 - Yes
š Salesforce - Yes
š Dynamics 365 for Operations - Not yet
š Dynamics 365 for Financials - Not yet
š Dynamics NAV - Not yet
š Google Sheets - Not yet

Delegable Functions by Data Source
Common Data Service SharePoint SQL Server Dynamics 365 Salesforce
Average No No Yes No No
Filter Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
LookUp Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Max No No Yes No No
Min No No Yes No No
Search Yes
1
No Yes Yes Yes
Sort Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
SortByColumns Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Sum No No Yes No No

Filter & Lookup Delegable Predicates
CDS SharePoint SQL Server Dynamics 365 Salesforce
Not Yes No Yes Yes Yes
IsBlank No No Yes Yes No
TrimEnds No No Yes No No
Len No No Yes No No
+, - No No Yes No No
<, <=, =, <>, >, >= Yes Yes
2
Yes Yes Yes
And (&&), Or (||), Not (!) Yes
3
Yes (except Not(!)) Yes Yes Yes
in No No Yes No Yes
StartsWith No Yes No No No

New Features
Latest Updates and Announcements

Preview
Environment
š You can get early access to upcoming
features before made available to
production regions
š Create a new environment with the
preview region

Components!
š Available in Preview
Environments
š Re-usable controls across your
apps!
š Create and configure your
component – Export and Import
into other apps

Improved Data Source
Functionality
š New Search Makes it Easier to find your data
sources!
š https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-
us/blog/improved-datasource-and-field-
selection-in-canvas-apps/

App Checker
š Helps you identify
issues with formulas
and possible
accessibility issues
in your app

New Default
Screens
š Several new pre-
canned screen
templates to choose
from

Solution Checker
š Analyzes any unmanaged solution for performance and stability risks
š Can identify down to the individual component (and in some cases even line of code)
patterns that are problematic
š Not released yet – in Preview only

Embed
PowerApps
in D365
Entities
You’ll soon be able to
embed PowerApps in your
Dynamics 365 Entities

Simplified
Lookups
š A new “Depends on” option
will be available for lookup
controls to easy create
cascading dropdown’s
without having to use a Filter
expression!

Rich Text Control
š Finally getting a Rich Text
Editor Control
š Available now as an
Experimental feature
š Provides WYSIWYG editing
area for formatting text

Printing Capability
š Currently no way to print a PowerApp form
š BUT - Microsoft has marked this idea as Started:
https://powerusers.microsoft.com/t5/PowerApps-Ideas/Printing/idi-p/846
š No ETA on when it will be released but monitor that link for status

Responsive Layouts
š Not released yet
š https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/business-applications-release-
notes/october18/powerapps/create-canvas-apps-with-responsive-layout

External Sharing
š 1st Quarter 2019 – External Sharing on SharePoint Customized PowerApps
š No timeline for all PowerApp External Sharing
š https://powerusers.microsoft.com/t5/PowerApps-Ideas/Share-with-external-users/idc-
p/191858

Administration
š Admin.powerapps.com
š Resources tab
š See list of all apps and flows
š See who each app is shared with
š Import and export apps
š Download list of apps
š Security tab
š See the environment roles: Admin and Maker and add users to these users. By
default, everyone in the tenant is in the Maker role
š Data Policies – restrict connector usage

Learn More
š New Training App - https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-
us/blog/powerapps-training-office/
š Power Users Community https://powerusers.microsoft.com /
š Guided Learning: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-
us/powerapps/guided-learning/
š My Blog: www.sharepointsiren.com
š PowerApps Experts: @8bitclassroom, @artsypowerapper,
@shanescows, @dchristian19

Contact Me
April Dunnam
š Twitter: @aprildunnam
š Email: April.Dunnam@thrivefast.com
š LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/April-dunnam
š ThriveFast: www.ThriveFast.com
š Blog: www.SharePointSiren.com
š Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/apeyd41686

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