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Our Library of Videos
While it's possible to use too many colors or too many font sizes, it's rarely possible to use too much simplicity. Making your interface simple, while hiding the complexity to accomplish the desired tasks, should be your ultimate goal.
In this video I walk through four different techniques you can use to make your user interface just a bit more user friendly. Identifying the end of all records in a list view, using a double-click script, making it easy to manage buttons over tabs and making your sort columns just a bit prettier.
Do you have some of your own techniques you'd like to share? Post them in the comments section.
by Matt Petrowsky
12 minutes
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Is it an OR search or an AND search? Do I use more than one field on one request or multiple find requests with multiple fields? These may be common questions if you've not spent a lot of time searching manually through a FileMaker database.
If you're not one to teach your users how to search the FileMaker way, then maybe you should script the whole search process. In fact, that's exactly what many developers do.
From the complex to the simple, there are many ways to script a search in FileMaker. In this video, you'll find out that using a common browse mode feature will help you accomplish some complex searches and do so in such a simple manner. It's the easiest way to make a complex search an easy one, and this includes both users and developer.
Details: Released - 6/4/2007 / Size - 13.14 MB / Length - 12 min
by Matt Petrowsky
18 minutes
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- Older Article - Sorting List Views
Sorting list views is simply one of those features which all users expect. If it isn't there, they notice. If it is, then everything is fine in the world of your database.
Since FileMaker knows nothing about your solution, you have to specify which fields are sorted and in which direction. The problem with doing this across a number of scripts is having to edit all those scripts when you want to make minor changes. On top of that, you may have them organized in a variety of locations within ScriptMaker.
It certainly would be nice if sorting could be accomplished programatically - but, it can't right now. So the next best thing is creating a few universal scripts which allow you to control all of your sorting from within one script.
In this video, you'll learn how to maximize sorting your list views and making your solution that much easier to manage!
Details: Released - 5/24/2007 / Size - 18.54 MB / Length - 18 min
If you need to track changes made in your FileMaker fields, then this video and file has what you need.
Every so often there's a technique you come across which exposes a key FileMaker concept. Ray Cologon's Super Log technique is a great starting point for a very robust audit logging system. I've enhanced Ray's original technique and taken it to the next level.
Given the new features in FileMaker 7 and higher, there's really no reason you shouldn't take the few minutes it takes to implement and maintain full tracking of all field changes.
If you need to go few steps further than what the technique provides, then watching this video will get you on your way!
Details: Released - 5/16/2007 / Size - 24.05 MB / Length - 31 min
There's a lot to FileMaker if you really want to know it all. Of course, it's helps if you know it's not possible to know it all. There are just too many aspects which affect so many technological areas to know it all.
Maybe you just want to learn how to do even the most simple things. If you don't need the complex techniques covered on much of this website, then you may be looking for FileMaker basics.
I'm deciding if I should start a series which covers the most basic of concepts related to learning and knowing FileMaker.
Before I do that, I need to hear from you. Is this something that you may be interested in? Watch the video on this page and send your feedback using this feedback form.
by Matt Petrowsky
21 minutes
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After spending more time with the original Layout Properties, sent in by Fabrice Nordmann, I decided to revise his approach. I personally wanted to use a single text field to control how a Layout would render.
My revisions to this method are included in the technique file for this video.
Watch this video if you want to learn a powerful method for controlling how your layouts are rendered. Using a dedicated layout object, you can reduce the total number of steps in many of your scripts. Full window control can be harnessed when using this technique - it's something I would consider core to any solution!
Details: Released - 5/7/2007 / Size - 24.93 MB / Length - 21 min
by Matt Petrowsky
23 minutes
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One of the most powerful features added to FileMaker in version 8.5 was Layout Objects. This one feature alone has spawned, and will spawn, a large number of techniques which extend what you can do within your database solution.
In this video, I present two different uses of layout objects, both from different developers, and how they can be leveraged to create what I'm calling Smart Layouts. This is an approach which allows an individual layout to contain most of the information needed to make sure the layout is presented the way you desire. You may disagree with me, but I find that it minimalizes the amount of code dispersion (all those trips into ScriptMaker) and simplifies your ability to keep your solution clean and easy to understand.
The concept, once understood, can be used to implement a wide array of features. Watch this video to grasp a solid understanding of the basics of how it functions.
Details: Released - 4/30/2007 / Size - 48.54 MB / Length - 23 min
One of my favorite topics is clarity. Not just because it makes things easier to understand, especially in a shorter period of time, but also because it facilitates standards which make everything easier to understand - across solutions and developers. If everyone stuck to a few graph standards, then every time you open Define Database, you'll at least start to feel comfortable a bit faster.
Granted, not everyone's at the same level of development, however, you can always make your own database easier to understand - even if it's just yourself working on the file.
In this video, I talk with fellow developer Stephen Dolenski of FMForums.com. We talk about a technique which Stephen has been using to solve complex graph issues, plus some other tidbits about documentation and making your graph easier to work with.
If you need more information about different graph models then here's an older video where I covered those!
FileMaker has a heritage it simply can't get away from - at least not yet. That heritage is represented by the fact that each FileMaker file used to be its own table prior to version 7. This meant having a window showing, was a guaranteed fact you were looking at a given table. When running scripts, FileMaker knew it would act upon the data of that table. Same file, same table, same data. That was a few versions back.
Enter FileMaker 7 and the ability to have multiple windows, multiple found sets and multiple instances of tables showing. FileMaker had to establish some type of method for acting on the data - they chose context. Running a script on a Customers layout, tied to a customers table, means the script will assume it should take actions based on the context - whether or not it makes sense.
So developers must now anticipate context and script accordingly. There are, however, situations where you need general routines that will function solution wide - regardless of context. This is when you need to use the methodology of "Take it with you".
In this video I'll show you a few of the complex methods I use for passing context based data into a non-context based script. It's a valuable skill that any FileMaker developer should have!
No matter how you go about it, you'll simply have to use a plug-in in order to get email direct from a server into your database. There are methods such as using a client to retrieve the email and then use AppleScript on the Macintosh to pull email from the client into a client copy of FileMaker Pro. I've never even tried VB Script (nor do I want to).
The question, however, is "Why not pull the email right into FileMaker fields?". The answer to that question is "Sure, let's do that!". All you need is a freely available PHP class, the ever powerful PHP plug-in from Scodigo.com, and little bit of know how.
Fortunately, this video is going to provide the know-how. Using the included technique file and a copy of the PHP plug-in, you'll be pulling email right into FileMaker in no time! What you do with it after that is up to you!