PowerFx is a low code programming language that is based on the foundation of Microsoft Power Apps canvas. Power Fx is based on Microsoft Excel. It allows a broad range of people to bring skills they already know and becomes a common ground for business users and professional developers alike to express logic and solve problems.
Microsoft plans to open source Power Fx, making the language available for open contribution by the broader community on GitHub.
Benefits of using formulas
Formulas make it easy to define a calculation that calculates specific properties automatically and keeps those calculations up to date. With formulas, unlike expressions with typical ordinary programming languages, everyone is working from the same source of truth, saving time, money and reduces errors.
Familiarity with Power Apps
Power Fx has the same Expression bar inside Power Apps. You can use that in your own own projects and use your own syntax and file format or other styles which you can develop which is beneficial for business operations.
The power of Excel
Power Fx shares the same syntax and functions as Excel, where it behaves much in the same way its popular spreadsheet application handles formulas. The concept is at the core Power Fx is to make programming apps as easily as building a spreadsheet in Excel. Instead of having to grapple with multiple pieces of code, Power Fx leverages formulas, which are declarative and immediately recalculate as code is updated. This means any errors are detected and highlighted immediately and do not interfere with the rest of the code.
Availability
By the end of 2021, the plan is for Power Fx to be available for Dataverse calculated columns, and also be embedded into the AI Builder data prep where you seeing Power Fx formulas being leveraged in AI. and lastly Power Virtual Agents which is Microsoft low code chatbot platform. The low code programming language is rolling out slowly, but developers would be able to use it directly to edit in text editors like Visual Studio Code.
On the GitHub side, Microsoft have already started publishing the information of the PowerFX with the examples of the documents to use expressions and grammars.
Watch Microsoft Power Fx announcement at Ignite Sessions
Starting at 5:33:32 onwards on Microsoft Power Fx via Microsoft Ignite 2021, March 2nd summit.
Summary
Power Fx offers a familiar and approachable way to express logic to the average joe of small business owners that have been familiar with Microsoft Excel for years. The tool is aimed at professional developers that work in organisations that gives them the ability to edit in text editors such as Visual Studio Code and use source control. This could makie it easier and faster for developers and find common ground between average joe’s of business owners and developers which makes the tool solid and robust for all.
For those interested, learn more here about Microsoft plans with the 2 year gradual rollout of ‘Power Fx’ for Power Platform based on Microsoft Excel. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below about Power Fx!
