Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 16-6. In the top-left corner, the box shows how RemoveDuplicates() is first called. It re-
ceives a list of colors as its one parameter. It returns the first item in the list, and the result of the
second call. This time, though, Red has been removed from the list. The second call returns Green
and the results of the third call. This progresses until the fourth call, when the script passes a single
item to RemoveDuplicates(). This time RemoveDuplicates() simply returns the item without calling
itself again. When it returns, the third call has all it needs, so it returns as well. This process goes
back up the chain until the first call is reached and the final result is returned. If you join up the
results of each call, then you see the correct list.
Plug-Ins
Some things just can't be done (or can't be done
well
) using calculations and custom func-
tions. When you run into this situation, you may consider looking into
plug-ins
, tiny applica-
tions that live inside FileMaker to help it do specific tasks that it can't do on its own.
Many plug-ins focus on doing certain things: processing credit card transactions or interact-
ing with special devices like cameras, bar code readers, and so on. Although plug-ins work
through calculation functions, scripts (which the next chapter covers) generally control them.
Plug-ins can convert, resize, and otherwise modify images in container fields, or perform
complex mathematical, scientific, or financial calculations that would be difficult or ineffi-
cient in a calculation. Although this topic doesn't cover any specific plug-ins, this section
shows you how to access the functions provided by any plug-in you install.
