FileMaker Pro 11 Brings Streamlined Database Creation With New Reporting and Collaboration Features

[MacRumors]

Apple subsidiary FileMaker today announced the release of FileMaker Pro 11, the latest version of its popular database application. The updated version brings several new features, as well as streamlined productivity tools for simpler and faster database creation.

"FileMaker Pro 11 is designed for solving real-world business problems, such as the need for interpreting business data," said Ryan Rosenberg, vice president, marketing and services, FileMaker, Inc. "With easy-to-use integrated charting, we bring dynamic visual reporting to FileMaker Pro 11 users. We also provide new tools to boost all users' productivity, helping novice and expert users alike build, share and publish better databases."

Charts and reports are improved in FileMaker Pro 11 with the addition of more powerful, dynamic charts available as tabs within layouts or published to the web with FileMaker Pro Instant Web Publishing. New "Quick Reports" and an improved Layout/Report Assistant also aid users in generating easy-to-digest versions of their data.

FileMaker Pro 11 also includes several new productivity tools to assist users with database creation.

- Innovative Quick Find with iTunes style that searches across all fields within a layout
- Inspector, a master tool palette that controls layout objects and properties in one convenient place
- Object Badges to visually identify scripted fields in layouts with color-coded icons
- A new Invoices Starter Solution, one of more than 30 built-in solutions, designed to track product and customer details and create, manage and print customized invoices for every order
- An improved Quick Start Screen to help users create new databases, manage favorite files and find helpful resources
- Text highlighting to emphasize key words or numbers in fields

Finally, FileMaker Pro 11 offers several new collaboration tools, enabling users to create "Snapshot Links" of data presentation for sharing with others, as well as assisting with recurring data imports.

Also available today are FileMaker Pro 11 Advanced, offering additional development and customization tools, and FileMaker Server 11, bringing several new tools to the company's solution for centrally-hosted databases.

FileMaker Pro 11 is priced at $299 for new users and $179 for upgrade users, with FileMaker Pro 11 Advanced checking in at $499 and $299 respectively. The basic FileMaker Server 11 is priced at $999/$599, while FileMaker Server 11 Advanced carries a price tag of $2,999/$1,799. All versions are available today.

Article Link: FileMaker Pro 11 Brings Streamlined Database Creation With New Reporting and Collaboration Features

 

[stevecrown]

Nice. I just finished working through my FileMaker Training Series book for FM 10 yesterday....

 

[Bonte]

iPad and iPhone runtimes would make a killer feature.

 

[Scott6666]

Seems cool.

If anyone is interested I called the Apple store (Bethesda Row) and they said they are in stock. So available today means you can go pick one up one today if you want.

 

[flybynite]

iPad and iPhone runtimes would make a killer feature.

Agreed! Or some way to build in Filemaker and distribute to run in Bento... is that feasible?

 

[akadmon]

Where is my new MBP!?










jk

 

[Mcgargle]

Where is my new MBP!?

You know, I don't mean to be a git here, but we have these things called "topics." Maybe you should spare a thought for them?

 

[swissmann]

What would be great would be if they had an export to iWeb feature so that you could slap something into an iWeb widget (or other website) and then have an interactive data entry form on your website that would populate your local database. All the tools you would need should be provided by owning Filemaker software and having a MobileMe subscription.

 

[kirky29]

I just want a simple feature in Filemaker, the ability to easily convert all fields to Title Case...
And also, to be able to move certain fields into other ones....

If that makes sense... The Database I handle for someone has 1000's of names.. too many for me to re-type. But it's messy.

Any help?!

 

[PNW]

I just want a simple feature in Filemaker, the ability to easily convert all fields to Title Case...

What you want is the Proper() text function.

And also, to be able to move certain fields into other ones....

That would be the Set Field[] script function. Or create a calculated field

http://fmforums.com/forum/fusionbb.php? Is a great resource for these kind of questions.

 

[swissmann]

I just want a simple feature in Filemaker, the ability to easily convert all fields to Title Case...
And also, to be able to move certain fields into other ones....

If that makes sense... The Database I handle for someone has 1000's of names.. too many for me to re-type. But it's messy.

Any help?!

I've not done this specifically with Filemaker but it may give you some ideas. I do it with OpenOffice.org spreadsheet. I copy all the names and put them in Pages then select all and choose Capitalization- Title Case. Then I print to PDF and open the PDF in Adobe Reader (Apple Preview gets the returns all wrong) and then copy and paste back into the spreadsheet. Maybe you could do an export follow the process and reimport or something like that?


EDIT: or listen to what PNW says he's smarter than me.

 

[leonmckee]

Create a calculation field based on each field you want to modify. We've used FileMaker since it's introduction to convert data to solve these kind of issues.

Leon McKee

I just want a simple feature in Filemaker, the ability to easily convert all fields to Title Case...
And also, to be able to move certain fields into other ones....

If that makes sense... The Database I handle for someone has 1000's of names.. too many for me to re-type. But it's messy.

Any help?!

 

[Cepe Indicum]

What would be great would be if they had an export to iWeb feature so that you could slap something into an iWeb widget (or other website) and then have an interactive data entry form on your website that would populate your local database. All the tools you would need should be provided by owning Filemaker software and having a MobileMe subscription.

Couldn't agree more.

I just want a simple feature in Filemaker, the ability to easily convert all fields to Title Case...
And also, to be able to move certain fields into other ones....

If that makes sense... The Database I handle for someone has 1000's of names.. too many for me to re-type. But it's messy.

Any help?!

Are you talking about copying the contents of "Field A" into "Field B" within a single table?

 

[sdowney]

They missed one thing: FM needs "copying" from tables!

Charting is long overdue in FileMaker, so kudos for finally including it. And the new spreadsheet interface is improving, especially the ability to add new fields on the fly. But seem to have missed one really important feature. And irritatingly, I actually posted this as a feature request to FileMaker over a year ago!!

I wanted the ability to click-and-drag in the Spreadsheet interface to select a subset of fields and records, and then to be able to "Copy" the subset to the clipboard in a standard tab-delimited format that could be pasted into a spreadsheet. Currently, the only way to do this is by "Exporting" the data, but for just moving data between apps on the fly, this is cumbersome. Obviously this is an incredibly basic UI feature that would really make getting data out of FileMaker much more efficient!

The next step would be "pasting" text into spreadsheets -- but obviously, this raises a lot of caching and data-validation issues, so I can see why FM would want to go slowly with that.

 

[excalibur313]

But does it support copy and pasting into new cells?

 

[Sky Blue]

Downloading this now to take a look at it.

The icon is horrible

 

[trrosen]

feature request

How about a not based on code from the eighties feature. Filemaker needed a complete rewrite 5 years ago but instead they just tack on one or two semi-useful features each release. Doesn't seem like an Apple app anymore more like adobe or MS.

 

[yukio]

i've been using the beta for a few weeks - just finished a small test project using 11 last night - by and large i'm really enjoying this release.

the speed on my early 2008 4GB/2.5 MHz MBP [where are the new MBPs? ] is noticeably improved over 10.

i do agree with sdowney - being able to "copy found set to clipboard" or something similar - would be sweet.... and maybe it's inside (though i haven't been able to find it yet).

the snapshot link is pretty cool, too.

 

[sdowney]

For what it's worth, I was just working with an OLD PC version of SPSS (v12) and lo-and-behold...you can copy and paste data subsets from SPSS to Excel!

(...yes, I'm dying for a new MPB, too!)

 

[KPATT18]

Usage

So what all do you folks use Filemaker Pro for? If there are any experts in here I'd love to tell you what I need to accomplish and see if that's a good program for it.

 

[Boxcar Edit]

Postgres ESS Support Still Missing

We have been SO patient waiting since 8.5 for Filemaker to provide ESS support for Postgres (AKA Postgresql). Still not here. Losing hope.

Anyone else who uses postgres to drive their web sites or for other uses and wants Filemaker to add ESS support, please bug them for it. Postgres is amazing. Filemaker as a front end would be such a great use of FM.

Saw the lack of it yet again today in v.11 and said, "Whyyyyyyyyy?"

Filemaker staff: Hear our cries. Please.

 

[Examinus]

Why is it purple?

It looks good on OSX, but it's just a hack on Windows.

 

[satcomer]

Where is my new MBP!?

I am afraid to let you know that it will be announced at WWDC for a July release. I just plain afraid that the Mac Book Pro went to a yearly update process.

I hope Apple releases before WWDC but the realist in me is seeing the writing on the wall.

 

[wandrer2]

Interesting... in Apple's online store version 10 is still for sale in the USA (no sign of 11). In the Canada store it has Shipping: discontinued. But there, too, you can still have Version 10 pre-installed on your new mac though.

 

[space1nvaders]

We have been SO patient waiting since 8.5 for Filemaker to provide ESS support for Postgres (AKA Postgresql). Still not here. Losing hope.

Anyone else who uses postgres to drive their web sites or for other uses and wants Filemaker to add ESS support, please bug them for it. Postgres is amazing. Filemaker as a front end would be such a great use of FM.

Saw the lack of it yet again today in v.11 and said, "Whyyyyyyyyy?"

Filemaker staff: Hear our cries. Please.

I gave up on FileMaker over and over for the same reason but for MySQL support. ODBC is not the solution. Native support for Postgres and MySQL should be implemented because as you say there is no good front end software for the databases we use on the web. They are trying to get us to change to a FileMaker database for web apps which not going to happen - ever!