Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 13. Applying Developer
Utilities
Work with FileMaker for a while, and it becomes clear that this friendly, rather unassuming
software lets you achieve awesome feats. When others in your organization start seeing and
using your databases, requests for new features, possibly whole new databases, will start
coming your way. That's when you graduate from an advanced
user
of FileMaker Pro to a
developer
. A developer isn't simply a user who knows a lot about creating databases.
Developers design and build database systems that other people use in the greater world. As
a FileMaker developer, you need to do a range of things:
▪ Construct tables and relationships that organize information while avoiding duplication
and creating flexibility.
▪ Wield layout tools to create a display that's intuitive, attractive, and easy to use.
▪ Apply FileMaker's lexicon of functions in the calculations that can literally touch every
part of a complex database.
▪ Write scripts that spare your users from repetitive work and let them work intuitively.
▪ Provide access to the database by employing peer-to-peer database sharing, database
hosting with FileMaker Server, and web publishing.
▪ Secure your database to prevent unauthorized access or manipulation of the information
within.
You'll develop these skills over time, but the first thing every power developer needs is the
right toolbox. You don't show up at the Tour de France with a tricycle. And you don't be-
come a power developer without FileMaker Pro Advanced. This version doesn't make your
database run better, or accept more people, or hold more data. Rather, with Advanced, you
can be a more productive database
developer
.
For a couple hundred dollars more ($549 for Advanced vs. $329 for Pro), you get a whole
raft of developer tools to make your life easier and your databases better. If you find yourself
troubleshooting long, complex scripts, then Script Debugger may save your sanity and your
valuable time. The analysis tools are indispensable if you're in a consultant role, working on
databases that other people created. Save and reuse your carefully crafted calculations with
Custom Functions. Custom Menus give you godlike power to determine which commands
are available to people who use a database. If you spend a good portion of your time building
FileMaker databases, then FileMaker Pro Advanced is a must-have.
