From Dwayne Wright - Certified FileMaker 9 Developer
WEB: www.dwaynewright.com
EMAIL: info@dwaynewright.com
TWITTER: dwaynewright
CHAPTER 04: The Relationship Graph
I saw someone post a twitter comment about FileMaker and ERD planning. Thought I’d take a quick look to see what posts I have and what other posts might be out there. Then post it via a blog and link it to them ... here goes ...
Here are some links to some of my posts that might be of interest...
The Relationship Graph Is Not An ERD
ERD
ERD, the basics...
ERD Example
ERD Example (update)
Degree Of Participation And The ERD
Using Google ... found a link to a portion of the Special Edition Using FileMaker 8: Special Edition book
http://tinyurl.com/9e7hsl
There are probably more ... if anyone has found any ... by all means please add them in this posts comments and I’ll pass them along.
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More info about the author and FileMaker in general, contact me at info@dwaynewright.com.
© 2008 - Dwayne Wright - dwaynewright.com
The material on this document is offered AS IS. There is NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY, expressed or implied, nor does any other contributor to this document. WARRANTIES OF MERCHANT ABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED. Consequential and incidental damages are expressly excluded. FileMaker Pro is the registered trademark of FileMaker Inc.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
FILEMAKER: Some Confusion About The Separation Model
From Dwayne Wright - Certified FileMaker 9 Developer
WEB: www.dwaynewright.com
EMAIL: info@dwaynewright.com
TWITTER: dwaynewright
CHAPTER 09: The Separation Model
I have seen some developers describe the separation model as a front end file with a table that has a single record with nothing but global fields used to filter a relationship to a back end file that has the data table. Many people describe the front end record as a header and the related data as the body (akin to what you see in standard list view).
I don’t agree with using the term of Separation Model to describe that process but that process does use the separation model. This is an old school method (pre-FileMaker 7) of using the separation model that isn’t needed with all the power and flexibility that was introduced with FileMaker 7. Now, if you are working with a solution that uses this system from a converted pre FileMaker 7 solution, I would suggest you take the opportunity to rework the solution to better harness the power a more modern version of FileMaker offers.
The idea of having a single record that can show a variety of related information based upon the tweaking of global fields is what I call a dashboard. Dashboards are a great design technique and can be used within a separation model setup. They can also be used in multiple file solutions or the all in one file solutions.
In the old school method, you would need to go to the data file to perform tasks like batch updating of records. With FileMaker 7 (and above) that isn’t the case because of the magic of table occurrences.
Case in point, my InBizness product has a single record that shows multiple options of related data. The layout is designed for sales reps and they can see client information, to do lists, follow up tasks, invoicing history and much more. This is a single file solution, so it does NOT use the separation model. It however does meet most of the criteria I described in the opening paragraph.
All you need to do is create a table occurrence you want and then create the layout for it in that file using that reference. All GTRR actions can go to that layout and show all the related data from that file without having to go to that file.
A big reason to never leave the interface file for your scripting is the use of script variables. Although there are techniques to pass variable data within files, they are usually cumbersome and potentially unreliable.
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More info about the author and FileMaker in general, contact me at info@dwaynewright.com.
© 2008 - Dwayne Wright - dwaynewright.com
The material on this document is offered AS IS. There is NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY, expressed or implied, nor does any other contributor to this document. WARRANTIES OF MERCHANT ABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED. Consequential and incidental damages are expressly excluded. FileMaker Pro is the registered trademark of FileMaker Inc.
WEB: www.dwaynewright.com
EMAIL: info@dwaynewright.com
TWITTER: dwaynewright
CHAPTER 09: The Separation Model
I have seen some developers describe the separation model as a front end file with a table that has a single record with nothing but global fields used to filter a relationship to a back end file that has the data table. Many people describe the front end record as a header and the related data as the body (akin to what you see in standard list view). I don’t agree with using the term of Separation Model to describe that process but that process does use the separation model. This is an old school method (pre-FileMaker 7) of using the separation model that isn’t needed with all the power and flexibility that was introduced with FileMaker 7. Now, if you are working with a solution that uses this system from a converted pre FileMaker 7 solution, I would suggest you take the opportunity to rework the solution to better harness the power a more modern version of FileMaker offers.
The idea of having a single record that can show a variety of related information based upon the tweaking of global fields is what I call a dashboard. Dashboards are a great design technique and can be used within a separation model setup. They can also be used in multiple file solutions or the all in one file solutions.
In the old school method, you would need to go to the data file to perform tasks like batch updating of records. With FileMaker 7 (and above) that isn’t the case because of the magic of table occurrences.
Case in point, my InBizness product has a single record that shows multiple options of related data. The layout is designed for sales reps and they can see client information, to do lists, follow up tasks, invoicing history and much more. This is a single file solution, so it does NOT use the separation model. It however does meet most of the criteria I described in the opening paragraph. All you need to do is create a table occurrence you want and then create the layout for it in that file using that reference. All GTRR actions can go to that layout and show all the related data from that file without having to go to that file.
A big reason to never leave the interface file for your scripting is the use of script variables. Although there are techniques to pass variable data within files, they are usually cumbersome and potentially unreliable.
=
More info about the author and FileMaker in general, contact me at info@dwaynewright.com.
© 2008 - Dwayne Wright - dwaynewright.com
The material on this document is offered AS IS. There is NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY, expressed or implied, nor does any other contributor to this document. WARRANTIES OF MERCHANT ABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED. Consequential and incidental damages are expressly excluded. FileMaker Pro is the registered trademark of FileMaker Inc.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
FILEMAKER: Why The Separation Model?
From Dwayne Wright - Certified FileMaker 9 Developer
WEB: www.dwaynewright.com
EMAIL: info@dwaynewright.com
TWITTER: dwaynewright
CHAPTER 09: The Separation Model
The separation model is a design process where you have all the tables that contain data in one file and all the user experience programming in another file. By expert use of relationship design and scripting, you deliver the experience to the customer that both files are one engine.
So why go to such an extreme design method when the single FileMaker file implementation is so popular and powerful? Well, it was born out of one simple question. How do I continue to develop a clients solution while my client is using the current solution version?
Well, using the above description of the separation model, you may be able to do the core of your development work in the file that DOES NOT contain any of the solutions data. When you upload your new version, you leave the data file untouched and the client gets the benefits of your recent changes.
As a developer considering a separation model implementation, you might have questions such as ...
- What is considered best practice for planning, building and testing a separation model implementation?
- What is the fastest and easiest method to make the change to the separation model without having to redo too much work?
Well, the first thing I would recommend before considering the move towards a separation model is to clean up and organize your existing database first. The primary target for clean up should be your relationship graph. If it is not in anchor / buoy format, consider moving towards that implementation. Make sure all your layouts are organized by the entity they use and I would recommend the same thing for your scripts. The reason for this is quite simple ...
One of the fastest and easiest ways to take a single file solution to the separation model is to duplicate the file, wire them up to each other based upon their role (one file for data and one file for presentation) and delete what you don’t need from each. More about this in later postings.
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More info about the author and FileMaker in general, contact me at info@dwaynewright.com.
© 2008 - Dwayne Wright - dwaynewright.com
The material on this document is offered AS IS. There is NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY, expressed or implied, nor does any other contributor to this document. WARRANTIES OF MERCHANT ABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED. Consequential and incidental damages are expressly excluded. FileMaker Pro is the registered trademark of FileMaker Inc.
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Our virtual one on one screen sharing sessions are a unique form of one on one support for your FileMaker needs. All you need is an internet connection and a telephone in order for us to work hand in hand. Primarily, I use a screen sharing application called Yugma. It is totally browser based and we can share the same computer screen as we explore FileMaker together. The software allows us to shift control of the screen back and forth without a problem. I can also use iChat for the Macintosh users that have an iChat account.
If you are interested in a one on one virtual session, please click here or send me an email at info@dwaynewright.com and we will schedule an appointment.
If you are interested in a one on one virtual session, send me an email at info@dwaynewright.com and we will schedule an appointment. I will then send you a link to the scheduled Yugma or iChat session. When we are ready to start the training, you click on the link in the email, give me a call and we can get started.
WEB: www.dwaynewright.com
EMAIL: info@dwaynewright.com
TWITTER: dwaynewright
CHAPTER 09: The Separation Model
The separation model is a design process where you have all the tables that contain data in one file and all the user experience programming in another file. By expert use of relationship design and scripting, you deliver the experience to the customer that both files are one engine.
So why go to such an extreme design method when the single FileMaker file implementation is so popular and powerful? Well, it was born out of one simple question. How do I continue to develop a clients solution while my client is using the current solution version? Well, using the above description of the separation model, you may be able to do the core of your development work in the file that DOES NOT contain any of the solutions data. When you upload your new version, you leave the data file untouched and the client gets the benefits of your recent changes.
As a developer considering a separation model implementation, you might have questions such as ...
- What is considered best practice for planning, building and testing a separation model implementation?
- What is the fastest and easiest method to make the change to the separation model without having to redo too much work?
Well, the first thing I would recommend before considering the move towards a separation model is to clean up and organize your existing database first. The primary target for clean up should be your relationship graph. If it is not in anchor / buoy format, consider moving towards that implementation. Make sure all your layouts are organized by the entity they use and I would recommend the same thing for your scripts. The reason for this is quite simple ...
One of the fastest and easiest ways to take a single file solution to the separation model is to duplicate the file, wire them up to each other based upon their role (one file for data and one file for presentation) and delete what you don’t need from each. More about this in later postings.
=
More info about the author and FileMaker in general, contact me at info@dwaynewright.com.
© 2008 - Dwayne Wright - dwaynewright.com
The material on this document is offered AS IS. There is NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY, expressed or implied, nor does any other contributor to this document. WARRANTIES OF MERCHANT ABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED. Consequential and incidental damages are expressly excluded. FileMaker Pro is the registered trademark of FileMaker Inc.
ADVERTISEMENT ==================
Our virtual one on one screen sharing sessions are a unique form of one on one support for your FileMaker needs. All you need is an internet connection and a telephone in order for us to work hand in hand. Primarily, I use a screen sharing application called Yugma. It is totally browser based and we can share the same computer screen as we explore FileMaker together. The software allows us to shift control of the screen back and forth without a problem. I can also use iChat for the Macintosh users that have an iChat account.
If you are interested in a one on one virtual session, please click here or send me an email at info@dwaynewright.com and we will schedule an appointment.
If you are interested in a one on one virtual session, send me an email at info@dwaynewright.com and we will schedule an appointment. I will then send you a link to the scheduled Yugma or iChat session. When we are ready to start the training, you click on the link in the email, give me a call and we can get started.
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