FileMaker News

• FileMaker at the Technology and Learning Conference
• FileMaker K-12 Events
• Address Book Manipulator Version 2
• Business Software of the Year 2006
• FileMaker Themes Pack

It's Your Last Chance Ever to Save Up to US$200

FileMaker Pro 6, FileMaker Developer 6, FileMaker Pro 6 Unlimited, and Server 5.5 customers can upgrade to the latest FileMaker product and save money. When you upgrade, you'll get three versions worth of new and improved features because you'll get all the new features in FileMaker Pro 8.5 plus all the features of FileMaker Pro 8 and FileMaker Pro 7! Act now because this offer expires on December 20, 2006!

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FileMaker Web Seminars Archive

Take a look at the archive of FileMaker Web Seminars and learn more about FileMaker products. They're FREE and take place on your Web browser. See a range of topics for the beginner or advanced user.

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Get Your Team Working Faster, Sharing More, and Saving BIG—with New FileMaker!

The FileMaker Workgroup Bundle
To make it quick, easy, and incredibly cost-effective for you to join the Volume Licensing Program, we're offering you the FileMaker Workgroup Bundle for a limited time! The FileMaker Workgroup Bundle includes the software you need to get 10 people up and running on FileMaker Pro 8.5. You even get FileMaker Server FREE so your databases will run significantly faster vs. peer-to-peer sharing.

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FileMaker Wins Technology & Learning Award of Excellence 2006

Outstanding Education Technology Products Saluted
Technology & Learning recognized FileMaker Pro 8 as a Legacy Winner in the 2006 Awards of Excellence. This category honors products that have stood the test of time and have evolved with the changing technology to continue to offer the highest quality experiences for educators and students.

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Customer Story:

Ohio-based printing and prepress firm tracks jobs from start to
finish with FileMaker Pro 8 database systems.

Stevenson, The Color Company is providing a full range of printing
and prepress services to large-scale clients nationwide. Located in
Cincinnati, Ohio, Stevenson meets vital graphic-arts needs for such
major firms as the Kroger supermarket chain, Macy's, and Office Max.
And throughout the company, FileMaker Pro 8 ensures efficient,
reliable tracking of every ongoing job.

"FileMaker Pro 8's Relationship Graph helps us improve development
time and gets rid of unneeded fields and calculations. With such
features as multiple key relationships and two-way relationships,
this is one of FileMaker Pro 8's best features."

Read more »

Tell your story to the world!
Are you excited about the new features you are using in FileMaker Pro 8.5 or FileMaker Pro 8.5 Advanced and would like to tell the world about it? You can! We're eager to let you tell your story on our Customer Stories pages.

Support Corner

Need a question answered?
FileMaker Customer Service is dedicated to providing our customers with the best non-technical service possible. Non-technical service includes pricing, product availability, pre-sales questions and promotions.

Simply go to the FileMaker Knowledge Base. and ask away!
The FileMaker Support Team

Tips and tricks

Create Simple Buttons
Compiled by Stuart Gripman
Have you ever seen a FileMaker database that uses buttons to let users navigate among layouts or automatically sort records? Here's how to do it.

Have you ever seen a FileMaker database that uses buttons to let users navigate among layouts or automatically sort records? It may look intimidating to do but in classic FileMaker fashion, making buttons is very simple to do and very powerful. Here's how to put a sort button on your layout:

• Enter Layout mode and click on the button tool.


• Drag out a box where you want your button to appear. When you release the mouse, the Button Setup dialog box will appear.


• The column on the left lists the various actions a button can invoke. If you've spent some time in ScriptMaker, this should look familiar.


• Scroll down to the Found Sets heading and select Sort Records. Now set the various options available. I suggest checking "Perform without dialog" so you don't see the sort dialog box every time you click on the button. You should also check "Specify sort order" and set up the sort order as desired. Button style settings are a matter of personal taste.


• Click on OK to save your button setup.


• FileMaker Pro will return you to the layout and place the cursor inside your button. Type in the text for your button. I chose "Sort Records" because it's compact and easily understood. Users tend to ignore excessively wordy buttons or confuse them for something they're not, so it's best to keep it short.


• When finished, just click outside the button.

Now try it out. Switch to browse mode and click on your new button. You now have instant sorting.

There are a few other useful things to know about buttons. If you want to edit an existing button's functions, just enter Layout mode and double click on it. If you wish to edit a button's text, enter Layout mode, select the text tool and then click once on the button. The cursor will be placed in the button text and you'll be free to edit.

Finally, almost any layout object can be a button. Text, fields, and graphics can all act a buttons. To turn a regular layout object into a button, enter Layout mode and select the desired object. From the Format menu select "Button Setup…" and configure the button as above.

After you get the hang of buttons, your FileMaker databases will become easier to use and look more polished. Have fun!