Understanding Named Formulas in Microsoft Power Apps

by HubSite 365 about Angelo Gulisano [MVP]

Productivity Solutions Manager presso Npo Sistemi | Microsoft Certified Trainer

Citizen DeveloperPower AppsLearning Selection

Improve your apps performance with Named Formulas in Microsoft Power Apps; a meticulous guide by an MS expert.

Insightful New Experimental Feature on Power Apps

Power Apps has introduced an exciting experimental feature, known as Named Formulas. This innovative feature does not only enhance the performance but also makes the application code neater. However, as it is still in testing phase, it's recommended not to use Named Formulas in production applications yet.

So how does it work? It allows formulas to be written and reused in any section of the application. Under 'Formulas', one can add their own formulas, which subsequently boosts the overall operational speed of the application.

To utilize this feature, one must first enable it via Settings. Once done, a new property called "Formulas" will be visible in your application. Here, you can place your own formulas.

Advantageous Aspects of Named Formulas

The advantages to using Named Formulas are numerous. The formula's value is always available, with no timing dependency. There's no need for events like 'App.OnStart' to be executed. This allows for parallel calculations of formulas, keeping the formula's value consistently up to date.

Another significant edge is the formula's definition; it remains immutable. Unlike variables, the definition in App.Formulas is the solitary "source of truth" which prevents its value from being altered elsewhere in the app. Finally, calculation on demand means values are calculated only when the application needs it, which can significantly improve app load time.

Deeper Look at Power Apps

Power Apps, an offering from Microsoft, is a service for developing and using custom business applications which connect to your data and operate on the web and mobile without the time and expense of custom software development. It’s part of the Microsoft Power Platform, which also includes Power BI (for data analysis) and Power Automate (for automating business workflows).

With Named Formulas, Power Apps takes the user experience a notch higher, by allowing testers and developers to write reusable formula codes, hence mitigating slow starting of their applications. The use of this feature not only simplifies the code structure but also promotes efficient performance in the testing phase.

For more information on setting up and using Named Formulas in Power Apps, click here.

Please note that this is a summary of a post written by Angelo Gulisano, and all views expressed are his own.

Read the full article Power Apps – Named Formulas

Power Apps - Understanding Named Formulas in Microsoft Power Apps

Learn about Power Apps – Named Formulas

The text discusses an innovative feature in Power Apps, specifically named formulas, that has the potential to improve the performance of your app and streamline its coding. This feature, however, is experimental and is not recommended for use in production apps. Learning about these features can be beneficial for developers looking to optimize their apps in terms of speed and coding efficiency.

The author speaks about the advantage of using App.OnStart to initialise variables, load data, and perform operations. But some of these actions could cause slow starting of your application. A suggested solution is to use named formulas, which can be incorporated into any part of the app for reusability.

To use it, one needs to first enable the experimental feature in the settings. A new property referred to as "Formulas" will appear in the app where you can add your formulas. Even complex formulas can be added and used across the app, offering flexibility to developers.

Named formulas come with several advantages. First, their value is always available and up to date, requiring no event like App.OnStart to execute. Additionally, they can be calculated in parallel and their definition is immutable, with the value residing exclusively in App.Formulas which can’t be arbitrarily changed elsewhere in the app. Lastly, these values are only computed when needed, which can potentially improve app loading time.

This informative piece aims to serve as a resource for developers. An insightful link is provided in the text for anyone seeking further information on the subject. Lastly, the author encourages readers to reach out for any questions or more information.

From a learning perspective, getting hands-on experience with such features could be insightful for developers. They could experiment with adding different formulas under the "Formulas" property in their Power Apps applications. Online courses on platforms like Coursera, edX or LinkedIn Learning, which cover advanced features in Power Apps, could also be very useful.

In summary, while named formulas are an experimental feature, they offer several potential advantages to developers in their applications. Their usage could lead to an improvement in the performance and efficiency of Power Apps applications.

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In conclusion, gaining a deeper understanding of Power Apps and its advanced features, including named formulas, could be greatly advantageous for any tech-savvy individual looking to enhance their app development skills.

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