5 things every Power Apps beginner needs to know

#powerapps #PowerPlatform #CanvasApps

Diving into Power Apps can be both exhilarating and a bit overwhelming, especially when you're just starting out. In this video, we've got you covered with a comprehensive guide that walks you through the essential tips every beginner needs to know to have a smooth start in their Power Apps journey.

1. Forms are Your Friend
Discover the simplicity and efficiency of using forms when you're new to Power Apps. Learn how to quickly get results by focusing on working with data using forms, setting up your data source, and utilizing the SubmitForm function to kickstart your Power Apps adventure.

2. Flow: The Double-Edged Sword
Get insights into the judicious use of Flow in Power Apps. Understand when to integrate Flow and when to stick to the functionalities within Power Apps to maintain a streamlined app environment.

3. Renaming Controls for Efficiency
Dive into the practical approach of renaming controls in your Power Apps environment. Learn the benefits of renaming only the controls that you reference elsewhere, keeping your workspace organized and your formulas intuitive.

4. Labels: The Unsung Heroes in Troubleshooting
Explore the pivotal role of labels in troubleshooting your Power Apps. Learn how to use labels to visualize variables, controls, and outputs, and understand the nuances of your app, facilitating a smoother troubleshooting process.

5. App Checker: Your First Line of Defense Against Errors
Familiarize yourself with the App Checker, a crucial tool in maintaining the health of your app. Learn the importance of addressing errors as soon as they appear, preventing small issues from turning into larger problems.

6. Power Apps Just Wants What It Wants
Grasp the fundamental lesson that "Power Apps just wants what it wants." Understand the flexibility Power Apps offers in finding solutions and learn how to satisfy the requirements of Power Apps efficiently and effectively.

Whether you're a beginner eager to learn or a pro looking to revisit the basics, this video is your go-to guide to navigate the initial stages of Power Apps with confidence and ease. Equip yourself with these tips and set a solid foundation for your Power Apps journey.

0:00 Power Apps Beginner Video
0:38 Forms are fine
4:35 Flow - Friend or Foe?
6:41 Rename some controls
10:45 Use Labels for troubleshooting
14:31 Don't work with Errors
16:27 Power Apps wants what Power Apps wants!

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[bakaratn]

U don't wanna know how many times i shouted out Uh oh watching this...

[buithe]

Your videos have been an absolute lifesaver for me as I've been diving into the world of PowerApps. Your explanations are clear, your tutorials are well-structured, and you make learning this complex tool seem so much easier.

I really appreciate the time and effort you put into creating these tutorials. They've not only helped me in my professional work but have also sparked my interest in exploring more about PowerApps. Keep up the fantastic work, and please know that your efforts are making a real difference for learners like me. Looking forward to more amazing content from your channel! 👏🙌😊

[kevinjoseph]

Great pitch mate… I’ve been watching this channel for over a year now. I like your delivery, content is on point. Keep winning!

[JasonHeath]

Shane, not trying to blow your head up, but I wanted to say I relate to your teaching style, humor, and general demeanor more than any teacher I have ever had. Thank you for putting these out!

[vidalrick]

Shane I can't tell how much I have learned from you, and you keep feeding us with good stuff! Thank you! And thank you for the tip about renaming controls. Everyone keep saying to rename everything and you just set me free of the guilt of not doing it, thanks!!!

One thing I'd like to see in one more detailed video from you would be how to export data to Word or Excel documents. This is the one thing that I can't understand why Microsoft doesn't have well done. I also work with the no-code platform Appenate, and it is so freaking easy to build a form that will take the information from app and export directly to a Word or Excel document, just add a simple place holder with the name of the field... but not with Power Apps which is a Microsoft Platform... I can't understand.

[ShaneC]

I did get in the habit of changing label names because I once had some labels displaying different text based on complicated logic (if this and that OR that and this OR !that). And corresponding icons that needed to change color based on whether the related label contained a specific string. Rather than repeat the same logic in the icons, I changed their color based on if the substring was present in the label.text. Naming the labels something meaningful made that easier to write and to follow. Of course, now I realize it probably would've been simpler to update context vars in the OnChange property of the input that drove all of it and then use those vars to set the labels and the icon colors. But you live and learn

[spen]

"Power apps what what it totally agree. Best way to learn is by following the red blobs and red underline (errors) and understanding why. Nice work as always 💥💥💥💥💥

[wendymason]

Thank you Shane, a great video as usual and even though I'm not a beginner, thanks to you, I am always learning. What I have learnt today is that it's ok not to rename every single control, even those labels that I don't directly reference - I am going to save myself so much time, happy days 🥳🥳🥳

[PowerAppsBuilderGroup]

ending is the best lesson; practice is the only way to get better at anything and programming is no difference. so you should say it's actually 7 tips. great video Shane!

[timwalter]

Shane, I totally get the "PowerApps wants what it wants". I needed the ability to vary the height of a text input, so I put together a quick formula to calculate the length of the input string and vary the height of the input box to grow as the length of the input increases. All it wanted was a number. I could make a career from what I have learned from your videos.

[TheKermit]

Essential, Brilliant, Simple and a great way to relax my brain after the amazing JSON vid i just

[MarieCastine]

The naming of controls is the bane of my existence! LOL! I have learned to just focus on renaming cards, data elements and labels. I never rename the other elements inside a form card. I do rename labels because I use logic on those, etc. I loosely follow the white paper Power Apps guidance on naming and it is quick to name the items in a card. I do: cardItemName, lblItemName, dataItemName, drpItemName, etc. Just copy the "Item Name" and rename at the same time. I also add a theme onto those controls which I will be very happy when that is available in GCC so i dont have to manually create the theme screen, etc.

[jeanpierreragequit]

4:36 . Thx u so much Shane. Our community manager ( a confirmed dev) invited us to use flows instead of code in app. As a citizen dev, i was desagree with him spending a lot of time to code my solution with an app able to perform the same result as any flow when was possible with PowerFX. I told me since the beginning : " why make a flow when i can do it with my app in a row ? " . U confirm i did the right choice.
( apologize my bad english language, english language is not my native one )

[JackalBruit]

i rename labels b/c i have found myself pulling settings from a "Parent" label

e.g. like Parent.X or Parent.Font

thus renaming at least that Parent label makes my life easier if i am debugging trying to find this driving Parent label

[lawrencesproul]

I rename labels that are referenced somewhere else. For example, sometimes I will use a set of labels to preprocess text for inclusion, by concatenation, in an html control.

[mickyslim]

Hi Shane... another great video that I have saved in my playlist and OneNote!
What if you are a total beginner (9 months in to my new career) who has taken over from someone using more advanced methods... What tips do you have for me to unpick their code and troubleshoot errors? I have found it quite difficult to make new developments on the more complicated apps they created.

[nightfire]

Nice video Shane! I will say on the naming labels thing, i always will if they have conditional visibility as if i have a lot of labels on the screen and some are not easy to click on without activating the app's conditions, I will want to be able to find it in tree view - what do you reckon?

[stuartduncan]

Another great video. Hopefully, I didn't learn anything here but still good to know that I'm doing it right. Thanks.

[cvkealey]

I'm one of those weirdos that renames *every* *single* *control*, even labels. However, the reason is that I almost always use relative positioning (yeah, yeah...I should use responsive containers, but I don't), so it really helps me keep track of what's where in a screen.

[oluwatobipaul]

Thanks for this beginner tips. I would recommend it to beginners I know