Defining summary fields

Contents > Creating a database > Defining database fields > Defining summary fields

Defining summary fields

Use summary fields to calculate values such as subtotals, averages, and grand totals across multiple records. For example, a summary field can display the grand total of all sales in the month of May in a report.

To define summary fields:

1.	With the database open, choose File menu > Manage > Database.

2.	In the Manage Database dialog box, click the Fields tab.

3.	If your database contains more than one table, select the appropriate table from the Table list.

4.	For Field Name, type a name for the field.

See About naming fields.

5.	For Type, select Summary.

6.	Click Create.

7.	In the Options for Summary Field dialog box, select a summary type, then select the field you want to group data by.

Select this type of
summary calculation

To summarize values in a field in the found set of records by

Total of

Calculating the total of values in the field

Average of

Calculating the average of values in the field

Count of

Counting the number of records that contain a value for the field. For example, if a field contains 100 values (one value for each record), the result of the count is 100.

Minimum

Finding the lowest number, or earliest date, time, or timestamp for a field

Maximum

Finding the highest number, or latest date, time, or timestamp for a field

Standard Deviation of

Finding how widely the values in a field differ from each other. This option calculates the standard deviation from the mean of the values in a field.

Fraction of Total of

Calculating the ratio of the value in the field to the total of all the values in that field. (For example, find what fraction of total sales can be attributed to each salesperson.)

8.	Select a summary option, if applicable, for the summary type.

For

Select

To

Total of

Running total

Show the cumulative total for the current and all previous records. To restart the running total for each sorted group, also select Restart summary for each sorted group and select the field upon which the sort will be restarted from the field list.

Average of

Weighted average. In the field list that appears, select the field that contains the weight factor.

Determine the average in one field based on a value in another field that is used as a weight factor

Count of

Running count

Show the cumulative count of the current and all previous records. To restart the running count for each sorted group, also select Restart summary for each sorted group and select the field upon which the sort will be restarted from the field list.

Standard Deviation of

By population

Calculate population standard deviation

Fraction of Total of

Subtotaled. In the field list that appears, select the field to group by.

Calculate a fraction of the total based only on a group of records

9.	If the field you are summarizing is a repeating field, you have the option to summarize the repetitions together or individually.

Select All together to calculate a single summary value for all repetitions in the field.

Select Individually to calculate a summary value for each repetition.

Note You must format your summary field as a repeating field to display individual summary values. See Setting up the display of repeating fields for more information.

10.

Click OK, then continue defining fields or click OK.

Notes

Use the New Layout/Report assistant to quickly create a layout that summarizes data. For more information, see Creating a layout.

Summary fields are associated with groups of records. The value in a summary field can change depending on where you place the field on a layout, how many records are in the found set, and whether the records are sorted.

Data in a summary field reflects records currently being browsed; either all the records or a group of found records. If you change a value in one of the fields on which the summary is based, or if you change the found set, FileMaker Pro recalculates the result in a summary field.

If you choose Fraction of Total of, you can specify a group field for Subtotaled. When you return to Browse mode, you must sort by the group field to calculate the value correctly.

The standard deviation formula is n-1 weighted, following the normal standard deviation.

You can't change data in a summary field manually, but you can copy it. You can also perform calculations with summary fields using the GetSummary function.

If your FileMaker Pro file accesses data from an ODBC data source, you can use supplemental fields to define unstored calculations or summary instructions that act on data coming from the external sources. For more information, see Using supplemental fields.

If you are using FileMaker Pro Advanced, you can copy field schemas from one file and paste them into the same file or some other file. For more information, see Copying and pasting field schemas (FileMaker Pro Advanced).

Related topics

Changing summary fields

Summary data is missing or incorrect

Specifying formats for fields containing numbers

Contents > Creating a database > Defining database fields > Defining summary fields