Database Reference
In-Depth Information
For instance, would it make sense for the First Name field on your layout to get
taller
? Probably not. If you let something get taller, the best candidate is probably the
Notes field, since you expect it to hold a lot of text. Likewise, the Status and
Timestamp fields don't benefit from extra width, so you don't want to let them grow
wider. But the remaining fields could all be bigger, space permitting.
2.
Resolve conflicts among expanding objects
.
You can have some objects stay left, some move right, and some grow. But be-
ware—FileMaker won't prevent you from configuring objects that overlap each other
as window size expands. For instance, the City, State, and Zip Code fields all occupy
the same horizontal space. Anchoring all three on both the left and right will result in
a confusing mess. So you need to decide which one should get the extra width. The
obvious choice is the City field, since State and Zip Code always hold short values.
WARNING
If you have a series of side-by-side fields, then you might want them all to get a little wider
together. But FileMaker doesn't give you that power, so you have to be choosy. In the worst
case, you can make your layout big enough to accommodate any reasonable data, and skip
resizing windows altogether.
3.
Apply the anchors
.
This process is tedious, but you can use the rubber band technique (see the box on
Selecting Lots of Objects
)
to grab collections of objects and then set them all at once.
4.
Test
.
If you're like most of us humans, you'll miss something the first time through. So
switch to Browse mode periodically, and try resizing the window. You'll instantly
spot the objects that are misbehaving. Return to Layout mode to fix them.
The best anchoring approach for your layout may be as follows:
▪ Anchor the First Name, Last Name, Phone Number, Street Address, City, and Email Ad-
dress fields on the top, left, and right. This way, the fields stay near the top of the win-
dow and grow wider as you make the window bigger.
▪ Anchor the State, Zip Code, Status, and Timestamp fields on the top and right, but not
the left, so they slide out of the way as the other fields get wider. You also need to anchor
the Status, Created, and Modified fields and their labels to the right for the same reason.
