Mendix has released the latest version of its application Platform-as-a-Service (aPaaS). This new Mendix Digital Experience (DX) release includes new UI framework with pre-crafted templates; OData support; enhancements to company’s online developer community; and an expanded Free Edition with production capability.
Mendix has simplified its User Experience (UX) design offering a low code environment with a new set of UI patterns, themes, navigation layouts, and page templates. Mendix also now supports OData, an open protocol that enables creation and consumption of query-able and interoperable RESTful APIs for data offering the ability to pull live data from Mendix applications into BI and analytics tools, such as Tableau, SAS, R and Excel. A new streaming query mechanism features high performance and low memory usage.
The new UI Framework offers the following:
- Themes: Themes define the overall look and feel of an application. There are three customizable themes developers can use or they can create their own.
- Navigation Layouts: Navigation layouts control how users navigate through an application (such as top-bar or side-bar main and sub menus). A set of navigation layouts for each device type (phone, tablet or desktop) comes bundled with each theme.
- Page Templates: Available are pre-defined templates for numerous common page types, including Overview, Master-detail, Dashboard, Location and Wizard. These templates are available for every type of device. There is also a fully responsive Layout Grid that makes pages scale on any device.
- Design Elements: Developers can design a page by connecting data elements and adding additional widgets from the UI elements that come with the platform. Using Design Elements, widgets can be styled quickly to preference for style, color, size, alignment and attachment.
The release also offers an improved developer experience through upgraded sign-up flows, project wizards, instructional videos, how-to guides and an enhanced developer website.
The Mendix Free Edition provides a full-production platform, 100% free of charge. Companies can build and deploy unlimited applications, up to 10 users each. This includes backups, monitoring, live debugging, REST support and deep-linking. The Mendix Free Edition replaces the Mendix Community Edition.