computer science

Mendix

Mendix is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Mendix rather than just read about it. In short: Mendix is a cloud-based low-code application development platform that provides tools for organizations to build web and mobile applications using visual drag-and-drop elements. Mendix was founded in 2005 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Key takeaways

Mendix belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Mendix to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Mendix from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Mendix is a cloud-based low-code application development platform that provides tools for organizations to build web and mobile applications using visual drag-and-drop elements. Mendix was founded in 2005 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Its US headquarters are located in Boston. Since 2018, Mendix has been a Siemens subsidiary.

History Mendix was founded in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, by Roald Kruit, Derek Roos, and Derckjan Kruit. Roald, a freelance software developer at the time, noticed a communication disconnect between software developers and end users, which often led to dissatisfaction with the developed applications. Using a visual development language, Mendix's founders wanted to create a platform that would enable better collaboration and understanding between developers and business users. In October 2011, Mendix raised $13 million with its first round of venture capital funding. In August 2018, the company's co-founder and CEO announced its acquisition by Siemens for $730 million in cash. The deal was finalized later that year. It was reported that Mendix would continue to operate as an independent entity. Siemens customers can use Mendix to extend functionality of Siemens software and create their own applications on top of it, such as connecting various IT systems or tracking the production of products in various facilities. In February 2024, Raymond Kok was appointed as Mendix's new CEO.

Features Mendix aims to support the entire software development lifecycle (SDLC) with an integrated development environment (IDE) with tools for businesses to build, test, iterate, and deploy applications driven by a visual programming language. Organizations can use their own or Mendix's servers to host their applications. According to Roos, the platform should not replace professional programmers instead of promoting collaboration with them, as "[p]rofessional IT people supply the technical, low-coder the logistics theme". In 2014, Mendix introduced a free community edition of the platform without the private server deployment, app monitoring, backup, resource management, and enterprise support features. The system is built on Java now, and starting from version Mendix 10.18, it will be based on React. At CES 2024 in January 2024, Siemens and AWS announced they were integrating Mendix with Amazon Bedrock, a machine learning platform used to build generative artificial intelligence applications on AWS cloud computing platform. Mendix enables the development of a wide range of business applications, including customer relationship management (CRM) systems, booking and reservation applications, e-commerce platforms, supply chain management tools, workflow automation solutions, healthcare management systems, and financial applications.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Mendix

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Mendix claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Mendix before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Mendix ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Mendix

In research: Mendix appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Mendix in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Mendix is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2005 establishments, Companies based in Boston, Enterprise architecture, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Mendix outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Mendix in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Mendix means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Mendix out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mendix in simple terms?

Why does Mendix matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Mendix?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Mendix.