ISO FileMaker Magazine

In the world of programming, there are various concepts you need to understand in order to create software which is both functional and resilient. Maintaining that code may be another challenge, but if you don't learn about exception handling and determining if your processes truly succeed or fail based on expectations, you risk inviting more errors and failures than you might anticipate.

In this video, we'll cover several critical aspects of a FileMaker database solution. Yes, FileMaker Pro is intended to be an "easy-to-use" or "low-code" platform. While it certainly presents itself as low code, that's only the beginning. Solving the problem is just the start; learning about exception handling, transactional data interactions, and the all-important try/catch pattern is essential. However, FileMaker doesn't offer the common try/catch option.

So, what's the alternative if we don't have try/catch? Well, we make use of the Loop script step because it allows for multiple Exit Loop If[] conditions. This, in essence, is where we can creatively use and even "abuse" our old friend, the Loop script step.

If you've never used the Loop step to handle multiple errors while solving a complex process, this video should clarify a lot about how to approach it. Along the way, we'll also cover some valuable insights related to the recent transaction steps introduced in newer versions of FileMaker Pro.