Siena is an app for building apps. An app is a Siena document with a .siena extension. Here is what Microsoft\u2019s Bryan Group says<\/a>:<\/p>\n Microsoft Project Siena (code name) is the beta release of a new technology for business experts, business analysts, consultants, and other app imagineers. Now, without any programming, you can create powerful apps for the device-first and cloud-connected world, with the potential to transform today\u2019s business processes.<\/p>\n Building Siena apps is as easy as editing a document. Place some visuals on a canvas. Hook them up to your data. Customize how your app looks and works. Then, if you need special logic and intelligence, write Excel-like expressions. You can use your app immediately, or share it with colleagues or the world.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n This sounds great to me. I installed it and set about building an app. I decided to create the same app I have used to try out dozens of programming tools over the years: a to-do list with the ability to add and remove tasks<\/p>\n Building the user interface went OK, but how do I add and remove items from the list? I have got as far as figuring out that I need to type the right magic into the OnSelect property of a button:<\/p>\n I will let you know when I have worked out what to do next. I will observe that the environment is geared towards data binding, rather than directly updating the user interface, and remote data, such as binding to tables in Azure Mobile Services, a REST API, an RSS feed or a SharePoint list. However you can also bind to an Excel spreadsheet for local data.<\/p>\n To deploy your Siena app, you hit Publish:<\/p>\n This creates a package of files, including InstallApp.exe. Siena generates HTML and JavaScript so you can learn a lot about the environment by poking around in the generated files.<\/p>\n Run InstallApp.exe and the app installs into your local PC. Mine runs fine, it just does not work yet.<\/p>\n Siena, as is usual for this type of release, suffers from lack of documentation. There is a function reference<\/a> and a few sketchy help topics<\/a>. There are also some sample apps<\/a>. Here is what the Personnel Manager has in the OnSelect of its Add button; perhaps this is a clue:<\/p>\n UpdateIf(Assoc,ID = ThisItem!ID,{AssignedTo:SelectedDepartment, Time:Now()}); RemoveIf(SelectedAssociates, ID = ThisItem!ID)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n While it is great to have a genuinely easy visual interface builder, the development features of Visual Studio are greatly missed; the code editor as far as I can tell is limited to a single line in a text input field, though you do get a squiggly underline if you do it wrong, and a bit of code completion.<\/p>\n How is the average \u201cbusiness expert, business analyst, consultant, and other app imagineer\u201d going to get on with Project Siena? That is the question; and in the current preview I\u2019d guess they will be flummoxed and go straight back to Excel or Access, though I would love to be proved wrong.<\/p>\n It looks like a lot of work has gone into this though, and no doubt better documentation and enhanced features are on the way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Remember Visual Basic? By which I mean, not the current language that is a case-insensitive alternative to C# that does much the same thing, but the original rapid app development tool that democratised Windows development back in 1991. At the time, Windows development was a sought-after skill but rather difficult. VB meant anyone could create … Continue reading Microsoft Project Siena: another go at the spirit of Visual Basic<\/span> ![\"image\"](\"http:\/\/www.itwriting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/image_thumb1.png\" "\\"image\\"")
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<\/a><\/p>\nUnfortunately there is no \u201cRun\u201d button<\/strike>. You can preview your Siena app by pressing F5 or tapping the Run button in the top app bar. <\/p>\n![\"image\"](\"http:\/\/www.itwriting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/image_thumb4.png\" "\\"image\\"")
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