The new features in cucumber BDD for rails have been released by its developer, now ‘web_step.rb’ is no longer required. Sounds crazy? Sorry friends,first let me introduce what a web_steps.rb in cucumber is.. IN previous version of cucumber this web_steps.rb file was used for defining some basic functions so that pending cases outcome of cucumber […]

BaseElements is a FileMaker developer’s tool to generate various reports about the FileMaker database. I will describe how to use the BaseElements database to find the unreferenced fields, scripts and layouts, so that they may be deleted. This generates a cleaner database and removes artifacts which may have crept in during the development process. One […]

Normally when ever we are trying to create a Value-List using the values from an unstored calculation field, FileMaker shows a message that says “The Value-List will not work because the field can not be indexed“. If we ignore that message and the Value-List gets created then most of the time it will not display […]

There are various ways to upload and download files from a FTP site in Filemaker. One of them is the  360Works_FTPeek plugin, about which I am discussing below To use this plugin we need following steps- //Register the Plugin, We can use the demo verson of plugin without the registration > FTPeek_Register(licence key;”Organisation name”) //Use one of following […]

In one of my projects in FileMaker, we have developed a messaging functionality that will allow the application users to communicate with each other via sending text message while they are operating the application. We had designed the messaging feature to give a visual indication to the users in the same application/system that there is […]

When we choose a value from a value list, sometimes it so happens that we find ourselves selecting one particular value frequently. In such situations it would be better set that value as default value . To set the default value : Go to Manage->Database->Table  Select the field to which you want to assign the default number Click on options In […]

How to retrieve last value in an array type number field and calculate any number functions on this field? Lets say my field is “TEST” number type and repetition is 6 in table Dashboard and I have entered values to that field as 1,3,2,5,8,4 Then calculation Last (Dashboard::TEST) will return value 4   Max (Dashboard::TEST ) will […]

If you are currently using ZippScript plug-in (a script trigger) in your FileMaker Application and if that plug-in is not installed in the client’s machine where the FileMaker solution has been installed then you  don’t have to physically go over to his/her machine and install it there . The code below will install it on any system when  the application is executed. […]

n this example we are checking for duplicate value in a field “InvoiceNo” in a table.   Step 1:Create a field as Creation date&time (auto enter timestamp while a new record is added) in the same table.   Note: Your table most have a auto-enter primary key, else create that (e.g. pk_ID)  Step 2: Create a self join […]

The following steps demontrate how to know whether the user has logged in from Filemaker Instant Web Publishing or from Filemaker Pro Client   If [PatternCount ( Get ( ApplicationVersion ) ; “Web Publishing” ) = 0] Show Custom Dialog [“You are from FM Pro Client”] End If If [PatternCount ( Get ( ApplicationVersion ) […]

In Filemaker we don’t have option for display unique records in portal. But we can do this by using a simple auto enter calculation field.     Suppose we have Sales table with duplicate ContactID and want to display records in a sales portal with unique ContactID, we only need to define a simple number […]

The following tip demonstrates how to show different dropdown value-lists at one place in a FileMaker application according to the radio button selected by the user. Example:   Step:1 Lets say one field is “Type” for selecting Event or Show type in radio button selection.   Another field is “Event/Show Valuelist” for selecting dropdown values.   […]

In File Maker, copying and pasting scripts are not quite easy as scripts never behave like texts, that can be copied and pasted in  Filemaker script editor. If there are some modifications in some of the scripts in a file, then it is not needed to copy and replace the whole  file in the client’s live application, Modification […]

A value list which is attached to a field, can be retrieved by using a method getValueList(). This method can be called by two ways:-  With the help of layout object With the help of field object With the help of layout object In this case we have to pass the name of value list in getValueList() […]

With the help of a simple custom function you can filter record based on individual character entered in search field.   Custom function: CharacterStack(Text) Case ( Length ( Text ) > 1 ; CharacterStack( Left ( Text ; Length ( Text ) – 1 ) ) & “” & Text; Text ) Sample Input: Test […]

The following calculation will do an exact match of a given text within a value list.   PatternCount ( “¶” & <Value List Items> & “¶” ; “¶” & <Search Value> & “¶” ) Instead of looping through the value list and searching for the value that exactly matches the <Search Text>, it’s better to do a […]

We can capture a screenshot from within a filemaker application using TROI GRAPHIC plug-in. Below mentioned are script steps to achieve the desired objective: Get the window resolution parameters Set Field [ OSD::g_Screenshot_WindowResolution; “0|0|” & Get(ScreenWidth) &”|” & Get(ScreenHeight) ] #Capture the screenshot to the clipboard. Set Field [ OSD::g_Screenshot_ErrorCode; External(“Trgr-ScreenToClip”; “-unused|” & OSD::g_Screenshot_WindowResolution) ] […]

A site can be generated quickly by using “FileMaker PHP Site Assistant”. It automatically creates a series of PHP pages. The PHP Site Assistant is included in FileMaker Server 9 and its advanced version. Steps for creating a Website 1. First check the option “custom web publishing with php” must be enabled. It is in […]

Using // to specify current date in Find mode. To find records in Filemaker with current date as a search criteria you can use “// ” characters instead of the numeric  date.   Example 1: Suppose you want to find all records whose delivery data is Today.   Enter Find Mode   Put // in Delivery […]

n Filemaker reporting the pages are not numbered out of total by default. For instance, if we want to print 1 of 4, 2 of 4 …. we need to follow the steps given below: i) Create a global field in Global table. e.g: DASH::gTotalPreviewPages (Number, global indexed) ii) The script you are running for […]

Four useful Find Symbols in Filemaker All the symbols will work for text,date,number and time type fields. a) For finding “Not Empty” values use * symbol in find mode. e.g:Provide * in “Description” field in find mode it will return the records whose Description field is not null. b) For finding “Empty” value use = […]

In one of my Filemaker project I needed to make some date calculations to find out different dates for the single reporting need of the company. Below I present some of the calculations used for the purpose. All the calculations for date fields below are based on the current date. 1. Current Date   gToday=Get(Current […]

If we pass the search text directly as entered by user to FileMaker API function while searching, then the search will support the wildcard characters like *, @ etc by default. So to disable the wildcard characters always escape the wildcard characters before using them in the search text and for exact match pass the […]

Using FileMaker API for PHP and FileMaker sometimes while displaying the characters like – (a long hyphen), ‘’ (single quotes) and “” (double quotes), the characters are converted to a set of special ASCII characters which are unreadable. To resolve this issue always use charset=UTF-8 in the html page, used to store or display the […]

Sometimes we are required to insert data from a text box in a web application into FileMaker database by adding some new line characters into it. This is especially so, while inserting the data retrieved from a set of checkboxes or while passing more than one script parameters to run a script which should be separated by […]

For editing portal record we need two record ids       1. Record id through which all portal records are related. (Let say$recordId)     2. Record id of ‘portal record’ which we want to edit. (Let say$portalRecordId) //CREATE FILEMAKER OBJECT $fm = new FileMaker($database, $hostname, $username, $password); //CREATE AN EDIT COMMAND FOR THE RECORD SPECIFIED BY […]

Using Icons and graphics enhances the look and feel of the applications. Here I have mentioned about a graphics package that I happened to use in one of my project. Procedure to use this package   1. Select Layout mode in the database you are modifying.   2. Select Tab, List or Table view in […]

There is another quicker way to export records from filemaker,other than the conventional way of selecting File  –>  Export Records STEPS 1 : Hold down the Shift key and select from menu Edit  –> Copy 2: Open the document (notepad,excel sheet etc) and  paste the record(s).   To export a single record from a foundset of records, […]

n filemaker we can’t execute sort functionality directly on a list of records on a portal as the portal sort records is defined in the portal definition. To handle sorting records dynamically on a portal we can follow the below steps.   1.Create one global field(let’s say gSortKey) in the table on which the portal […]

What is SuperContainer? SuperContainer is the easiest way to upload, view, and download files to and from any FileMaker database, plus it offers numerous advantages over FileMaker’s built-in container field: faster speeds, smaller file sizes, web browser uploads, and cross-platform file path compatibility. http://www.360works.com Find more details on SuperContainer @http://www.360works.com/supercontainer/ The Problem: After installing the […]

We can display custommenu items for a specific custommenu based on layout table occurrence or layout name. Here I have given an example for display the custom menu item based on the layout table occurrence.   Suppose we have a custommenu named as “ModuleSpecific” in a file, which is having different tables. If we want […]

A script which is stored in FileMaker DataBase, can be executed by using a method newPerformScriptCommand(). This method can be called with the help of filemaker object. It takes three parameter :-       1. Layout Name     2. Script Name     3.  Script Parameter if any (Optional) Code Snippet //CREATE FILEMAKER OBJECT $fm = new FileMaker($database, $hostname, […]

Most of the time, we need to execute some script to do tasks like posting invoices and bills to GeneralLedger etc. at the end of day as automated processes by FileMaker Server. FileMakerPro10 Advanced, includes a new feature for checking the SERVER compatible script steps in the same manner as we are checking for web […]

Using newCompoundFindCommand() we can merge results of two or more then two found set. This method can be called with the help of filemaker object. It takes only one parameter that is “Layout Name”. In some cases this method is very useful.   //CREATE FILEMAKER OBJECT $fm = new FileMaker($database, $hostname, $username, $password); //CREATE A FIND REQUEST $findRequest1 […]

Create shortcut in Windows to access/open FileMaker Server files. Right click on your desktop and select New > Shortcut In the location of the item, type “fmp7://<Server Address>/<File Name>” and click Next Type in a name for the shortcut and click “Finish”. A shortcut will be created on the desktop, try opening the remote server […]

I stumbled across a very interesting core capability of Filemaker. As,we know there is a script step “Send Mail” in Filemaker which utilizes the default mail client to send mail from Filemaker environment. However,there is a drawback to this method of handling mail functionality. The demerit associated with it is,it is dearer to only few […]

The following calculation will give you all the weekdays of the dates of the week. Just supply any valid date in “supply any date” and it will give you Monday’s date(or vice-versa)  and subsequent dates can be calculated from it. Mon=SupplyAnyDate – (DayOfWeek(SupplyAnyDate) – 1) + 1 Tue=Date ( Month ( Mon ) ; Day […]

We usually add merge field in print pages and user GUI pages in layout mode. And after putting all the formatting to the merge field it becomes very long in design page. How do I shorten the length of merge field? with the existing font size and color formatting. The following two lines give you the same […]

This tip demonstrates how to find record with partially mactching search criteria in FileMaker. For example: If we want to filter the Contact Portal in Admin page by Contact name “Thomas”. The portal will show “Smith Thomas” , “Thomas” , “Thomas Jon” , “Thomaslusis” Contact records. If we filter the Contact Portal by Contact name […]

To display a real-time clock in your Filemaker application you can use a Web Viewer and add Javascript code to it. You can copy and paste the following code snippet and uncheck all check boxes in the Web Viewer . “data:text/html, <html> <head> <script language=’javascript’ type=’text/javascript’> function displayClock() { var digital = new Date(); var […]

In FileMaker the substitute function syntax is: substitute ( text ; searchString ; replaceString ) This function replaces the “search-sting” by specific “replace-string” in your text.   For e.g. If you have colors as “Red” & ¶ & “Green” & ¶ & “Blue” & ¶ & “Yellow” and you want to replace the text “Red” as […]

FileMaker script steps SetField[] and InsertCalculatedResult[] may seem similar but there are some differences between them. SetField script step can be called even if the field does not exist in the current layout  but the same is not true with InsertCalculatedResult which requires the field to be present in the layout. Insert Calculated Result  contains a checkbox captioned as “select […]

This tip demonstrates how to trigger a script execution on tab change event in FileMaker. Step1: Give “object name” to all your tabs e.g: If there are 2 tabs (Projects, Events) in a tab object, then give object name as “projects” and “events”. Step2: Create a script Set Variable [$isProjectsInFrontTab ; GetLayoutObjectAttribute ( “projects”; “isFrontTabPanel” […]

Here is an assortment of minor FileMaker tips which can help you improve your performance:    Avoid Perform Find on Un-stored calculation fields.  Always use Freeze Window step if you are switching layouts in a script to do some operations internally.  Always use Blank Layouts (in Form View mode) when you have to do an […]

Sometimes we need to hide tab controls on the layout (by setting Tab Width to 0 and Pen width to None) for specific reasons and fewdays later when we want to do some changes it becomes hard to find them. Well, solution to this is in 2 easy steps. 1. Select one visible tab or […]

We generally use count () function for counting total no of record in a related table, but it takes lot of time when we have large number of data. So there is a function called Get(FoundCount) which calculates total no of record in portal in fastest way.   Put a Field Called Found_Record_Count  in Related table […]

For Windows: 1.Authenticate to Outlook: Set Field[Outlook Import::gResult;PCEM_Authenticate(“”,””)] Note: We can pass the User name with password. 2.Select the Root Folder: Set Variable[$$RootFolder;Value:PCEM_OpenRootFolder(“Mail”)] 3.Open the Outllok Folder: Set Variable[$$RootFolder;Value:PCEM_OpenFolder(“/Inbox”)] 4.Count the total Email for the selected Folder: Set Variable[$$RecordCount;Value:PCEM_GetRecordCount] 5. Then using loop we can go through all the email and then create the new […]

If you want to import SQL Data to Filemaker, first of all you need to create a ODBC Connection to the SQL Server.(if already available use it) Open the ODBC data source administration , Go to the System DSN and Add SQL server you want to connect with proper Login ID and password.Then it will […]

While connecting PHP 5.3.5 with Filemaker you may get some Deprecated and Strict Standards errors. Also when you want to connect with Filemaker server database and fetch data you will notice the code will be unable to return any data. It will return an Unknown error. These problem occur because of PHP 5.3.5 no more […]

Here is a small tip to “Open Script Debugger Quickly when you are running a script from Script–Manage Scripts”. If you want the “Script Debugger” on, then no need to open the script debugger 1st then run the script. Just select the script from Manage Scripts list hold the “Shift” key and press run icon. […]

How To Merge Different FileMaker Files to one file:You may already know that merging FileMaker Pro database files can be difficult and challenging process because after copying, you could spend hours for fixing broken links, missing fields, script missing in buttons, etc. In a sequence not to see field missing, relation-ship missing, script missing, layout […]

When we are creating any Filemaker database application, it is in .fp7 or .fp5 file. To run a .fp7 file, we need Filemaker to be install in our system otherwise the file will not run. But if you want your Filemaker application to be run without having Filemaker Pro software then we can generate a […]

Sometime we have to update large number of records in our remote database of a client machine via a Serverside Filemaker script . After running the script in Filemaker server you came to know while monitoring that the script is missing some logic or having some logical problem due to which it updates wrong value […]

Display a calendar showing current date using FileMaker web viewer. To display a calendar showing current date in your Filemaker application you can use a web viewer and add javascript code to it. You can copy and paste the following code snippet and uncheck all check boxes in the web viewer, set web viewer size […]

Fields required in the database First in our database we need to create three fields 1)AR which is a text field.(In this field adding or removing value from the list will be entered). 2)List field(text field) which will be an edit box.(including a vertical  scrollbar) 3)Result field(calculation field) where your list will be displayed. 4)Field(textfield) […]

As is mostly known we have a manual override for auto login file in Filemaker Pro i.e shift+click on file in Windows and alt+click on file for Mac. In FileMaker Go, users can temporarily bypass the default login information when they open a file by touching and holding a filename in the file list. Releasing […]

If you are choosing specify data source as ODBC in Import Records script step, you can directly write your SQL query for retrieving data from external data source and those retrieved data can be imported to your Filemaker table. You need to follow few steps for that. i) It will ask for choosing datasource name […]

A custom function with use of some Script Triggers can be used to provide input to password fields and provides a secured view. Custom function to encrypt or masking a password field inputs in Filemaker. Suppose:While providing input into password field in Filemaker Eg: Password:mindfire       Password:******** Through the function call: MaskPassword(“mindfire”;”*”) for the above […]

In my project, I have a search box. Here I need to made a ajax call on key up so that it will return search results for each text. This is because I do not have any search button to made the ajax call. One more thing, I am using Filemaker database and on each […]

We generally validate recordse before saving them to database. Most of the times for some fields, some validations are defined in the Filemaker database itself. As long as data passes the validation defined in the Filemaker database, it will thtrow error while saving the data. So we need to check whether the data passes the validation […]

We know we can get value list from a layout with help of getValueList() method. But it has a drawback, let me explain it here: -This method returns value list in an array from the first field. It does not bother about whether second field is associted with the value list or not. -And also […]

To create a record, we have two functions i.e ‘createRecord()’ and ‘newAddCommand()’. But we should aware of the difference of these two functions though both are doing same task. Both the functions need a layout and data array to create a record. So the first difference is the execution process. The ‘createRecord()’ statement requires ‘commit()’ […]

When we are required to get the content from a web-page and need to update a field, we generally do the following steps: 1. Start a web-viewer. 2. Run the url in the web-viewer. 3. Get the content from the web-viewer object. 4. Pause the script for some seconds to get the url executed. 4. […]

Challenge: I was given a scenario in which i need to represent a large number by few character it must be hard to break the code. For ex: A 8 digit number into 5-6 character. That too uniquely identified per number (i.e code corresponding to each number should not match the code corresponding to different […]