10 Years of IFML: From OMG Standard to Automated Modeling

Ten years have passed since the Object Management Group adopted IFML as the standard for modeling the User Interaction of applications. In 2015, Richard Soley, President of OMG, gave an interview confirming the interest in our visual language, covering a field of front-end application development not yet explored, where there were no standards, and development relied on traditional, slow, and costly programming for developers.

Since then, IFML has exponentially spread due to its open-source nature, giving rise to projects such as the IFML editor or web editor. These tools allow firsthand exploration of the potential of visual design. Over the years, the modeling language has been the object of study in thousands of universities worldwide, including institutions like Politecnico di Milano and the University of Bologna in Italy. It has equipped thousands of students with the skills necessary for using Low-Code development environments to address the challenge of a shortage of resources compared to the demand for digital solutions in recent years.

Projects developed using IFML go beyond simple editors. There are also examples of implementations that look towards the future of development, such as a tool for generating IFML models from textual requirements or a virtual assistant for modeling through voice recognition. These are instances of systems revolutionizing the approach to modeling with IFML, similar to what ChatGPT has done for Artificial Intelligence.

IFML Extensions: WebRatio Platform for the Web

IFML's fundamental characteristic is its platform independence, allowing its application in the development of applications for any device: tablets, smartphones, laptops, and desktop PCs (as seen in an implementation for CERN).

WebRatio Platform utilizes an IFML extension dedicated to the web, introducing additional concepts (such as "Modal Window" "Form" or "Select Event" for example) to the essential ones already present in the standard. Anyone can extend these concepts to apply them to their preferred technology. These additional concepts in the modeling language empower WebRatio Platform to design and automatically create web and mobile applications.

IFML, along with other standards like UML and BPMN, forms the set of open-source Low-Code languages available to users of WebRatio Platform. This integration provides a three-in-one development environment, increasing productivity while maintaining the same quality and control as traditional programming.

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