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FileMaker 18 for macOS launched today, introducing a collection of feature enhancements like an improved user interface and a larger variety of security controls. FileMaker, Inc. is one of Apple's subsidiary companies and makes the FileMaker Platform, which allows developers to build custom apps.

filemaker-18.jpg

The company said that the new UI includes an "Import Field Mapping" dialog box, so that users can more easily map imported source data to FileMaker fields. Users can also use type ahead instead of drag and drop for greater efficiency, and specify custom delimiters when importing certain file types.

More new features include:
File-based script steps -- Create scripts that read, write, and manage external data files to write log files or export data in a custom format. Replaces the need for many file-based plug-ins.

New managed security access -- This new privilege set allows developers to offload account access management to other team members without needing to provide full access to any other parts of the file.

Manage Security dialog box -- The streamlined Manage Security dialog box allows you to be more efficient in managing access to your custom apps.

Startup restoration -- FileMaker files are now automatically recoverable after a hardware or software crash. The restoration log in FileMaker Server validates database entries when a file is first opened, before client access, and if the file had not been properly closed.

Platform parity -- The FileMaker Cloud for AWS 1.18 code base supports all of the new features in the FileMaker 18 Platform.
The new security features allow developers to offload account access management to other team members without needing to provide full access to any other parts of the file, enhancing security of important files. This is combined with the Manage Security dialog box, which streamlines various security features and allows users to quickly manage access to custom access.

FileMaker 18 is available to download on the FileMaker store, with pricing beginning at $15 per user per month.

Article Link: FileMaker 18 for macOS Launches With Improved UI and More Security Controls
 

UnusedLoginID

macrumors 6502
Feb 28, 2012
341
289
Considering how Apple has been trying to streamline their product offerings - outside of the core products - I’m wondering why they still spend $$$ on FileMaker. Is it really used anywhere now? I remember it as a database offering but if this is a “developer” product now, then maybe it should be offered as part of the developer tools... or offered to a third party... or canceled altogether.
 

lunarworks

macrumors 68000
Jun 17, 2003
1,972
5,213
Toronto, Canada
Considering how Apple has been trying to streamline their product offerings - outside of the core products - I’m wondering why they still spend $$$ on FileMaker. Is it really used anywhere now? I remember it as a database offering but if this is a “developer” product now, then maybe it should be offered as part of the developer tools... or offered to a third party... or canceled altogether.
It's a subsidiary, so it doesn't take much of Apple's attention. If it continues to make money, may as well keep making it.
 

DocMultimedia

macrumors 68000
Sep 8, 2012
1,561
3,654
Charlottesville, VA
Considering how Apple has been trying to streamline their product offerings - outside of the core products - I’m wondering why they still spend $$$ on FileMaker. Is it really used anywhere now? I remember it as a database offering but if this is a “developer” product now, then maybe it should be offered as part of the developer tools... or offered to a third party... or canceled altogether.
Apple sold (or separated... can't remember) many years ago. So FileMaker, Inc has been independent for a long time at this point with no Apple involvement.
[doublepost=1558539617][/doublepost]Ah, my mistake. A subsidiary. But yeah, Apple doesn't do much with them.
 

afd

macrumors 65816
Apr 12, 2005
1,134
389
Scotland
We used in school a few years ago but just got too expensive to keep up to date. Even with the education version.
 

Thomas beau

macrumors newbie
Jun 19, 2015
11
31
Considering how Apple has been trying to streamline their product offerings - outside of the core products - I’m wondering why they still spend $$$ on FileMaker. Is it really used anywhere now? I remember it as a database offering but if this is a “developer” product now, then maybe it should be offered as part of the developer tools... or offered to a third party... or canceled altogether.

The company I work for uses Filemaker for running the entire operation. I administer and develop on the platform daily. I also have some friends who work for a massive government contractor who has a very large Filemaker development department. It's not something you hear about everyday but it's still very much alive.
 

rodpascoe

macrumors regular
Jun 19, 2006
248
639
Truro, Cornwall
Considering how Apple has been trying to streamline their product offerings - outside of the core products - I’m wondering why they still spend $$$ on FileMaker. Is it really used anywhere now? I remember it as a database offering but if this is a “developer” product now, then maybe it should be offered as part of the developer tools... or offered to a third party... or canceled altogether.

Please tell me that was a joke/sarcastic post?!

Filemaker is a massive tool that's been going over 3 decades, brings in millions of dollars monthly for Filemaker with client licences, is used in over 70 percent of Fortune 500 companies, has over 65,000+ developers in their online community alone and has nothing in it's arena that comes close to competing with it.

You ask "is it really used anywhere now?" yes, yes it is. Have a look at becoming a Filemaker developer, they earn massive amounts of money.
 

Boyd01

Moderator
Staff member
Feb 21, 2012
7,619
4,504
New Jersey Pine Barrens
I have used filemaker since it was first introduced. In 1993 I started developing a big relational database to run my department, and it grew in complexity until my retirement in 2011. At that point my custom filemaker apps managed all the purchasing, scheduling, payroll and contracting for my department's $2.5M budget.

Since 2008 I have used it for complex relational databases to process large amounts geodata for the free maps I offer at https://boydsmaps.com . There are other ways to do this, but I can work quickly due to my familiarity with Filemaker. I'm still on FileMaker 11 - which runs fine on my Mac and Windows machine(s), and it's hard for me to justify the expense of ugrading for this kind of "hobby" usage. But eventually, I will. So I'm glad to see that they continue to improve FileMaker. But I do wish it wasn't so expensive.
 

rsalas

macrumors newbie
May 22, 2019
1
4
Considering how Apple has been trying to streamline their product offerings - outside of the core products - I’m wondering why they still spend $$$ on FileMaker. Is it really used anywhere now? I remember it as a database offering but if this is a “developer” product now, then maybe it should be offered as part of the developer tools... or offered to a third party... or canceled altogether.

I have been developing in Filemaker since 1988 and it is a bona fide grown-up product. From concept to implementation there is nothing quicker or less costly for developing data management applications. It can be accessed from a Mac or a PC, via the web, and with an iOS app. It’s very much alive and viable.
 

ToneDriver

macrumors member
Dec 19, 2016
57
183
The company I work for uses Filemaker for running the entire operation. I administer and develop on the platform daily. I also have some friends who work for a massive government contractor who has a very large Filemaker development department. It's not something you hear about everyday but it's still very much alive.

Please tell me that was a joke/sarcastic post?!

Filemaker is a massive tool that's been going over 3 decades, brings in millions of dollars monthly for Filemaker with client licences, is used in over 70 percent of Fortune 500 companies, has over 65,000+ developers in their online community alone and has nothing in it's arena that comes close to competing with it.

You ask "is it really used anywhere now?" yes, yes it is. Have a look at becoming a Filemaker developer, they earn massive amounts of money.

Thomas, I'm in the same exact boat. It runs our whole company and I'm part of a team of 5 developers for it.

rodpascoe, I hope you're right about those stats, although they are surprising to me. I've never had a good understanding of how well-known or used FM is. I've just been a developer in my little world. I also don't represent the developer earning massive amounts of money, so again I hope you're right and I can stumble across that kind of opportunity someday.

FileMaker is a great tool that I enjoy developing for. Looking forward to upgrading to 18 once our team feel comfortable with it.
 
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JosephAW

macrumors 603
May 14, 2012
5,885
7,746
Still using an older non-subscription version on El Capitan on our intranet. They need to provide an option where no internet is readily available.
 

Evosys

macrumors newbie
May 22, 2019
1
0



FileMaker 18 for macOS launched today, introducing a collection of feature enhancements like an improved user interface and a larger variety of security controls. FileMaker, Inc. is one of Apple's subsidiary companies and makes the FileMaker Platform, which allows developers to build custom apps.

filemaker-18.jpg

The company said that the new UI includes an "Import Field Mapping" dialog box, so that users can more easily map imported source data to FileMaker fields. Users can also use type ahead instead of drag and drop for greater efficiency, and specify custom delimiters when importing certain file types.

More new features include:
The new security features allow developers to offload account access management to other team members without needing to provide full access to any other parts of the file, enhancing security of important files. This is combined with the Manage Security dialog box, which streamlines various security features and allows users to quickly manage access to custom access.

FileMaker 18 is available to download on the FileMaker store, with pricing beginning at $15 per user per month.

Article Link: FileMaker 18 for macOS Launches With Improved UI and More Security Controls

There's just not enough "new" with FileMaker. The DB engine is still sadly lacking in performance compared to anything else out there.

in 2019 with the advancement of frameworks in all major programming languages and database engines which have been continuously improved upon over the past three decades; and with newer indexing technology such as SOLR, is it time to take FileMaker to the Vet and have it put down?
 

freiheit

macrumors 6502a
Jul 20, 2004
643
90
California
My database needs (as a hobbyist) lie somewhere between the complexity of developing my own MySQL/PHP interface for free and the expense of an easy-to-use product such as FileMaker. I used I think FMP 13 several years ago and aside from needing some kludges to sort lists the way I want them sorted, I found it pretty easy to use and quite powerful. But for my hobbyist needs, the price is exorbitantly high. It's a shame they got rid of the non-Advanced version.
 

b92b0b33ef5340e

Suspended
Mar 23, 2019
23
24
It's a subsidiary, so it doesn't take much of Apple's attention. If it continues to make money, may as well keep making it.

Not to mention that both Google and Microsoft are making massive pushes into cloud app/database services.
No reason to give up the IP at this point if Apple is really intent on making a pivot.
 

pruppert

macrumors 6502
Jan 30, 2008
410
72
Popped in here to see the community reaction to FileMaker. Happy to see so many positive posts. I too develop and use FileMaker daily to run my business. Don’t know what I’d do without it. It’s so great.
 
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Lifeisnotstill

macrumors newbie
May 22, 2019
1
1
Please tell me that was a joke/sarcastic post?!

Filemaker is a massive tool that's been going over 3 decades, brings in millions of dollars monthly for Filemaker with client licences, is used in over 70 percent of Fortune 500 companies, has over 65,000+ developers in their online community alone and has nothing in it's arena that comes close to competing with it.

You ask "is it really used anywhere now?" yes, yes it is. Have a look at becoming a Filemaker developer, they earn massive amounts of money.
FileMaker has been profitable for years. It’s an amazing platform that just has gotten better over time. I’m not happy with their current business model but can’t knock the product as a developer.
 
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JeffLass

macrumors newbie
May 23, 2007
19
9
Filemaker's monthly licensing fee model for a database app is definitely geared toward businesses and organizations who can account for and afford it as a business expense. For home use, a paid-for-once standalone personal database app -- like Bento 4 -- is far more preferable and useful. Apple's decision to discontinue its Bento database app was mindbogglingly stupid, because it was one of the best personal database apps ever devised for desktop/laptop computers. Perhaps Bento was too powerful and easy to use and possibly detracted from Filemaker sales so they lobbied against it (after Steve Jobs passing). Since Bento (and Aperture, also discontinued) are 32-bit apps and apparently will not work with MacOS10.15, I will NOT be upgrading to 10.15 so that I can continue working with these excellent apps within MacOS10.14.n. FWIW, app developer Tap Zapp Software sells a paid-for-once standalone personal database app called Tap Forms 5 that can import from Bento and, since its 64-bit, will work with future MacOS's. I've checked out the sample version but I much prefer the excellent Bento user interface and functionality that I'm reluctant to do without.
 

harriska2

macrumors 68000
Mar 16, 2011
1,913
1,036
Oregon
You can buy FMP without subscription. It’s horribly expensive ($500 some) but right now it is buy one get one free. I got it a few months ago for about $340 (buy one get one free) and used the other license for the local uni. You can even upgrade right now for $200.
 

Boyd01

Moderator
Staff member
Feb 21, 2012
7,619
4,504
New Jersey Pine Barrens
You can buy FMP without subscription. It’s horribly expensive ($500 some) but right now it is buy one get one free.

Yeah, it's $540

https://store.filemaker.com/individuals

But the two-for one offer is a good deal. I shared the same deal with a friend when I purchased FileMaker 11. But I don't know anyone who wants a copy now. :D

Looks like their individual license is more restrictive now, it says you need one license per computer. That wouldn't work for me, I use it on two Macs and one PC, which was allowed with my old license. No way that I'm going to pay three times for FileMaker when I'm the only person that uses it.

So I guess I'll just keep using FileMaker 11.
 

MacBH928

macrumors G3
May 17, 2008
8,257
3,682
I never understood this software, what is a real life use for it?
I know its a database, you input info and ask for it back later on but my understanding that corporate/gov. rely on Oracle and online they rely on MySQL which is free.

Who is this for? Plus if its mac/ios only it would really limit its use.
 

Boyd01

Moderator
Staff member
Feb 21, 2012
7,619
4,504
New Jersey Pine Barrens
I never understood this software, what is a real life use for it?
I know its a database, you input info and ask for it back later on

With all due respect, it doesn't sound like you made any effort to understand. FileMaker pro runs on MacOS and Windows, and databases can also be used in a browser on any platform. If you think a database is only used to "input info and ask for it back later on", then you don't really have an understanding of of relational databases and their applciations.

But I think FileMaker's appeal is largely due to the user interface, which allows non-technical people to build some very powerful databases. And if you read earlier posts in this thread, you'll get an idea of what the "real life uses" are.

Having said all this, for me the biggest appeal is familiarity since I have used FileMaker for more than 25 years. If I was just starting out with a database today, it might not be my first choice.
 
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ToneDriver

macrumors member
Dec 19, 2016
57
183
I never understood this software, what is a real life use for it?
I know its a database, you input info and ask for it back later on but my understanding that corporate/gov. rely on Oracle and online they rely on MySQL which is free.

Who is this for? Plus if its mac/ios only it would really limit its use.

I recommend looking on YouTube at FileMaker videos, or take a look at their website to get a better idea. It's a pretty powerful system that can store, manipulate, and display data through customizable UI elements.

For my real world use cases, I develop for a travel nursing placement agency and an HVAC filter service company. FM is the backbone for both companies.
 
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