MightyData

FileMaker and WordPress Consultants

  • Company
    • About
    • Contact
    • Team
    • Artists
  • Services
    • Consulting
    • Development
    • Our Process
    • Coaching
    • Training
  • Results
    • Customers
    • Success Stories
    • Testimonials
  • Blog

12 Days of FileMaker 12: FileMaker Go Enhancements

April 23, 2012 by Kirk Bowman Leave a Comment

FileMaker 12 "touch" themes for iPhone & iPad

The first and most important new feature is that FileMaker Go 12 is now free. It is truly a game changer. Anyone with an iOS device can now give it a test drive. FileMaker Go 11 is still available as a paid app, so there is more incentive to move to FileMaker 12.

New Features in FileMaker Go 12

  1. Starter Solutions – Several features in FileMaker 12 make it easier to design screens for the iOS. There are sixteen starter solutions, each with layouts for iPhone and iPad. Four solutions are installed by default with FileMaker Go 12: Assets, Contacts, Content Managements and Tasks. FileMaker Pro 12  has screen stencils with the specific dimensions of the iPhone and iPad in portrait and landscape mode.
  2. Layout Themes – There are 40 new layout themes, five specifically designed for iOS: Cool Gray Touch, Onyx Touch, Ocean Touch, River Touch and Wave Touch. They have larger fonts and objects ideal for touch screen devices.
  3. iOS Multitasking – Multitasking has significantly improved in FileMaker Go 12. In earlier versions, FileMaker Go had to terminate when it went to the background. Now it goes into a suspended state, which means it will resume much faster when it comes back to the foreground. The fmreauthenticate extended privilege gives you more control over when a user has to re-login after the app goes into the background.
  4. Exporting – FileMaker Go 12 includes support for exporting records directly in the iOS. You can create tab-delimited, CSV, DBF, HTML and Excel (XLSX) files to email or open directly on the device. It can also read and write Snapshot Link files. Snapshots allow you to save a state of the database (current layout, found set, record, sort order) and share with another user who also has access.
  5. Charting – Charting functionality is much better in FileMaker 12. It is great for creating management dashboards for mobile solutions. In addition to bar, line and pie charts, FileMaker 12 now has  Scatter, Stacked Bar, Positive/Negative, and Bubble charts.
  6. Container Fields – Container fields offer more functionality across the entire FileMaker 12 product line. FileMaker Go 12 can access remote container data managed by FileMaker Server. It can view streaming and interactive content like video and PDF files. Interaction with the content on the iPhone/iPad includes access to the camera and photo library, recording audio, capturing a signature and viewing multiple file types (PDF, Excel, etc.).
    FileMaker Go 12 container menu
  7. Location Functions – FileMaker Go 12 includes two new calculation functions to work with location information oniOS devices. Note, these functions only work withiOS devices.
    • Location ( accuracy { ; timeout } ) will return the latitude and longitude for the device.
    • LocationValues ( accuracy { ; timeout } ) will return latitude, longitude, altitude, accuracy and age of the data.
  8. Get Functions – Other calculations (some old, some new) for working withiOS solutions include:
    • Get ( SystemPlatform ) – Returns the operating system for the device
    • Get ( ApplicationVersion ) – Returns the version of FileMaker Go (iPad or iPhone/iPod Touch)
    • Get ( PersistentID ) – Returns a unique identifier for the computer or  device
    • Get ( ConnectionState ) – Returns whether FileMaker Server is using a secure connection (SSL)
    • Get ( UUID ) – Returns a universally unique identifier useful for primary keys

FileMaker Go Training

These are just some of the features I covered in this session from the 12 Days of FileMaker 12.

Filed Under: Layout Design Tagged With: 12 Days of FileMaker 12, FileMaker 12, FileMaker Go, Video

12 Days of FileMaker 12: Quick Table View

April 23, 2012 by Susan Fennema Leave a Comment

Table View might just be one of the least appreciated features in the FileMaker Pro product line. True, it has hardly changed in versions 7 through 9, and the changes in 10 were welcome but fairly simple.

Table View in FileMaker Pro

All that changed in 11 with the addition of two bold new features that allow a developer to create a table quickly and perform summary analyses, all without ever leaving the comfort of browse mode. FileMaker 12 brings welcome refinements to this important family of features and makes Table View a tool worthy of a fresh look.

In this session from the 12 Days of FileMaker 12, we explore practical uses of Table View and showcase changes to it.

About Mark Richman

Mark Richman is the CEO and founder of Skeleton Key, a FileMaker Business Alliance Platinum level member based in St. Louis, Missouri. He leads a team of Certified Developers and an IT consulting division in providing multi-platform development and technology consulting for customers in a broad array of markets.  He is certified in FileMaker versions 8 through 11 and an Authorized FileMaker Trainer.

When Mark isn’t running his company or wrestling with his four sons, you can find him writing TechNet articles for FileMaker Inc.; speaking at the FileMaker Developer Conference; or evangelizing about how to get the best performance out of your FileMaker application.

Filed Under: Layout Design Tagged With: 12 Days of FileMaker 12, FileMaker 12, Layout objects, Video

12 Days of FileMaker 12: Container Field Enhancements

April 23, 2012 by Kirk Bowman Leave a Comment

FileMaker Pro 12 brings a new storage method for container fields. This session from the 12 Days of FileMaker 12 introduces developers to the new storage method from a practical usage point of view as well as from a technical point of view.

Container Enhancements in FileMaker Pro

Topics in this video include:

  • Manage Containers option
  • Thumbnail generation
  • Secure container storage
  • Remote data transfer
  • Inspector options
  • Insert File script step
  • Converting older databases

About  Tim Neudecker

Tim Neudecker is a leading software engineer who has over 20 years’ experience as a professional FileMaker developer. He spent over ten years as an in-house developer for companies such as Macy’s/Bloomingdales and AGA. In 2003, he joined KyoLogic as co-founder and CTO.

Tim has presented four times to the FileMaker Developer Conference on topics including security, system performance and developer tools. He has published articles in FileMaker Advisor on system integration and performance tuning. In 2003, he was honored with a FileMaker Excellence Award for his contributions to the developer community.

Filed Under: Rapid Development Tagged With: 12 Days of FileMaker 12, Container fields, FileMaker 12, Performance, Video

12 Days of FileMaker 12: Layout Mode Enhancements

April 16, 2012 by Susan Fennema Leave a Comment

FileMaker 12 provides powerful new features to align, position and manage objects on your layouts.In this session from the 12 Days of FileMaker 12, see how these powerful new features will help you design more consistent and graphically pleasing application.

Layout Enhancements in FileMaker Pro

This video walks through a review of the new features and how they can be used to balance your layout designs and improve workflow.

About John Mathewson

John Mathewson is President and co-founder of KyoLogic a custom software development firm in Westport, Connecticut.  He is an organizational design expert and works to create systems that improve productivity and increase business intelligence. Since 1986, John has developed database applications in Visual FoxPro, MySQL and FileMaker Pro. He is a certified FileMaker 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 developer.

Filed Under: Layout Design Tagged With: 12 Days of FileMaker 12, FileMaker 12, Layout objects, Video

12 Days of FileMaker 12: Layout Design Surface

April 9, 2012 by Susan Fennema Leave a Comment

When designing new modules or systems, one bottleneck to the turnaround time involves the development of interfaces. The layout design surface of FileMaker Pro 12 has given us tools to streamline interface development, revamp layout themes, and additional control of objects with the Inspector.

Layout Design Tools in FileMaker Pro

In this session from the 12 Days of FileMaker 12, we explore examples of these new layout design tools.

About Sameer Khan

Sameer Khan is the presenter. He is a FileMaker 9-11 Certified Developer and Authorized Trainer employed by Anvil Dataworks, a development firm outside of Washington DC. He has been working with FileMaker for over eight years. His students say that he is an interesting person and a knowledgeable teacher.

Filed Under: Layout Design Tagged With: 12 Days of FileMaker 12, FileMaker 12, Layout objects, Video

12 Days of FileMaker 12: Charting Enhancements

April 9, 2012 by Kirk Bowman Leave a Comment

A picture is worth a thousand words; a chart is worth 10,000 records. In version 11, FileMaker introduced the ability to chart your data natively. In this session from the 12 Days of FileMaker 12. we explore the changes made in the charting engine of FileMaker 12.

Charting Enhancements in FileMaker Pro

This video uses real solutions to enhance the existing charts. In addition, we will review the new chart types and under what scenarios they would be useful.

About Jerry Salem

Jerry Salem began his career in technology as a computer science major, eventually moving to the biological sciences where he earned his Ph.D. in Biochemistry. During that time, he published papers on malaria, tuberculosis, and AIDS. He holds a U.S. patent and has spoken internationally on numerous topics.

As a researcher, Jerry learned computer networking, web design, and FileMaker. He has worked in various technology fields developing a number of solutions, including electronic medical records software and complex systems for many businesses and organizations. Along the way, he has mastered standard SQL tools and a variety of other technologies.

Since 2007, Jerry has worked at IT Solutions, a Platinum level member of the FileMaker Business Alliance. Among his accomplishments since joining ITS are certification in FileMaker versions 8 through 11 and frequent contributions to the Philly FileMaker User Group.

Filed Under: Layout Design Tagged With: 12 Days of FileMaker 12, FileMaker 12, Layout objects, Reporting, Video

FileMaker Go: Functionality with Anchors

November 3, 2011 by Martha Zink 6 Comments

iPad Safety app in landscape orientation

One of the cool things with FileMaker Go is the capability of using anchors (also known as auto resizing) to stretch the layout in portrait and landscape mode. I saw this technique at DevCon and thought it was such a great way to take advantage of that functionality.

Getting Started

In this screenshot, we’re looking at a safety database in Portrait mode. My anchors are on the left and top for everything except the “Comments” field, which has anchors on the bottom as well, and the signature button that has anchors on the left and bottom.

iPad safety app in portrait orientation

Now once the user turns the device landscape, VOILA! We get a new “side panel” that wasn’t there before. Where did that come from?!

iPad Safety app in landscape orientation

Using Anchors

Cool stuff, right? The way to do it is to anchor the side bar to the top and right. Then, group the layout objects (very important!) and overlap the grouped objects to line up to the right margin of the “portrait section”. From there, all that’s left to do is to push the grouped objects to the back, so that the “portrait section” is in full view and the “landscape section”, or the side bar, is hidden. Simple as that!

You have to make sure to group the layout objects. But, let’s pretend that you forgot – once you push those objects behind the “portrait section” it’ll take quite a lot of manual work to find the objects individually. So you don’t HAVE TO in order for the technique to work, but it sure does save you from a lot of object selecting!

Seperate portrait and landscape layers

Here are two screenshots in Layout Mode, to show you what the two sections look like. In the second screenshot, I haven’t yet pushed the grouped “landscape section” to the back.

Landscape layer on top of portrait layer

Have you implemented any technique like this into your FM Go solution?

Filed Under: News Tagged With: FileMaker Go, Layout objects, Video

5 Techniques for Building a Solution with FileMaker Go

October 25, 2011 by Susan Fennema 3 Comments

With FileMaker Go, developers can use the power of FileMaker Pro with the flexibility of a mobile device. But with a new platform comes new methods, techniques and expectations. Leveraging the power of FileMaker Go is not just about understanding core development skills but understanding the benefits and limitations of the mobile platform.

Building a Solution with FileMaker Go

Topics in this video include:

  • Why choose FileMaker Go
  • Differences between Pro and Go
  • User expectations on a mobile device
  • Techniques to build an efficient solution
  • Techniques for a clean and user-friendly interface

About Martha Zink

The presenter is our own Martha Zink, Advocate of Awesomeness. Her customers include Apple, Inc., Baylor College of Medicine and Diamond Display Group. She is the creator of the 11 Days of FileMaker 11 video series and a speaker at technology events like the FileMaker 11 Road Show, PauseOnError 2011 and FileMaker DevCon 2011.

Filed Under: Layout Design Tagged With: FileMaker Go, Video

FileMaker Feud 2011: Round 3

October 21, 2011 by Kirk Bowman Leave a Comment

It is time for the final round of FileMaker Feud. In this last video (see Round 1 and Round 2), Laura Betz and Lee Lukehart, assisted by our MightyData coaches, go head-to-head to see who is the FileMaker Feud Champion.

We had a great time hosting the event and appreciate all the positive feedback we received from the community. We are looking forward to hosting the next FileMaker Feud sometime in 2012.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: DevCon, FileMaker Feud, Video

FileMaker Feud 2011: Round 2 Questions

October 10, 2011 by Kirk Bowman Leave a Comment

Here are the questions and answers from the 2nd round of FileMaker Feud at FileMaker DevCon 2011. This round was tougher because the teams were cut in half–fewer people to help guess the answers. Watch the video of Round 2 to see who makes it to the finals.

6. Name the most powerful native calculation function in FileMaker Pro.

  • Let – 40
  • Evaluate – 18
  • Substitute – 6
  • GetNthRecord – 6
  • Case – 5
  • List – 4
  • If – 3
  • Get Function – 3

7. Name the most powerful script step in FileMaker Pro.

  • Set Field – 15
  • Set Variable – 13
  • Set Field By Name – 11
  • Perform Script – 11
  • IF / Else IF – 11
  • Delete All Records – 9
  • Go To Related Record – 7
  • Replace Field Contents – 4

8. Name a menu command that was replaced by a setting in the Inspector palette in FileMaker Pro 11.

  • Field Behavior – 18
  • Field Format – 16
  • Set Tooltip – 14
  • Text Format – 10
  • Sliding & Printing – 9
  • Alignment – 8
  • Date Format – 3

You can watch the Round 1 video (very funny) and questions also.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: DevCon, FileMaker Feud, Video

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • Next Page »

Let’s get started on your project.

It will be more fun than you think.

Get in Touch

  • Company
  • Services
  • Results
  • Blog

Copyright © 2023 · Parallax Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in