FileMaker Weetbicks

Server Compatible Dynamic Portal Sorting

Greetings all, Dynamically sorting portals has always been a struggle for FileMaker Developers — in this new #FileMaker Weetbicks article we introduce a method using Value Lists which avoids unstored calculations and is compatible with FileMaker Server's ability to sort records. We also go in depth on the journey to come up with this approach and along the way you may just learn a bit about Value Lists and how they can be sorted, along with some of the challenges involved. Read

May 1, 2023

Don't get Duped When Duplicating Records

Hi there. In this article we're talking about record duplication - specifically multiple records including both parent and related child records. We discuss various different approaches and spell out the pros and cons of each. We hope this article proves educational and gives you some ideas around ways to duplicate data. As always we have built a thorough example file to inform and showcase the different approaches. Click Here to Read the Full Article & Example File

March 27, 2023

Add-ons

elemental_log Black Friday Special - up to 50% off

Black Friday is back and we're back again with another great deal for elemental_log. For the entire week beginning Friday 25th November we are discounting the price of all our licenses by up to 50%. We are doing this to try and encourage other Claris FileMaker developers to take the leap and invest in audit logging for their client solutions. Data privacy and integrity is more important than ever, and elemental_log can help in tracking all cha

Daniel Wood in Add-ons

November 24, 2022

Navigation that Responds on Mouse-Over

I have just posted a new article at FileMaker Weetbicks! This article is about utilising a technique to allow for instant script execution when an object is hovered over. We use this technique for building various dynamic navigation controls that respond to the users interaction without them clicking the mouse. We also go into a bit of background history on this technique as well as show some alternative uses. As always, an extensive example file has been included. Click here

November 4, 2022

Avoiding Multi Window Record Locking

Hi all, Back with a new article about how you can avoid record locking occurring in multiple user windows using a passive approach that does not involve onTimers. https://www.teamdf.com/blogs/avoiding-multi-window-record-locking/ Thanks for reading! Daniel

September 28, 2022

Navigation

Navigate the DF Way - Solution Navigation Bar

Hi all, I have just published a new article at FileMaker Weetbicks. This is part 2 of our navigation series and in this article we talk about solution navigation. We extend upon the navigation framework from part 1 and leverage it to build a contextless button bar navigation control that can be used for solution wide navigation, or for script execution. You can check the article out here, along with a detailed example file. Thanks for reading! Daniel

Daniel Wood in Navigation

May 25, 2022

Navigation

Navigate the DF Way - Layout Sections

Hi there! I've just published a new article at FileMaker Weetbicks entitled "Navigate the DF Way - Layout Sections". This is the first in a series of articles dealing with the topic of navigation. In this first article we talk about navigation within a single layout. Example file included as always. https://www.teamdf.com/blogs/navigate-the-df-way-layout-sections/ Thank you for reading, Daniel

Daniel Wood in Navigation

May 2, 2022

Calculations

Solving Circular References in Auto Enter Calculations

Hi there! In this article we talk about an age old situation in FileMaker where two Auto-Enter calculations reference one another. We explain the order of execution and why this never leads to a desired result. We then show a cool solution to this issue such that you can build circular references that work the way you want them to. Example file included as always. Check out the article here! Thanks for reading! Daniel

Daniel Wood in Calculations

March 30, 2022

A Clever CSS Chat Display

Hi all, I have just posted a new article at FileMaker Weetbicks entitled "A Clever CSS Chat Display". I hope you like it. In this article I present a very easy to implement CSS-based chat 0 which is perfect for implementing a messaging system in your solution. The chat display is presented as a standard instant messaging format with a two-sided conversation. It is also able to handle formatting, and messages of any size. As always an example file is included which should contain

March 21, 2022

A Cooler Color Picker

Hi all, I have just posted a new article & example file entitled "A Cooler Color Picker". In this article we present a javascript based color picker utility which can be reused multiple times on a layout, or across multiple different windows at once. We present it in both popover & card window varieties (so it can be usable within a portal). We also show a quick and simple way to generate a color swatch from the chosen hexadecimal code, as well as some other interesting tidbits in t

March 10, 2022

Best of 2021 - Idle Record Release

Hi all, The final technique in our best of 2021 series sees a nice way to silently commit idle users who have left a record in an uncommitted state. This is great for situations where a user locking a record has the potential to impact other users (or developers). You can check out the article & example file technique here Thank you for reading and supporting FileMaker Weetbicks in 2021 and we look forward to bringing you more content in 2022 - Merry Christmas!

December 22, 2021

Best of 2021: PSOS Helper

Hi all, Number four in our best of 2021 series is a wee bit of code I have utilised many times throughout the year to run a script server-side using Perform Script on Server. This has proven a real time saver being able to write a script and then add one line of code to the top of it to force it to run on server - ideal for those times where you need to run a script quickly You can check out the article along with an example file with the code here Cheers! Daniel

December 19, 2021

Best of 2021 - Keystroke Tester

Hi all, Part 3 in our Best of 2021 series is a little utility I built to help developers interrogate pressed keystrokes and modifier keys - very useful when writing scripts where modifiers or keystrokes are used. You can check it out below. Stay tuned for the final 2 articles coming in the next few weeks. Check out the article here Regards, Daniel

December 15, 2021

Weetbicks Best of 2021: Get Record as JSON

Hi all! Number 2 in our Best of 2021 series is how to easily grab a record in JSON notation, with just a single script. A neat little tool which can aid in API integration as well as proving useful as a tool when trying to debug end user issues. You can check out the article below along with an example file that illustrates the technique so you can use it in your own solutions. https://www.teamdf.com/blogs/get-record-as-json Thanks for reading Daniel

November 28, 2021

Best of 2021 - Multi-Row Portal Selection

Hi all, 2021 is nearly over and so I thought I would take look back and share some of my favourite techniques and code bits I wrote in 2021. I've picked my favourite 5, starting with Multi-Row Portal Selection. This technique is all about intuitive OS style row selection utilising modifier keys - example file included as always. Check out the best of here! Stay tuned over the coming weeks for more of my favourites. Weetbicks

November 17, 2021

Reporting

Powerful Pivot Table Presetting

Hi all. I've written a new article at FileMaker Weetbicks entitled Powerful Pivot Table Presetting. In this article we take a look at pivot tables, their use, and their integration into FileMaker through using the PivotTable.js library. We look at others who have pioneered this integration before, and then extend on those by building in saving and loading of presets. This opens up a world of possibility for your end users who can now build and save their own pivot table configurations.

Daniel Wood in Reporting

September 30, 2021

Lovely Logos and Pretty Profile Pics

Hi all! In this article we showcase a range of Logo and Profile picture retrieval APIs and how they can be integrated into your FileMaker solutions to automatically download images for your contacts. We also show how background content can be removed from these images, again through using background removal APIs. Finally, we talk a bit about why using these could benefit your solution and when all else fails what other options are available for adding some visual presentation for

August 30, 2021

Prominent Color Coolness

In this article we show you how to use the contents of a FileMaker container field to produce beautiful gradients and solid background fills based on the container images most prominent colors. We also show how to render solid fills without the use of a web viewer (for portal display) and how to determine optimal color for text placed on top of your background fills. As always, an example file has been lovingly crafted to help you explore these techniques You can read the article