Database Reference
In-Depth Information
tiple tables trickles throughout FileMaker. It's time to learn how to take advantage of your
database's relationships as you search records, build layouts, and create value lists.
NOTE
For a refresher on creating, editing, and deleting related records by using a portal, see
Creating Re-
One Table Occurrence, One Found Set
The most fundamental thing you should understand when using a multi-table database is that
each layout sees the entire database from a single perspective, or context (
Context
). It's time
to do a little exploration to see this concept in action. A layout is attached to a table occur-
rence on the graph, and that's how it sees the world. This means when you're looking at a re-
cord on the Customers layout, you're seeing a customer. If you switch to Table view, then
you see a list of customers. You don't see Jobs at all. To see those, you need to switch to the
Jobs layout.
Since each table holds different data, the concept of a found set changes a little as well.
When you perform a find, the layout you're on determines which table FileMaker searches.
Your new found set is associated with that layout's table occurrence, too. Just as when you
had only a single table, the found set stays the same until you perform another find, or you
tell FileMaker to show you all the records for that table occurrence (Records→Show All Re-
cords). But if you switch to a different layout (one tied to a different table occurrence), your
found set no longer applies.
For example, if you find the six customers from New York and then switch to the Jobs lay-
out, you won't have six records in your found set anymore. Instead, you have a separate
Jobs
found set. Switch back to Customers, and you see the six New Yorkers again. FileMaker re-
members one found set for each table occurrence. It also remembers the
current record
for
each table occurrence, so if you switch to a different layout and then come back, you're still
on the same record that was active when you left that layout.
Of course, you can have more than one layout attached to the same table occur-
rence—Customer List and Customer Detail, for example. The found set and current record
are associated with the
table occurrence
, not the layout, so a find on the Customer List lay-
out affects the found set on the Customer Detail layout.
