Using Windows 8 to build Windows 8 apps
Microsoft Project Siena is a Windows 8 app which allows you to develop more Windows 8 apps, no programming skills required.
The process starts by placing, moving and resizing assorted objects on your page: images, videos, buttons, lists, checkboxes, whatever they might be.
You can link your visuals to data sources: RSS feeds, an Excel file, Sharepoint, Azure services and more.
Next comes the tricky task of making sure the app works as you expect. And this isn't particularly easy, at all. You don't need programming knowledge, but there are lots of options and settings you'll need to learn in order to get everything working properly (as well as entering Excel code for more complex logic).
Once it's all done then you can use the app yourself, or share it with others. See the details below for more details
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’s business processes.
Here are some examples of what people have already been building:
- Apps to explore media-rich product catalogs and create ensembles that together serve a customer’s needs
- Apps used on the spot to resolve customer service bottlenecks and logistics exceptions, with the custom intelligence to help the user make local tradeoffs
- Apps for auditing and inspecting a manufacturing facility through photos, videos, and pen and voice notes, all tied to an asset database
How Siena works
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.
Apps at the speed of imagination
With Siena, you can conceptualize, validate, and build your app ideas almost as quickly as you can come up with them. And if your needs change tomorrow, updating your app is no problem. Open it. Change it. Share it again, and you’re off to do business.
Plays well with data
Siena works well with corporate and web data and media content: SharePoint lists, Excel and Windows Azure tables, RSS feeds, and the gamut of RESTful services.
Siena apps are IT-friendly
Siena apps are just HTML5 and JavaScript and are deployed and managed like any other Windows 8 app. In fact, developers can open them up, see what’s there, and, if needed, extend them in their favourite programming tools.
Try it out
Install Siena, watch one of the how-to videos, and then build the app that you’ve been imagining—in less than an hour.
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Features
- Conceptualize, validate, and build your app ideas as easily as editing a document
- Connect to corporate and web data
- Compose rich interactive visuals to create custom, unique apps
- Add business logic and intelligence using the power of Excel expressions
- Use the app yourself, and share it with colleagues or the world
Learn More