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Build your first app

Quickstart15 minFoundation

You will build a small app where colleagues request equipment, then add the first request yourself. It takes six steps and about 15 minutes. You need a workspace and a Designer account. Nothing here touches your existing apps.

  1. Module
  2. Fields
  3. Form
  4. List
  5. Application
  6. First request

Step 1 of 6: Create the module

Section titled “Step 1 of 6: Create the module”

A moduleModuleA table of business data (for example Customers) with fields, forms, views and automation.Open glossary ↗ holds one kind of record. Yours holds equipment requests.

  1. In the left rail, click Modules, then Add module.
  2. Type Equipment Requests as the Name.
  3. Click Create module.
The New module dialog on the Modules page, with the name Equipment Requests typed and the Create module button ready.
    Names start with a letter and use English letters, numbers, spaces or underscores.
    Create module adds a card to the page.

Step 2 of 6: Add the lists and fields

Section titled “Step 2 of 6: Add the lists and fields”

A fieldFieldA column of a module with a type, label and system name.Open glossary ↗ is one piece of information on each request. Category and Status pick from fixed lists, so create those lists first.

  1. Click Lookups, then New lookup, and choose Paste values.
  2. Type Equipment categories as the Name, and Laptop, Monitor, Headset and Desk chair in Values, one per line. Click Create lookup.
  3. Repeat with Request statuses: Requested, Approved, Ordered, Delivered.
The New lookup panel on the Lookups page with Paste values chosen, the name Equipment categories and four values typed, one per line.
    Paste values takes one value per line.
    Create lookup saves the list.

Now open Modules, choose Equipment Requests, and for each row below click Add field, fill it in and click Save field.

LabelTypeSetting
ItemTextNone
CategoryLookupValues come from: Equipment categories
ReasonText areaNone
Needed byDateNone
Estimated costCurrencyCurrency: USD
StatusLookupValues come from: Request statuses
The Fields page for Equipment Requests listing Item, Category, Reason, Needed by, Estimated cost and Status below the key field.
    Add field opens the editor for the next field.
    Your six fields, below the key field Beezr made with the module.

Step 3 of 6: Build the form

Section titled “Step 3 of 6: Build the form”

The form is the page people fill in.

  1. In the top bar, click Forms. The form opens with one block, Request Details.
  2. In the Fields list on the left, click Add all.
  3. Click Save.
The form builder for Equipment Requests with the six fields placed in the Request Details block.
    Add all places every field in the first block.
    Drag a field to change the order.
    Save stores the form.

Step 4 of 6: Choose the list columns

Section titled “Step 4 of 6: Choose the list columns”

A data viewData viewOne way to browse a module's records in the app: Table, Kanban, Schedule, Spreadsheet, Cards or List.Open glossary ↗ decides how people browse many records. Choose what the list shows.

  1. Click Dataviews. The Table tab is open.
  2. Click Add columns and pick Item, Category, Needed by, Estimated cost and Status.
  3. Click Save.
The Table tab of the Dataviews page for Equipment Requests with Item, Category, Needed by, Estimated cost and Status as columns.
    Each column is a field people see in the list.
    Save stores the view.

Step 5 of 6: Build the application

Section titled “Step 5 of 6: Build the application”

An applicationApplicationA named menu of modules (grouped into sections) that people open in App space.Open glossary ↗ is the menu people use in App space. Put your module in it.

  1. In the left rail, click New application, then Start from Blank.
  2. Type Equipment as the Name.
  3. Click Add first group, type Requests, and press Enter.
  4. Click Add modules, tick Equipment Requests, and click Done.
  5. Click Save.
The App builder with the application named Equipment, one group called Requests, and the Equipment Requests module inside it.
    Active is on, so people can open the app.
    A group becomes a section of the side menu.

Step 6 of 6: Add your first request

Section titled “Step 6 of 6: Add your first request”
  1. On My applications, open the menu of the Equipment card and click Open in App space.
  2. In the side menu, under Requests, click Equipment Requests, then New.
  3. Fill in the form, choose Requested as the Status, and click Save.

Your request now sits in the list. Your first app is live. 🎉

Where to go next

Section titled “Where to go next”

Check your setup

Section titled “Check your setup”
  • The module is not in the menu. Open the application in the Designer and check that the module sits inside a group.
  • A field is missing from the form. Add it in Forms with Add all or by dragging it into a block, then click Save.
  • The list shows few details. Add the fields as columns on the Table tab of Dataviews.

Check yourself

Which step makes the module visible to people in App space?
Show the answer

Adding the module to a group in an application. People open modules through an application's menu. A module in an application's group gets its own entry in the side menu.

You add a request in App space, but the list shows an empty row. What do you add in the Designer?
Show the answer

Columns on the Table tab of Dataviews. The table shows the columns you choose. Add the fields you want people to see in the list.

What's next

Set up a Kanban boardTurn on a Kanban board that groups a module's records into columns by a lookup field, and design the card people see.Tutorial: an approval workflow for purchase ordersBuild a workflow that sends large purchase orders to a manager, approves small ones automatically, emails rejections, and read its runs in the debugger.

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