Database Reference
In-Depth Information
everything bigger and smaller incrementally, from 400 percent all the way down to 25 per-
cent. The Zoom Level shows your current level, and clicking it takes you back to 100 per-
cent. Clicking Zoom Level a second time returns you to the last zoom level you were view-
ing.
NOTE
Since you probably don't need to examine the words and numbers in your database on a microscop-
ic level, you'll probably use the zoom control mostly in Preview mode to fit the whole page on the
screen, or to adjust the contents of your FileMaker window to the most easily readable size (depend-
ing on the resolution of your monitor). You may notice, though, that some fonts don't enlarge well,
so they're actually most legible at 100 percent.
Understanding Modes
Each of FileMaker's four
modes
is a work environment unto itself, specially designed to help
you view, edit, organize, or present your information in a specific way.
▪
Browse mode
is the one you see when you first open a database, since it's the one you
use most often. In this mode, you can add, change, and view data in your database.
Browse mode is the view shown in all the figures so far, and it's where you'll spend most
of this chapter.
▪ When you have a lot of data, looking through it all for a particular bit of information can
be tedious. Use
Find mode
to let FileMaker do the looking for you. You tell FileMaker
what you're looking for; when it's done looking, FileMaker returns you to Browse mode
and shows what it found. For more details on finding specific records, see
Finding Re-
▪ In addition to using databases (viewing, finding, sorting, adding, and changing data), you
can use FileMaker to
build
databases (in fact, that's what most of this topic is about).
Layout mode
is where you design the screens (called
layouts
in FileMaker parlance) that
present your database information to best advantage.
Part 2
is all about Layout mode.
▪ Once you've put all that information into your database, eventually you'll want to print
something out, like a set of mailing labels or a batch of invoices. If you're ever curious
about how something will look when printed, switch to
Preview mode
. It shows a one-
page-at-a-time view of your data exactly as it'll appear when printed. Get more info on
The Mode pop-up menu is the easiest way to change modes (
Figure 1-1
). Click it and choose
one of the four modes. Your FileMaker window instantly switches to the new mode. You can
