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Contents > Creating a database > Defining database fields > About choosing a field type
About choosing a field type
When you define a field, you select a field type based on the kind of information the field will contain. The field type determines what kind of data can be entered and what kinds of operations FileMaker Pro can perform with the data.
FileMaker Pro uses the field type to interpret the data for tasks like sorting records and performing calculations. For example, if you create a text field and enter numbers, you can sort the data only in alphabetical order. (The first character sorts, then the second, so that 11 sorts before 2.) You must use a number field, or a calculation or summary field with a numeric result, to sort data in numerical order.
Important   Be sure to use a date field (instead of a text or number field) to store dates. To avoid confusion when using dates in FileMaker Pro, always use four-digit years. For more information, see Defining field validation and Conversion of dates with two-digit years.
You select the field type in the Fields tab of the Manage Database dialog box.
Select this type If the field data will be
Text
Up to approximately 2 GB of letters, symbols, and/or numbers used as text per field repetition, limited by available RAM and disk space. Indexes nominally based on the first 100 characters of each word or value. Text fields may contain carriage returns.
Number
Supports values up to 800 digits or other characters, and the negative values of the same range. Index is based on the first 400 significant digits. Number fields can also contain Boolean values, to indicate, for example, true, false, yes, and no. Number fields can't contain carriage returns.
Date
Dates only. Gregorian calendar with a range of 1/1/0001...12/31/4000. Month, day, and year order is based on system settings when the file is created.
Time
Times only. A time field can contain the hours, minutes, and seconds portion of a time.
Timestamp
Dates and times together to reference a fixed point in calendar time. For example, 10/25/2009 2:39:46 AM.
Container
A picture, file (such as a Microsoft Word or Excel file), PDF, multimedia file, or OLE object (Windows) of up to 4 GB per field. You can reference container fields in calculations and summary fields. You can't find or sort records based on container fields, but you can define text fields to describe or identify them. Then, you can find or sort records based on the description or identifying number in the text field.
Calculation
The result of a calculation formula that uses field values from the current record or related records. The result can be one of these types of data: text, number, date, time, timestamp, or container.
Summary
A value that's produced by summarizing field values from more than one record in the same table.
Note   Any field type except for summary can store a global value.
Related topics
Defining text fields
Defining number fields
Defining date fields
Defining time fields
Defining timestamp fields
Defining container fields
Defining calculation fields
Defining summary fields
Changing field types
Contents > Creating a database > Defining database fields > About choosing a field type
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