FileMaker
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| Developer(s) | FileMaker Inc. (formerly Claris) |
| Stable release | Version 11.0 / March 9, 2010 |
| Operating system | Mac OS X, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, iOS |
| Type | Database management system |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | FileMaker Inc. |
FileMaker Pro is a cross-platform relational database application from FileMaker Inc., formerly Claris, a subsidiary of Apple Inc. It integrates a database engine with a GUI-based interface, allowing users to modify the database by dragging new elements into layouts, screens, or forms. Current versions are: FileMaker Pro 11, FileMaker Pro Advanced 11, FileMaker Server 11, FileMaker Server Advanced 11, and FileMaker Go for iPhone and iPad.
FileMaker evolved from a DOS application, but was then developed primarily for the Apple Macintosh. Since 1992 it has been available for Microsoft Windows as well as Mac OS, and can be used in a heterogeneous environment. FileMaker server briefly ran on Linux, but Linux support was abandoned with FileMaker 7, and the server currently only runs on Windows or Apple servers. It is available in desktop, server, iOS and web-delivery configurations.
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[edit] History
FileMaker began as a MS-DOS-based computer program named Nutshell. It was developed by Nashoba Systems of Concord, Massachusetts, around 1982 or 1983. Nutshell was distributed by Leading Edge, an electronics marketer that had recently started selling IBM PC-compatible computers.[1][2]
With the introduction of the Macintosh, Nashoba combined the basic data engine with a new forms-based graphical user interface (GUI). Leading Edge was not interested in newer versions, preferring to remain a DOS-only vendor, and kept the Nutshell name. Nashoba found another distributor, Forethought Inc., and introduced the program on the Macintosh platform as FileMaker. When the Macintosh Plus was introduced, the next version of FileMaker was named FileMaker Plus to reflect the new model's name.
Forethought was purchased by Microsoft, which was then introducing their PowerPoint product that became part of Microsoft Office. Microsoft had introduced its own database application, Microsoft File, shortly before FileMaker, but it was outsold by FileMaker and Microsoft discontinued it. Microsoft negotiated with Nashoba for the right to publish FileMaker, but Nashoba decided to self-publish the next version, FileMaker 4.[1]
Shortly thereafter, Apple Computer formed Claris, a wholly owned subsidiary, to market software. Claris purchased Nashoba to round out its software suite. By then, Leading Edge and Nutshell had faded from the marketplace because of competition from other DOS and later Windows platform database products. FileMaker, however, continued to succeed on the Macintosh platform.
Claris changed the product's name to FileMaker II to conform to its naming scheme for other products, such as MacWrite II, but the product was changed little from the last Nashoba version. Several minor versions followed, and things finally settled down with the release of FileMaker Pro 1.0 in 1990.
In September 1992, Claris released a multiplatform version for both the Mac and Windows. Except for few platform-specific functionalities, the program's features and user interface were the same on both platforms. Version 3.0, released around 1995, introduced new relational and scripting features.
By 1995 FileMaker was the only strong-selling product in Claris's lineup. In 1998, Apple moved development of some of the other Claris products in house, dropped most of the rest, and changed Claris's name to FileMaker, Inc., to concentrate on that product.
Version 4.0, introduced in 1997, added a plug-in architecture much like that of Adobe Photoshop, which enabled third-party developers to add features to FileMaker. A bundled plug-in was the Web Companion, which allowed the database to act as a web server. Other "plugs" added features to the interface and enabled FileMaker to serve as an FTP client, perform external file operations, and send messages to remote FileMaker files over the Internet or an intranet.
Version 7, released in 2004, introduced a new file format (file extension .fp7) supporting file sizes up to 8 terabytes (increased from 2 gigabytes in previous versions). Individual fields could hold up to 4 gigabytes of binary data (container fields) or 2 gigabytes of 2-byte Unicode text per record (up from 64 kilobytes in previous versions). FileMaker’s relational model was enriched, offering multiple tables per file and a graphical relationship editor that displayed and allowed manipulation of related tables in a manner that resembled the entity-relationship diagram format. Accompanying these foundational changes, FileMaker Inc. also introduced a developer certification program.
In 2005, FileMaker, Inc. announced the FileMaker 8 product family, which offered the developer an expanded feature set. These included a tabbed interface, script variables, tooltips, enhanced debugging, custom menus, and the ability to copy and paste entire tables and field definitions, scripts, and script steps within and between files.
Version 8.5, released in 2006, added an integrated web viewer (the ability to view such things as shipment tracking information from FedEx and Wikipedia entries) and named layout objects.
FileMaker 9 was released in 2007. This version introduced a quick start screen, conditional formatting, fluid layout autoresizing, hyperlinked pointers into databases, and external SQL links.
FileMaker 10 was released on January 5, 2009, before the Macworld Conference & Expo. This version offers scripts to be triggered by user actions and a redesigned user interface that is similar to many applications on Mac OS X Leopard.
FileMaker 11 was released on March 9, 2010. This version offers charting.
FileMaker Go for iPhone and iPad was released on July 20, 2010. These versions allow only record creation, modification, and deletion. Design and schema changes need to be made using FileMaker Pro.
[edit] Description
A defining characteristic of FileMaker is that the database engine is integrated with the forms (screen, layouts, reports, etc.) used to access it. In this respect, it is closer in operation to desktop database systems such as Microsoft Access and FoxPro. In contrast, most large-scale relational database management systems (RDBMS) separate these tasks, concerning themselves primarily with organization, storage, and retrieval of the data, and providing little to no capability for user interface development. It should be noted, however, that the storage capacity of recent versions of FileMaker far exceeds most desktop database products, and indeed approaches that of many dedicated back-end systems.
Until recently, each table of a FileMaker database system was stored as a separate file (with relational links to other files) and each file had its own built-in interface capabilities. Version 7 introduced the capability of building multiple tables into one document. Compared to other RDBMS products, it is fairly easy to develop quickly and to make changes on the fly as the data structure is altered. More complex systems may introduce some separation of interface and data files and FileMaker provides the flexibility to accommodate this, but not for the full 100%.
A substantial body of professional FileMaker developers has grown up around the product and provides the expertise required for complex systems and implementations. A certification program was introduced by FileMaker Inc. in 2004 to provide differentiation of professionals in the field. FileMaker also provides an interface (API) for integration of third-party tools, making it highly extensible. In addition there are a variety of web publishing options suited to both low-end and larger scale project requirements.
[edit] Version history
| Date | Version (1-6) | Published by | Comment [3] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985-04 | FileMaker, v1.0 | Forethought Inc. | |
| 1986-10 | FileMaker Plus, v2.1 | ||
| 1988-06 | FileMaker 4, v4 | Nashoba Systems | |
| 1988-08 | FileMaker II, v 1.0 | Claris Corporation | |
| 1989-07 | FileMaker II, version 1.1v2 | ||
| 1990-10 | FileMaker Pro | ||
| 1991-03 | FileMaker Pro 1.0v2 | ||
| 1992-04 | FileMaker Pro 1.0v3 | ||
| 1992-10 | FileMaker Pro 2 | First Multi-platform (Macintosh and Windows) version | |
| 1992-11 | FileMaker Pro 2.0v2 | ||
| 1993-03 | FileMaker Pro 2.0v3 | ||
| 1993-04 | FileMaker Pro 2.0v4 | ||
| 1993-08 | FileMaker Pro 2.1 | ||
| 1994-02 | FileMaker Pro 2.1v2 | ||
| 1994-07 | FileMaker Pro 2.1v3/SDK 2.1 | ||
| 1994-07 | FileMaker Pro Server 2 | ||
| 1994-07 | FileMaker Pro SDK 2.1v1 | ||
| 1995-03 | FileMaker Pro Server 2.1v1 | ||
| 1995-12 | FileMaker Pro 3 | Relational architecture, TCP/IP networking introduced | |
| 1996-01 | FileMaker Pro Server 3 | ||
| 1996-01 | FileMaker Pro 3.0v2 | ||
| 1996-06 | FileMaker Pro 3.0v3 | ||
| 1996-06 | FileMaker Pro 3.0v4 | ||
| 1996-06 | FileMaker Pro SDK 3.0v1 | ||
| 1997-09 | FileMaker Pro 4 | Plug-in architecture introduced | |
| 1998-05 | FileMaker Pro 4 Developer Edition | Aimed at expert/professional FileMaker user | |
| 1999-06 | FileMaker Pro 4.1v2 | FileMaker, Inc.[4] | |
| 1999-09 | FileMaker Pro 5 | ||
| 1999-11 | FileMaker Server 5 | ||
| 2001-04 | FileMaker Pro 5.5 | Built-in support for Mac OS X | |
| 2001-07 | FileMaker Server 5.5 - 5.5(v4) | ||
| 2002-09 | FileMaker Pro 6* | Version 6 is the last to support Mac OS 9 and 8 | |
| Date | Version (7+) | Published by | Comment [5] |
| 2004-03 | FileMaker Pro 7 | FileMaker, Inc. | Multiple tables/file architecture introduced; multiple windows; relationships graph ; calc variables. Mac version requires OS X. |
| 2004-05 | FileMaker Server 7.0v1 | ||
| 2004-05 | FileMaker Pro 7.0v2 | ||
| 2004-09 | FileMaker Server 7.0v2 | ||
| 2004-10 | FileMaker Pro 7.0v3 | ||
| 2005-08 | FileMaker Pro 8* | Scriptable creation of PDF reports; script variables; tabs on layouts | |
| 2005-09 | FileMaker Server 8.0v1 | ||
| 2005-12 | FileMaker Pro 8.0v2* | ||
| 2006-01 | FileMaker Server 8.0v1 Advanced | ||
| 2006-01 | FileMaker Mobile 8 | (FileMaker Mobile line now discontinued) | |
| 2006-04 | FileMaker Pro 8.0v3* | ||
| 2006-04 | FileMaker Server 8.0v3* | ||
| 2006-07 | FileMaker Pro 8.5* | Mac OS X Universal Binary Support, Embedded browser (Web Viewer), object names | |
| 2006-07 | FileMaker Server 8.0v4* | Mac OS X Universal Binary Support | |
| 2007-03 | FileMaker Pro 8.5v2* | Windows Vista Support | |
| 2007-07 | FileMaker Pro/Server 9* | Native support for the SQL databases MS SQL Server, MySQL and Oracle. | |
| 2007-09 | FileMaker Server 9.0v2* | Web Publishing Bug Fixes | |
| 2007-11 | FileMaker Pro 9.0v2* | Bug Fixes | |
| 2007-12 | FileMaker Pro 9.0v3* | Bug Fixes | |
| 2008-02 | FileMaker Server 9.0v3* | Mac OS X Server 10.5 (Leopard) Support | |
| 2008-03 | FileMaker Server 9.0.3.326* | Bug Fixes | |
| 2009-01 | FileMaker Pro/Server 10* | Status Area now Horizontal; Script Triggering |
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| 2009-01 | FileMaker Pro 10.0v1a* | Instant Web Publishing Update | |
| 2009-02 | FileMaker Server 10.0v1a* (Windows) | External Authentication Update | |
| 2009-04 | FileMaker Pro 10.0v2* (Windows) | Citrix/Terminal Services Bug Fixes | |
| 2009-07 | FileMaker Server 10.0v2* | Bug Fixes; DBF Import and Export Available |
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| 2009-07 | FileMaker Pro 10.0v3* | Bug Fixes; DBF Import and Export Available |
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| 2010-03 | FileMaker Pro/Server 11* | Charts, snapshot link, filtered portals, and recurring imports | |
| 2010-06 | FileMaker Pro/Server 11.0v2* | Bug Fixes | |
| 2010-07 | FileMaker Go 1.0 | FileMaker for iOS (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch) | |
| 2010-09 | FileMaker Go 1.1 | PDF creation, Photo support, Import from FileMaker Pro | |
| 2011-02 | FileMaker Pro 11.0v3* | Bug Fixes | |
| 2011-04 | FileMaker Server 11.0v3* | Bug Fixes; Compatible with Java 6 Update 24 |
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| 2011-04 | FileMaker Go 1.2 | Printing, Signature Capture, Charts, Enhanced PDF creation | |
| 2011-09 | FileMaker Pro/Advanced 11.0v4* | Lion-compatibility (full Lion-compatibility not until October 2011) |
- * = Both FileMaker Pro / FileMaker Pro Advanced (Developer Edition in v4-6) ..or.. FileMaker Server / FileMaker Server Advanced
FileMaker files are compatible between Mac and Windows. File type extensions are
- .fm since FileMaker Pro 2.0
- .fp3 since FileMaker Pro 3.0
- .fp5 since FileMaker Pro 5.0
- .fp7 since FileMaker Pro 7.0, (including FileMaker Pro 11.0 and FileMaker Go 1.0)
- Indicates Standard and Advanced
Self running applications (runtime, kiosk mode) are platform specific only.
[edit] Internationalization and localization
[edit] Languages available
FileMaker is available in the following languages:
- World Wide English
- Chinese (simplified)
- Czech (Central European version)
- Dutch
- French
- German
- Italian
- Japanese
- Polish (Central European version)
- Portuguese
- Spanish
- Swedish
- Traditional Chinese
- Turkish (Central European version)
[edit] Versions for Central Europe, Middle East and India
There are specific versions of FileMaker for Central European, Middle Eastern and Indian users. These versions are available from WinSoft International,[6] FileMaker’s Internationalization and localization partner.[7][8][9]
The Central European version includes an English, Polish, Czech and Turkish interface; the Middle Eastern version is available in English and French and the "Indian" version in English. The custom versions offer spell checking, data entry, sorting and printing options for languages of the respective region. They also contain localized templates and a localized Instant Web Publishing.
For Central Europe, there are customized templates for Polish, Czech, Turkish. In addition Russian, Greek, Estonian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Serbian, Bulgarian and Hungarian are supported to varying degrees.
The Middle Eastern version supports Arabic and Hebrew, including an option to change the text to right-to-left instead of the western left-to-right. For South East Asia there is version that supports text entry in all Indian languages, as well as sorting and indexing in Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Panjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam.
[edit] Scripting
FileMaker Pro and FileMaker Pro Advanced allow you to write and edit scripts for automation of common tasks and complex calculations: Over 130 “script steps” are available for navigation, conditional execution of script steps, editing records, controlling windows, finding specific records, checking spelling and managing user accounts. In addition, many of these script steps can use built-in functions for a variety of mathematical calculations, text manipulation and querying your database configuration.
[edit] SQL and ODBC Support
FileMaker, since version 9, includes the ability to connect to a number of SQL databases without resorting to using SQL, including MySQL, SQL Server, and Oracle. This requires installation of the SQL database ODBC driver to connect to a SQL database. SQL databases can be used as data sources in FileMaker’s relationship graph, thus allowing the developer to create new layouts based on the SQL database; create, edit, and delete SQL records via FileMaker layouts and functions; and reference SQL fields in FileMaker calculations and script steps. It is a cross platform relational database application.
Versions from FileMaker Pro 5.5 onwards also have an ODBC interface.
[edit] See also
- Bento, a simplified personal database application from FileMaker Inc.
- FileMaker Dynamic Markup Language or FDML (also called CDML) for displaying FileMaker data on the Web
[edit] References
- ^ a b Glenn Koenig (2 April 2004). "FileMaker Early History". http://www.dancing-data.com/filemakerhist.html. Retrieved 2007-10-05.
- ^ "Nashoba Systems and the Early Days of FileMaker Pro". Briandunning.com. http://www.briandunning.com/browse/browse0399.shtml. Retrieved 2011-10-10.
- ^ "Mike Weber, The Low End Mac, FileMaker History". Lowendmac.com. 2008-09-15. http://lowendmac.com/software/f/filemaker.html. Retrieved 2011-10-10.
- ^ "Custhelp.com". Filemaker.custhelp.com. 2010-11-19. http://filemaker.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5584/~/filemaker-pro-version-history. Retrieved 2011-10-10.
- ^ Filemaker.com Retrieved 4/14/2010
- ^ "WinSoft". Winsoft-international.com. http://www.winsoft-international.com/en/products/database.html. Retrieved 2011-10-10.
- ^ FileMaker available for Middle Eastern Users[dead link]
- ^ FileMaker available for Central European Users[dead link]
- ^ FileMaker available for Indian Users[dead link]
[edit] External links
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