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Hierarchical JSON Viewer / Editor
By Andy Persons & Doug West
One of the standout new features of FileMaker Pro 16 is native support for the JSON data-interchange format. In addition to providing easy integration with a host of online services, it also provides developers with the tools to create robust hierarchical structures for use entirely within FileMaker. This hierarchical JSON viewer / editor file provides some tools for visualizing, manipulating, and leveraging JSON text.
Features
[ Edit: 3/16/2016 - With the help of some other people, we have been able to recover, or recreate some of the original images from original thread. ]
Security is always a big topic when it involves data, or people, or possessions. Recently, over on the FileMaker Community, there was a very beneficial discussion regarding security. Unfortunately, that discussion was the victim of a necessary action...and was deleted. It was deleted, because the discussion was tied to a video that, as was det
Author’s note: Inevitable comparisons will be drawn between the new While function and the venerable CustomList custom function, which I wrote about at length several years ago. Preliminary testing indicates that CustomList is faster under certain circumstances and While is faster under others. In my opinion, both of them belong in your developer tool kit. […]
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GoDraw3 is a FileMaker drawing tool for users. For FileMaker developers, however, it is full of customization. A developer can do with it what she wants.
The post GoDraw3: Hack the Heck Out of It appeared first on Geist Interactive.
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Part 2: What Should You Consider When Selecting a Development Partner? What Questions Might You Ask a Potential Developer?
Hiring a developer is about creating a working relationship. You want someone who gets your business and gets you. Having a good working relationship often determines the success or failure of a development project. Hire someone you are comfortable with who also has the skills necessary to make your project successful. Beyond the quality of the working relationsh
When it comes to doing the same thing over and over again, you really can't beat a loop. It's the wet side of DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself), where the "Don't" turns into a very big "Please, yes, DO."
The trick with loops, especially when you're processing a lot of data like JSON, is that you often have to manage multiple iterators, counts, and all the little bits and pieces needed for a successful outcome.
One of the wonderful things about many other languages, like Python, PHP, JavaScript, and
Testing is a crucial part of building reliable FileMaker solutions, whether you're a freelancer or a citizen developer. This guide explores smart testing strategies, from applying the "Zero, One, Many" rule to leveraging FileMaker’s Script Debugger for efficient troubleshooting. Learn how to think like a user, anticipate errors, and implement best practices that will make your applications more robust, user-friendly, and scalable. Includes demo file and video. Testing Your Work in Claris FileMak
Breaking down complex logic into manageable chunks of code is the smartest thing you can do when it comes to conditional formatting. Especially when it needs to account for an increasingly wider number of conditions.
This week's video deals with what seems like a simple solution to solve, yet it comes with all kinds of complex little pieces to make the solution provide the end result desired.
If you enjoy the type of video which is a bit of a solution walk-thru, where I discuss how things are
A big thanks to Richard Carlton for hosting multiple members of the Proof+Geist team on his FMTV podcast during Claris Engage 2025. Check out the conversations and the short demos surrounding multiple free-to-try or fully free tools for FileMaker development. FMLayoutLens and FMPerception with Dave Ramsey In this conversation, Dave Ramsey discusses FMLayoutLens and FMPerception. […]
The post Proof+Geist Talks with Richard Carlton appeared first on Proof+Geist.
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Every solution starts out like an infant. It knows very little and works hard to manage your solution's data as it becomes a productive citizen of your digital society. As it grows, your solution will need to offer a variety of options. User A prefers things one way, while User B another.
Your job, as the developer, is to accommodate those whims and preferences, or settings as we’ll call them, in the most efficient way possible. As is somewhat typical, you may be halfway through development whe
Using artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT or Google Gemini can significantly streamline your development process and enhance problem-solving capabilities. But to effectively leverage AI, it’s important to understand foundational AI terminology.
This blog introduces you to the essential terminology you’ll need to make sense of how AI works and how it can improve your FileMaker development efforts.
AI terms you should know
Machine Learning (ML): A subset of AI that
Demo file: transactional-card-window.zip (requires FM 20 or newer) Resources Card windows — Windowing in FM 16: First Impressions Transactions — A Practical Guide to Transactions in FileMaker (ClickWorks) Introduction Recently a colleague and I were discussing ways one might go about having a card window be both modal and transactional. By default card windows are… Continue reading Modal Transactional Card WindowView the full article
I arrived in Austin excited to see some familiar faces and show off all the cool stuff we’ve been working on at Proof+Geist. I left Claris Engage feeling grateful for the people, the conversations, and the chance to be part of something that keeps evolving. Winning as a team Claris recognized Proof+Geist with an Excellence […]
The post Claris Engage 2025: Energy, innovation, and community appeared first on Proof+Geist.
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One of the greatest joys of working in technology is that you never really have to stop learning - although you certainly can. Everything also moves so fast that it often feels like you can’t keep up. The great thing about FileMaker is that you're not stuck in the '80s or '90s when the software first started - you get to explore as widely as you like. FileMaker can literally reach into almost all aspects of technology.
You can learn about relational structure, SQL, REST, web APIs, and whatever
Even to this day, after providing FileMaker-related technical education for many years, I still see solutions with less-than-optimal structure and storage. When it comes to graphics, “all things add up.” The cumulative cost of data or technical debt often comes back to bite you when you’re trying to refactor an old solution to meet modern standards.
This video showcases what I know about storing and using graphics within your FileMaker layouts. If you’re unaware of how large images impact perfo
Expedite your FileMaker finds with saved searches. This article showcases a dynamic search builder that allows a user to construct Find Mode queries and save them for later use. Follow along with the free demo file and video. Dynamic Saved Searching in Claris FileMaker >>
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FileMaker Pro Audit Trail “Revisited”
By Doug West
Nearly ten years have passed since our Easy-Bake Audit Trail made its Internet debut! The same principles are still going strong, and now we’ve refined the approach based on user feedback.
The steps to implement this revised technique in your solution are as easy as:
Copy the one custom function from this demo file and paste it into each file of your app.
Copy the _audit field and paste it into each table of your app.
(Optional) Add exclu
Proof+Geist is once again proud to receive the Claris Innovation Excellence Award (2024) for OttoFMS. Claris FileMaker developers deserve world-class DevOps tools. OttoFMS brings seamless integrations, powerful automations, customizable interfaces, and effortless deployments to the FileMaker community. Our team needed a tool we could rely on, so we built one to share. We were honored […]
The post Breaking News: Proof+Geist Wins Claris Innovation Excellence Award (2024) for OttoFMS. appeared fi
When tackling the task of updating a UI/UX look and feel, it can quickly become overwhelming — especially if you have hundreds of layouts and countless individual styles, some in use and others deprecated.
While designing a new solution from scratch allows you to take advantage of modern best practices, many existing solutions have simply relied on the Default style and applied it across numerous layouts.
The goal of this video is to demonstrate how you can achieve an updated look without disr
After the joy of seeing so many friends and colleagues last year, we are excited to be premier sponsors again for this year’s Claris Engage 2025. Come just us from March 25-27th on the Apple Campus in Austin, Texas. Where Can You Find Us? We’ll have one booth on the main expo floor— it will […]
The post Claris Engage 2025 is just around the corner! appeared first on Proof+Geist.
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Introduction If you work with large JSON structures in FileMaker, you may be aware that the current shipping version of the product (FileMaker Pro 21, a.k.a. FileMaker Pro 2024) has a single-element JSON cache, which is reset whenever JSONSetElement or JSONGetElement is called, and that you can boost performance by taking this into account. Six… Continue reading JSON Optimization in FM 21View the full article
Are you a FileMaker developer looking to integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) into your workflows? Productive Computing University‘s AI Essentials for FileMaker Developers course is designed to give you a solid foundation in applying artificial intelligence (AI) within your FileMaker solutions.
Why use AI?
AI is changing the way developers build solutions, automate processes, and improve workflows. As a FileMaker developer, understanding how to incorporate AI into your projects can enh
Continuing from a previous video that introduced the Execute FileMaker Data API script step, this video explores the remaining CRUD operations added in FileMaker 21+.
With the create, update, duplicate, and delete actions, we can now leverage more stateless data operations thanks to direct write access to tables.
This video walks through the new write capabilities of the Execute FileMaker Data API script step. Along the way, we’ll also share tips and tricks for writing Custom Functions and exp
If you’re on MacOS, and use the Monkeybread (a.k.a. MBS) plug-in with “check variable names” enabled, you quickly come to appreciate how useful this feature, also known as linting, can be. For example I recently helped another developer track down a script problem that turned out to be a slight misspelling of a variable name,… Continue reading A Tip for MBS “Check Variable Names”View the full article
The Execute FileMaker Data API script step has been around for quite a few years. It was introduced in FileMaker 19, around 2020. If you haven't used it, you may be manually creating JSON for your records when you don’t need to — FileMaker can do this for you. I covered this script step in a video in 2021, explaining how the REST/Data API functionality translates into internal use.
While some features perform better than the Execute Data API step — ExecuteSQL() being one of them — it requires a
We demonstrate how ESS (External SQL Data Source) allows users to connect an existing SQL database to a Claris FileMaker file as an external data source. This grants the user access to many of the functionalities of a standard FileMaker table while also allowing them to continue using the SQL database as they were. Includes sample file and video. Integrating Claris FileMaker with a SQL Database via ESS
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Have you ever needed sample images for your FileMaker solution for a demonstration, training, or marketing? Whether for showcasing a new product or just experimenting with data, having a tool built-in into your file will make the process much easier.
Our video shows you a simple way to generate a selection of high-quality, random images directly in FileMaker using a free online resource called Lorem Picsum.
You’ll learn the step-by-step process of generating professional-looking sample
Need a simple method to install or distribute your Claris FileMaker Pro application to other users? Learn how to create an executable that can be run on Mac and Windows to set up automatic downloads of Claris FileMaker Pro with specific settings. Includes a video. How to Auto-Install Claris FileMaker Pro
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