Product Reviews

For years, FileMaker has remained the database tool of choice for developers and consumers alike. But since its last major revision 18 months ago, releases from high-end rival 4D Developer and its own budget Bento 2, have given it much-needed competition.

As with FileMaker Pro 9, the application comes in two versions, a Standard version and the more powerful Advanced edition that we look at here, which supports extras for developers, such as a runtime engine and customisable menus.

For both versions, the most striking change is to the program's interface. Gone - to what should be sustained applause - are 2001-era pinstriped window backgrounds, which are replaced by a smarter, slate-grey look that's much more in keeping with Leopard. The look doesn't extend everywhere though, so developers might be disappointed that elements such as buttons and drop-down fields still have a generic, if neat, cross-platform appearance.

A new Status Toolbar replaces the old status area that was previously located on the left of the main window and held the program's navigational elements. This is a vast improvement that goes beyond window dressing. Not only is the toolbar customisable, but its chunky icons vary according to mode. In Preview Mode, for example, the printing and exporting icons appear, while the Browse Mode shows standard record and sorting buttons. Underneath the main Status toolbar sit more handy extras, including a pop-up menu to quick switch between layouts and toggle record, list and table views.

FileMaker has cribbed usability lessons from Bento. This is particularly evident in the Quick Start screen. While it has long been capable of opening Excel spreadsheets, you're now given an explicit option to open Excel files or Bento databases from the Quick Start screen. In the

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same window, FileMaker has given Bento-like polish to the Starter Solutions templates, which now look far better.

FileMaker 10 adds important functions, too. A new dynamic reporting feature is useful if you create grouped record reports, as you can make changes to those reports in Browse mode directly, and the report updates automatically rather than having to be run again.

Even better: more powerful scripting control. FileMaker has long allowed scripts to act on actions such as clicking on a button. But script triggers can now occur when you enter, modify or leave a field, or switch mode. With the addition of a clutch of new script functions, the new script triggers offer similar functionality to the Visual Basic macros once offered by Excel, but FileMaker's scripts are easier to build through a new example-based Manage Scripts window - the old ScriptMaker has bitten the dust.

One timesaving feature is the ability to save the current find criteria when you perform a find, which can later be triggered either from a new Toolbar Find icon in Browse mode, or a Saved Finds option in Find mode. This makes filtering records much easier, as does the new helpful toolbar Pie chart icon. This gives a good visual overview of the proportion of records matching a find request; clicking on the chart again switches the displayed records to show all those not found by the current request.

Into the important, but not eye-catching, category goes an extension of support for external SQL tables and improved file recovery. Version 10 also lets you send mail directly though FileMaker Pro, rather than relying on the intermediary of an email application. It can be done through a Send Mail option from the File menu or, more flexibly, through a script step, which lets you set criteria and options for your mail.

It's easy to see this being used to email contacts based on their status, and by harnessing a new script trigger to run a script at a set time, you now have the ability to schedule email, something not even possible with either of the main Mac desktop email clients.

FileMaker Pro 10 isn't just better-looking and easier to use, it's also more powerful. That said, it isn't an essential upgrade. Developers will appreciate the better scripting control, but if your database needs are simple and you don't need a multi-user database, Bento might be a better bet.