m-Power's new application preview window simplifies development

January 2012 · Oak Brook, IL

Today, software developer Michaels, Ross & Cole, Ltd. (mrc) announces m-Power's new application preview enhancement. m-Power is a development platform that rapidly creates web applications such as report-writing, Business Intelligence, executive dashboards, e-commerce, customer portals, and mobile applications to name a few.

This new enhancement provides a preview window where users can see their application take shape during the build process. m-Power's build process differs from other development platforms (like IDEs), which often start the build process with a blank canvas. Instead, m-Power's build process takes a template-based approach, which provides users with a pre-formatted, yet customizable, application layout. The template approach reduces development time, as it eliminates the tedious and repetitive task of formatting each application from scratch, while still providing the option to alter the layout as desired.

Once a user selects their template and data tables, the new application preview window provides a real-time view of application, complete with live data. As the user goes through the build process, every change is instantly reflected in the preview window. This will help m-Power users in a couple of ways:

• Minimize mistakes. Since all changes are immediately reflected in the preview window, users can instantly catch their mistakes. They'll be able to see if they picked the wrong template, forgot to add any data, formatted fields incorrectly, or made any other errors.
• Speeds up application development. The application preview window removes a step in the build process. Previously, the user had to compile the application to view it, and then recompile the application if any changes were necessary. The application preview window lets users make sure the application looks correct before compiling, which will save time.

"The application preview window turns development into an even more visual experience," says Brian Crowley, mrc's Director of Development. "Most importantly, it will further simplify application development for m-Power users, which is our highest goal."

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