Calculation Engine (Define Fields)

My database of orders placed in our store has a script which is supposed to only display orders which are open and were placed at least two days ago. To accomplish this I search by a record's OrderAge field. The field definition of this was: DayofYear(Today) - DayofYear(Creation Date) However like many people I found the long Today Calculation at startup very annoying. I did some search on this forum and it looks as though everyone recommends status(CurrentDate) as a superior replacement for Today. I changed the OrderAge function to use Status(CurrentDate). At first glance it seemed to be behaving normally, but the next day I checked and the records all ha…

If I have a file that is viewed in list view, is there a way to have some sort of a global field in the background containing a single color pixel image, and have that field become visible or invisible for the current record? Basically, I am trying to find a way to have the current record in a list view be highlighted. LR

Hi, I am not exactly sure how to phrase this question because I am not entirely sure of the direction I need to take this problem. Basically, I am looking for a way (either using scripts or calculation and summaries)to get a subsummary of a field, and then use that data for further calculations. If this sounds like familiar territory please read on. Each record in my file has a "person name" field, a "project name" field and a "hours worked" field. How can I get the total number of hours worked per project per person in a way that I can use those numbers in another file. I can get it to display those numbers using sub-summaries and a sum…

Okay ya'all ... I'm redefining some major structures at present. I want to resolve for myself, once and for all, the issue of unique primary keys and ID's. WHEN should a 'random' Unique Primary Key (such as CaptKurt's formula) be used and when is okay to use ID numbers, such as Client ID 1804, 1805; or Invoice # 28101, 28102, etc. as Primary Keys? Or, should I have both ALWAYS -- an ID for the Key AND a 'serial number?' I would assume that CaptKurt's Unique Primary Key is VITAL for large-volume unique records, particularly if import/exporting, sychronizing, etc. -- but having BOTH a Unique ID Key AND a Unique 'serial number' appears to be overkill. Any final inpu…

It should be simple, just a concatenated list of fields to create a unique match field (not meant to be a unique ID) in my 'student' db. I want to define the field as: lastname&firstname&birthdate&schools::district students and schools are related by the field 'school'. This works fine, brings in the district (I have the field schools::district on several layouts). Except when I try to include schools::district in my match field definition. Then I get the error message "This field cannot be found." Anyone know what's happening? The field definitely exists in the schools db and the relationship is working correctly as proven by the fact that t…

Hi, Is there a way to use the scroll bar in a field that has the "allow entry in field" option turned off? thnx allready! Jeffer

To make field validation for globals possible I found a trick. I change the field back to a number field, or text field (whatever kind of field the global was), and then I set the field validation. Then I change the field type back to global. It will be a known trick I think, but worth to remember. My only question is, is it safeproof, in other words, can this have any negative effects? And frankly I don't understand why FM has blocked out the direct setting of field validation for globals. Harryk

I have a text field (called GROUP) which incorporates two types of data. The left side is a StaffCode, then a "-" and the right is a Program. Our old MedPac couldn't track by Program. In FM, of course we can. I have created two new text fields, Staff and Program and I need to split Group and set the two new fields. Existing format and data variations are: AS-T GBG-OCP DJ (meaning only staff listed and program would be "I" for Insurance) There are a maximum of four letters on each side of the "-" and some entries have no "-" (only the Staff code as in DJ). Question: Can I loop through once using a script to set the new fields, if so, what would …

I'm sorry I'm a pest right now ... major conversion that I shouldn't be expected to do. I'm NEW, darn it! Anyway, I have a text field (TEXTDATE) with the following format: AUG 31 02 with one space on each side of the day. I need to convert and SET a date field. I tried TextToDate(TextDate) but nothing shows up in the date field. I tried LeftWords(TextDate, 1 ) & "/" & MiddleWords( TextDate, 2 , 1 ) & "/" & RightWords( TextDate, 1 ) but that gives me 6/29/0009 -- at least it's closer! When I add TextToDate around it, it's empty again. Anyone that helps me, I'll love forever

I have a file, CheckoutList that allows people to check items out from another database. ItemDescription contains the description and stats for each item, such as its name, length of checkout, etc. CheckoutList has a field, DateCheckedOut that is automatically entered. ItemDescription has a field "CheckoutDateLength". In Checkout, I created a calculation for a field "Date Due" that looks like this: DateCheckedOut + "ItemDescription::CheckoutDateLength" This should return a due date that equals the actual time plus the CheckoutDateLength determined in ItemDescription. The problem is that the calculation always uses the CheckoutDateLength from the first recor…

I just started with FileMaker so this may be a dumb question, but I can't seem to track down the answer in all of the documentation I have. There is a field in our database that is currently populated by a default value when a new record is created. This value is a related field in another database. How does one set/change/update/edit this? thanks in advance!

I've found some solutions in FMForums for this, but none of them solved my request .... In a listview I want to change the record background to a red color, but only when "STOP" in a text field is selected. I'm sure it must be something with a global field and a calculation.

Well, here's another really basic thing I've never grasped in the years I've dabbled off and on in FMP. I did some formatting of some fields yesterday and noticed today that when I'm finally able to move to next stage and creating new fields for a layout, that the changes I made are now reflected in the new fields. I need to create a whole bunch of new ones today and don't relish having to manually change attributes each time (field background colour, border types, font, font size, etc., etc.). Need to learn how to change defaults once and for all. Again, the help wasn't helpful and I haven't found how to do this. Thanks!

I have a calc Choose( Status(CurrentSortStatus), "Unsorted","Sorted","Semi-Sorted") that I have displayed on a status bar. I am trying to determine how much space the longest option (semi-sort) will take. But, no matter how I sort, I can't get Semi-Sort to display. FM Help shows nothing on semi-sort that I can find. What is semi-sort? Something is sorted ... or it isn't. Isn't it?

All of the age calculations I have seen so far (about 10 on this forum) are from "today's date". I want to calculate age based on dates I enter. I do research that enters the date of an event and the person's birthdate and I want to end up with an age at time of the event. My fields are "DOS" for date of service (actually "DOS Mask" which is defined as a Date Type and "DOB" for Date of Birth, all with 4-digit years. Also, I am using a Mask (DOS Mask) to make data entry easier (102002 ends up as (10/20/2002") If I format this Mask as a Date, it makes me enter an Auto-Entry calculation which cannot be changed if I change the information. Sometimes during data …

I'm running Filemaker Pro 5 on Mac OS X. Just recently, I'm having a problem while I'm in the layout mode. Whenever I would drag a field, it would copy the field instead of moving it. I'm not holding down any keys or double clicking the mouse when dragging. I can only move the field by using the arrow keys. Is there something I inadvertently did that caused this to happen? What can I do to fix this problem? Thank you in advance for your help. Patrick

I have created an on/off timer which calculates the length of the session. It also adds the session to give me a total. I would like to record each individual session against a date to create a log. This means I need to create a new field each time i have finished a session. Is this possible? or is there a better way. I have a separate related DB to record this in. Thanks kindly

Dear All, I use a validation of a field and a message with it ..when the validation fails , sometime the message pops up with two button ...Revert field and Ok button. sometime the message pops up just only one Ok button? Do you have any ideas?? Thanks

I'm setting up a program to track payment records for a martial arts school. Payment plans fall into 3 categories: paid in full, six installments, or twelve installments. I enter each payment as a new record (shifting constantly among all the students), but would like the Payment Plan field to pop up for the correct number of installments, and another field to track which number installment it is. Any suggestions?

[apologies for my ignorance, but hours of my own reading/research have proved fruitless] [1] i've got about 7 separate "single check box" fields. what i would like: any time ANY of these boxes are checked, an 8th (and separate) "single check box" field would AUTOMATICALLY be checked. i've tried to tackle this using "auto-enter" but no success. does this require a script, and if so, how would it look? [2] there are two date fields. one for "last donation" and another for "membership expiration date". i would like the latter to AUTOMATICALLY = one year AFTER the "last donation" date AND specifically, on the FINAL DAY of that month (if possible). example: "last don…

Keeping a contact file in filemaker pro. At the bottom of the layout I have 2 fields, the first contains the last date I spoke to that individual and the second are notes from the conversation. Currently these are repeating fields with 20 repetitions each. Ideally I'd like the most recent conversation to always show up on top of this list. Is there a way to do this with the current setup? If not is there a way to do it? What about a way that whatever Itype in those fields gets added as the top line of a "log" field?

Hi, I'm evaluating the program a few hours now to set up a straight forward employee file system. The problem I have is to set up fields with check boxes or radio buttons of which only one out of minimal two must be selected. Example Gender: <box> male or <box> female so if no or both boxes are selected an error message must appear. This is pretty easy to solve in Access so anybody can help me, because I have a lot of such question type of fields. Also a simmilar problem in case let say minimum 2 out of 5 choices . Any help is appreciated. ZZR

The most important function of my database is to email travel plans. I have created a field that contains all the information from one record. It worked fine until I had connecting flights and more than one airline. Now I've created a related file containing each flight as a separate record. Now how do I get each of those records into one field or at least how do I email those records. Also, I'll eventually have 2 other databases containing more than one record for each travel plan. I need to email all related info for each travel plan.

Hi all, I'm not sure if this is the right thread in which to post this...my apologies if it's not. I'd like to set up a field that counts ONLY the records in a found set from a related file. The user will enter a date (the "end date") and FMP generates the beginning date (364 days earlier) and through a script goes over to the other file and finds the records within that date span. But the main file still seems to count ALL of the records in the related file, not just the found set. HELP!?! Thanks in advance, Leah

hi, i have a inventory file with order lineitem, order and shipping lineitem , shipping files. now , i have about 70 unstored calculations in the inventory file which sums up the lineitem qty fields ( 12 each record ). So it is something like 12 recd sum qty fields + 12 shipped qty fields + 12 on hand qty fields, etc.... . and it ends up with around 70 of them. The problem is in the inventory list view, it takes about 3 seconds to list 13 records. So i worry, what if the records grows up to thousands. will it show the sand time capsule and take about 10 or 20 minutes or more : i read live-oaks post regarding " too many calculation --- bug down …

Is there a way I can set a field to limit the number of characters that can be entered into that field. I understand that within Define Fields you can set validation to a maximum number of characters. But in the field on the layout, you can still enter as many characters as you wish. When you leave the field, if set to strict validation, you will be get an error message saying you've entered too many characters. What I need to do is have some fields set up to not accept any more characters within the limit of the size of the field as it is seen on the screen. Did I explain clearly?! I hope so. Thanks for any help.

I want the best of both worlds and I'm not sure if it's possible. I want to pre-fill a text field (called ClientCode) with the result from two additional fields when a new record is created. Sounds easy! Formula is: [Lower(Left (LastName,4) & Left (FirstName,3))] I can't seem to use an auto-enter calc. When I type the Last Name it pre-fills the ClientCode text field, but when I then type the First Name, it doesn't update. Okay, that's fine. I then created a calc field (c_shortcut), text, do not evaluate, store, using the same formula and then in ClientCode auto-enter calc, do not eval, store = (c_shortcut). That works! And it updates the text field if the n…

A text field with a auto entry for time modified shows the time that any field in a record is modified. But is there a way to make it also do this: In the same record if a change is made to a portal item, the time modified does not change. I assume this is because the auto entry time modified function only looks at any field changes that reside in the record, thus any changes made to a portal field will not cause the time modified to change. Is there a way to have my cake and eat it too. To have the field with the time modified to update any time a change is made to a record fiels AND any time a change is made to the portal in that same record. LR

Here's another easy one for you all but I would like some clarification. The first thing I've noticed that I dislike about numeric fields, is FM doesn't like to find * or = Secondly, I will be performing exports to tab-separated text files for electronic billing and my dollars are currently numeric. But I have to use NumToText and formulas to force the .## on export. That's okay, I guess but it brings up my question: When is it required for a number to be numeric to function, i.e. summaries, etc. and when can I take advantage of using a text field instead. I understand zip codes & phone numbers should be text but I'm not always clear on the distinctions.…

Another simple one, but I can't make it work. I'm creating a Status Bar and want to display whether the user is in Browse or Find. I created a calc cMode which is text, (do not store) Status(CurrentMode), but all it displays is a 0. I thought 0 might be browse and 1 might be find and I could then use Case(cMode=0,"Browse", cMode=1,"Find") or something like that. But when entering find, it disappears anyway. Is there a way of displaying the current mode?

I've noticed after adding around ten to fifteen unstored calculation fields to my lineitems database that fmpro was running significantly slower than before. I would consider changing the calculation fields to number fields with a calculated value, but then they wouldn't update continously, which is what I need them to do. None of the calculation fields have anything more complicated than a case statement inside them, so why is this computer (pentium 4) getting so bogged down by them?

In a template that comes with V5.5 there is a file called Calculations and Scripts. Within that file there is a calculation that calculates the future end date of a project excluding weekends when given a number of work days. The calculation for the end date is as follows; StartDate + Int (WorkDays/5) * 7 + Middle ("12345012340123601256014560345623456", (DayOfWeek (StartDate) - 1) * 5 + Mod (WorkDays,5) + 1, 1) This is working great for a Critical Path database I wrote with one exception. How do I get it to take into consideration holidays. If the calcualted date returns Dec 25 (Christmas) or January 1st (New Year's Day), how do I get it to move ahea…

I just found out that I must bill electronically Thursday morning. Looks like I'll be up all night. Anyone please help! I have a calc which needs to create a 'fixed-length' line. But, certain fields vary in length and the fields are not lining up. Could someone take a look and figure out what I'm doing wrong? Left(Client::Diag1 & " ",11) & Left(Client::Diag2 & " ",11) & Left(Client::Diag3 & " ",11) & Left(Client::CGAS & " ",7) etc. If a field is blank, the whole line slides left instead of lining up in columns. Also, the dollars must display with 2-decimal and many display 85 instead of 85.00. I also need to conv…

Hello, ok, first I have a pop up menu of all the people that are members, I have a field for month and year, and one for "amount due", "total paid" and one for "Balance owing". In a new entry, I want to know if it is possible to bring the "balance owing" amount into the new entry that I make (but only for that Specific person). EX: Dave Smith in September 2002 owed $200.00, but only paid $100,00 so his balance is $100.00 How do I make this amount show up in the "balance owing" the next time I enter a record for Dave Smith for October 2002 Thanks

I have a database of Companies. Each company has multiple contacts. They live in a file called Contacts (each contact is its own record) on a "Contacts Layout". Each company (may) also have an ad agency with agency conacts. These also live in the Contacts file on "Agency Layout". I need to create a found set of certain contacts, both company and agency, (on perhaps a "Combined Layout"), that I can send promotional mailings to. The list would need to change based on the promotion. My problem is how to get fields named Company Contact First Name, Company Contact Last Name, Agency Contact First Name, Agency Contact Last Name, to appear i…

This one is frustrating me. I need to automatically validate records for uniqueness but not based on 1 field but 3 or more. For example, I have a customer field, a plot field, and a location field. Each field can have any value but if all 3 values together can only be in the database once. What am I going on about? Example entrys Customer Location Plot Mr A john st london 2 Mr A john st london 3 Mr B paul st london 3 Mr B mark st london 3 The reason I need this is that I can input many many records, and it…

I have a field called "Layouts" which is a calculation that show's the current layouts in the database "LayoutNames("Yours.fp5")". Now... the purpose of this was if I created another layout, it would show in the list without me having to create another button to get to it (I'm controling all navigation). For some reason it doesn't show the newly added layout(s) unless I go into "Define Fields" then it recalculates it. Is there a way to reindex a field? or keep it running?

slight time calulation issue... and maybe I'm off base about this theory.. A senario: lets say it takes 5 separate processes (or steps) to complete a job. The job is scheduled to start at 0800 hrs but a tech doesn't clock in on that job until 1300 hrs. By 1700 hrs (and end of work day), the job is not finished, until 1000 hrs the next day. *note* - the first goal is to find how many days, start to finish for each step, and all steps combined. the second is to track hours. All fields (s-date, s-time, f-time, f-date) are currently in place and working for each step. Here is the unknown... given this illustration, we assume that when the step in finished, it t…

I can't seem to figure out how to change the label of a button. Once the buttons put down, its initial command is set, and you enter the label the first time, I can't find a way to change that label ever again. Its getting frustrating remaking buttons all the time. How do I do this? Thanks. btw, sorry if this is the wrong place for this post. Seemed like the best match though.

Hi again... I want to make a serial number without use the "Auto Enter" from File maker. I have 2 DB (invoice_db and clients_db), and I have a many globals in a "Tools Layout", from this layout I have a global field (inv_number_start), in this filed the user get in the invoice number where start, so when a user make a Invoice Start in this number and then make the sequencial numbers (i.e. If global field have 100, the fisrt Invoice start in 100, the next is 101, etc.). I knowed if I use the serial number from File Maker can do this, but I need to do with this process. If you know some method please let me know. Thanks a lot GRACIAS Soriano

What I need to do is have a field that counts up the times a name appears acrros serveral records. Basically what I have is 2 files one which contains software infomation and another that contains computer infomation. I need a field in the software (product) file that counts the amount of times a certain piece of software is listed in the records in the computer (master) file. What I have is If(Product = master::software 2, 1, 0) + If(Product = master::software 3, 1, 0) + If(Product = master::software 4, 1, 0) + If(Product = master::software 5, 1, 0) + If(Product = master::software 6, 1, 0) where product is a field in one file, and software (2-6) are fiel…

Hi, I hope this is the right forum area. I am a new user to these forums and to FM, so please feel free to direct me to somewhere else (I have searched many places already). I wish to create a database of all the offices and laboratories in a medical school building with information on each office and the people who reside in it. I would furthermore like to be able to look at a diagram of the building, and click on an image of the office to retrieve the database information. Is this easy in FM? Do I need a plug-in? What form should the drawing be (eg Canvas file, or something simpler)? Are there any pre-programmed solutions to this problem that I can …

Dear users, I am using FileMaker Pro 5.5 and I have a database with users working over the network (both mac and pc), win2000 and FM servers. Each record contains at least one picture and they are suppost to be stored on a server as a reference to a picture. Problem: Is there a possibilty to detect whether a picture was attached as reference or not? I have a solution how to store them as a reference (from now on), but the database consists of few thousand records already and i would like to modify wrong attached pictures. Any suggestions?

I am having a problem with my lookup fields in an aplication. Basically I have a style database that has a items file attatched one is to many. In the items file the description of the item, the reorder reference,Supplier name etc. are looked up from the style file. This allows us to change any details that there might be from one item to the next. My problem is, when I enter the item in a portal on the style database after entering the style details ( I enter a bare minimum of information in the portal, Size, Price, Qty in) it will not lookup the other fields. The funny thing is if I then delete the item and re-enter it in the same manner it seems to alwa…

Is there a way to take a text field and place a container field in the middle so it "floats" with the text? Like a letter with a signature in the middle? PLEASE HELP!

Ok, so first off please bear with me as I am a newbie and I couldn't find the "Filemaker Pro for dummies" forum. I have searched on this site (too advanced) and looked through the filemaker pro user manual (not advanced enough) and can't find enough information about the whole Image Container. I'm talking back to basics. I'm talking how to get the bloomin graphic in the first place. I have been having a look at graphite (which I attach so you can see what I mean) to see how the guts of these things work. So far I understand everything behind the scenes except the basic of basic in where the heck is the graphic?? I can't even figure out where (if the …

I have a time field that automatically enters the time a job is started. I need to convert that time to 100unit hours. An example would be 2:30 pm would = 14:50, 9:45 am would = 9:75. I thought this would be easy but I am having trouble. Any ideas?

Hi, I am tweaking BlueBox Invoices with Filemake pro 6. I cannot adjust the headroom of a text box. eg the space between the top of the font and the line of the box. at the moment they are almost touching. I have looked at and adjusted line spacing/custom. But this seems to adjust subsequent lines but not the headroom problem. Any ideas?? Ian

After a record has been posted to the General Ledger, no modifications can be allowed. I know I could only display these records on a layout with each field set to 'don't allow entry into field', but these records will be displayed amongst working records. Is there a way I can specify that, if a record is posted, the user is not allowed to enter the fields and a message displays "This record has been posted. You must enter an additional record to make an adjustment." Since there are 17 layouts, and 12 reports (to date) that will display these records, I'd rather not have to attach a script to each field or layout. Can something be done from a more global perspecti…

Our existing Accpac accounting program electronically bills to Medicaid. Upon reviewing the upload document, it looks exactly like printing onto the manual forms (HCFA's) except no lines. There will be approx 200 records uploaded in one billing (one record per page). I tried using 'print to file' from a HCFA form in FM (form view body only, no formatting, but it included formatting garbage in the print file. Will I need to use export and if so, how do I specify where the data will be displayed?

I have a database that uses repeating fields for customer contacts. I have separated these into individual records when I import into a new database, and am now using relationships. The Problem: Original creator used repeating fields for first name, last name, phone, title, BUT he used individual fields for notes! (Notes1, Notes2, etc) and "lined them up" with the repeating fields! I can't get these notes to separate into the individual records, of course - all 5 fields come into each record. How can I get the five fields into a repeating field just long enough to separate them properly upon import into the new database? I used a caclulated repea…

I have a set of data to convert. It originated from an old DOS-based accounting program and is currently in a text field. I have new number field ready to set, if I can create a calc. They are minus numbers (but displayed as: 1236.21- or 85- (which should be 85.00) From using RussCalcs from OZ, I've figured out how to convert the other set of data (JUN 03 02) by using D_DateTextConverted! Thanks so much, but I can't figure out how to move the minus sign to the beginning and make them all - ###.## formats. Any help would be appreciated!

I am sharing Database A through tcp and also publishing Database A to the web. I have learned that it is not a good idea to network and publish the same database so I have created a related Database B which is essentially a copy of Database A. Database A is being published to the web and Database B is being networked. Database A and B are related to two master databases: Clients and Employees. The problem: I would like to have both databases be able to add new records to the database. I have so far been able to have Database B create new records in Database A, but have not been able to figure out how to have Database A create new records in Database B. When I ad…

This is probably pretty simple for you experts out there, but I can't figure it out. I have a number of clients in my clients database and I also have an order database. I would like to have a field that shows on both databases how many orders each client has submitted. Each client has a unique client id number and each order has a unique order id number. Thanks in advance for your help

i have a calculation field that basically takes the date and time and puts them together to create a decimal number (731134.48173).. its pretty complicated why i am doing this, so i won't go into all the details.. but my problem is, when i try to pull that number into another calculation field, it automattically rounds it to 4 decimal places, which is causing some problems.. how do i get it to keep all 5 decimal places??? this is driving me nuts...

I still have a billing database and I developed a time on call field which defined dates and times physicians were on call with a strict definition of "on call" being M-F from 1800 to 0600, Sat, Sun, and holidays (which I imported from the archives here) That went fine. Then the definition changed. Now they want to include minutes starting from 1800. So for a case that started at 1730 and went to 1830 previously would NOT be a call case because it started before 1800. Now they want this same case to count towards 30 minutes of call. Here is my calc with an explanation below. Case(DayOfWeek = ("Monday" or "Tuesday" or "Wednesday" or "Thursday" or "Friday") and …

IS there a function to recognise that given date is the last day of the month ... Thanks

Need help or suggestions for this task: Two databases with a relationship. db #1 is our shipments database, db #2 is a informational database. The problem is getting the final ship date from the "shipments" db into the "info" db. The shipments database might have 1-10 shipments (individual records) for a specific job number before the shipment is marked as completed. When marked as complete a date field is filled in with the corresponding final ship date (the relationship is based upon a job number). The final shipment is not always the last shipment. I've used "look-up", I've tried a calucation, but the trouble I'm have is getting it to look through all records with…

I have a data entry screen (form view) for entering large volumes of data. This data MUST be exact, as therapist paychecks are determined from it. In my old mainframe days, we had users perform a blind double-entry process to ensure accuracy. I want to implement the same thing on this process. 1) When entering an original batch, user may need to stop and come back to it and continue where they left off. Same with 'blind' second time through. These batch records would need to be isolated from 12,000 other existing records in the db. How would you isolate them (i.e., data field set to auto-enter, global, etc.) 2) Should I use an exact copy of the original d…

I have a checkbox in one layout, that returns the date modified in another layout. Is there a way that I can instead, get it to return the date first checked, and return nothing if the checkbox is subsequently unchecked? thanks, Ben

I have a calc, that by its nature, will not allow me to turn on indexing. I need to be able to create a value list based on the results of the calc. But I cant create the value list because the calc field it is based on cant be indexed. Is there a way around this? I have tried to re-do the calc in such a way that I will be able to turn indexing on, but have not been successful. So how can I use it in a value list? LR

hi all, my apologies in advance for the stupid question but i have to "upgrade" a huge database that somebody build before me and the client wants to add more sub-fields to repeating fields. some of those are part of calculation formulas and i'm wondering if i just edit the field to add more repetitions is that going to have some effect on the calculations???

I want to perform a lookup in a field, then restrict the editability of a field *only if* another field is not empty. If the user selects an ItemCode from a drop-down, the Term field should lookup that term from the related file

We need some help trying to figure out how to get our year to date calculation field working properly. We have two databases (accounts & transactions). We have created a YTD giving calculated field in the accounts db and we want it to sum the values in the transactions db for giving for the current year. Here is the calculation that we currently have: If(Year(Status( CurrentDate)) = Year(Transactions::DateAmountReceived), Sum(Transactions::Gift),0) This works if we have only the current year giving transactions in the db. If we put in the previous years giving transactions it gives us a 0. We have been working on this quite a bit but we don't know what …

Hi all, I work on a PC platform and don't have access to a Mac; problem is, I need to create some transparent buttons and icons for my solutions, and the only way to do this in FileMaker seems to be on the Mac side . Is there a (preferably free) utility or (preferably simple) trick that would allow me to get the same results for the PC version? Thanks in advance! Ben

hi all, i have a field as a pulldown. i'd like to have another field that collects the selections made by the user using the pulldown and add them together like this: If (PatternCount (CollectedWordsField, singleWordPull), CollectedWordsField, CollectedWordsField + " " + singleWordPull) both CollectedWordsField and singleWordPull are defined as text fields.. this if doesn't work. Why? thanks...

Hi. I have build a project-management system in FMP 6.0, based upon three levels: Projects, Orders and Activities. Theese levels are separate files that are related to each other. Activity to the Order-ID, and the Order to the Project-ID. I would very much like to make a report from the Project, displaying all related Orders and Activities in a heirarchical tree structure - just like this: Project: Description + other fields from record

I have two fields in a database, one is short and to the point, the other is detailed. Let's call them PrereqSummary and PrereqDetail. When a new record is created, User A fills in the PrereqSummary. Later, User B, a prereq specialist, will fill in PrereqsDetail. I'd like to have PrereqDetail look up the text in PrereqSummary and start with that as its initial value, so that UserB doesn't have to retype everything UserA entered. The problem I'm having is that look up fields are calculated when a new record is created, so no matter what is typed in PrereqSummary you won't see it in PrereqDetail. Is there a way to change when the actual looking up of the value is perf…

Does anyone know how I can create a calculation that will GetRepatition whenever a date field(Expiration date) comes within 90 days from todays date. In other words the first Repetitions when the "expiration date" field comes with in 90 days from today date. another when it more then 90 days and the 90 days are up. With each of the "GetRepetition" it would choose a different picture from Repetitions 1,2 and 3 based on this calculation. RET

What I need to do is make a text field that takes the result of a calculation in another field and makes it text with trailing zeros. FM numbers insist on dropping these, so I always get "prices" that look like: 12.95 12.5 12 I need them to look like (in my new text field); 12.95 12.50 12.00 so I can export the result to a DOS app that requires this. I tried to set up a three function Case using Position nested inside of Right to hunt for the decimal point as a text string, and depending on where it is found (third character from right, second character, or not there at all) to add 2, 1 or no zero characters to the end of the number. But I g…

hi all, simple problem but i can get it to work... i have this if conditioning that defines a field: If(Service="Planning Session", If(Duration = "45 min.", 1, If(Duration = "1 hour", 1, If(Duration = "1 hr 15 min.", 2, If(Duration = "90 min.", 2, If(Duration = "1 hr 45 min.", 2, If(Duration = "2 hrs.", 3, If(Duration = "2 hrs. 15 mins.", 3, If(Duration = "2 hrs. 30 mins.", 3, If(Duration = "2 hrs. 45 mins.", 4, If(Duration = "3 hrs.", 4, If(Duration = "3 hrs. 15 mins.", 4, If(Duration = "3 hrs. 30 mins.", 5, If(Duration = "3 hrs. 45 mins.", 5, If(Duration = "4 hrs.", 5, If(Duration = "4 hrs. 15 mins.", 6, If(Duration = "4 hrs. 30 mins.", 6, If(Duration = "4 hr…

Hi, I have set up a report layout to find duplicates with just the essential info on it. About five or six records fit on the screen at once. Users can delete records directly from this screen, but I'm nervous that users might not always be aware of where the little black bar is on the left side of the screen which indicates which record is active, and therefore might delete the wrong record. Is there a way to make the background of the current/active record turn a different color or do something else eye-catching so the users are absolutely certain which record they're deleting? Thanks in advance, Leah

I have two global fields that contain images. Is it possible to have a third field with a calcultion that looks at a fourth field, If(fieldname>0, image1field, "image2field") And depending on the results, will show one of the images from the 2 global fields that contain the images. I tried something similar to the above, but the image did not show up. LR

I am using a global field in a single-file user interface as the key for a relationship with a data file. If I make this solution multi-user, will the value one user inputs in the global field appear for the other users, or can each user control the contents of the global field independent of the other users?

Hello all, Is it possible to have a calculation field that is looking up values from a related file that would either: a) display a value if there is only ONE related value, or drop down a list of ALL the related values? I have a zip code file that has zip codes, towns, and states. When the user types in a zip code in the main file, it automatically pulls in the related town and state. However, our area is small enough that there are several places where multiple towns are covered by one zip code. As I currently have it set up, typing in a zip code will pull in only the first related value, but it might not necessarily be the correct one. Any suggesti…

I have been unable to figure out how to create a script that will result in either (i) "normal" text or (ii) strikeout text. I would like to attach the script to a button that would be a transparent field that would sit on top of the text, so that the user could click on the text to alternatively yield the normal text or the strikeout text. Thanks for the assistance.

Using FP5 on a PC is there any way to make a field that will blink (flash)when a certain condition is met? I want to tag a customer that has bad credit when he is accessed. I tried a looped script but some things don't work while it is running. Perhaps you know of another way to get the attention of a data enterer when this condition is met.

Dear All, I have try to put Today or status(currentdate) to show date of each day. Let say I want to see . today is 2002-10-2, and tomorrow it will show 2002-10-3 and so on. I use Today or status(currentdate) , it always give me 2002-10-2. Do you know why? Thanks

Sorry if this is an obvious answer that I'm missing... QUESTION: If I want a field to calculate a result but occasionally will need to alter that data in extenuating circumstances, where do I find the option to override the calculation? It always says, "field not modifiable." THANKS in advance!

I have created fields with borders and am serving the file up via Filemaker Server. All users can see the borders of the fields except for one of my users and cannot determine why this is happening. Is there some setting on her Filemaker software that is "hiding" these borders? Thanks!

Dear All, I would like to know that Could we set repetition field from another field. We could extract data from repetition field (Using Getrepetition). But let's say if I set a field to repetion field number(5). could we do that? example : field A(repetition field (5)), B (text field) set(A(3), ...it does not work but set (B,getrepetitionA(3)) ... it works Thanks

Hi, I just did a large data import into a file (13,000 records). In the old database, records were tagged by specific categories, but they were typed in, not selected by checkboxes or radio buttons. The new database has this function streamlined so all the options are in a field of checkboxes. But how to get the old data into the new format? When I did the import, everything came into the "Other..." box, instead of filtering out into the appropriate boxes. So now I'm doing finds for each category then doing a "Replace". But many records have more than one category attached, and I just realized that when I did the replace, it didn't ADD the new category, it repl…

I have a database that keeps track of all NCAA College Football games. I have created summary fields to track Total of wins and Total of losses. This gives me two fields from which I can utilize in two more calculation fields using the GetSummary command. this works fine. I get the proper getsummary data with the breakfield being "Team" This basically creates a win/loss record for each team. My problem is when I try to define a GetSummary using the "Opponant" field as the breakfield. What I get is nothing. What am I doing wrong? I have attached a copy of the file for anyone to tweak to show me what I have done or failed to do. Thanks sch…

Here is what I want to have happen. If 9/15/02 is entered into the PromoStartDate field and 9/26/02 is entered into the PromoStopDate field, on 9/27/02 I want both fields to be

Why is the Paragraph formatting button dimmed whenever you bring up the text formatting window for a number or date field? It makes it impossible to change the indentation for a date or number field without specifying a different field, making the changes you want (e.g. adding 4 pixels of indentation), then switching back to the date or number field you originally specified.

We have been having a problem with employees using the find mode to enter data in instead of browse. Now we all know that in find mode you cant enter data so to say the least you can go to all the layouts via scripts and it will make you think you have completey entered all information when you havent. Now is there a way to create a field that shows a graphic when in find mode? I tried status(current mode) but that did not show it in find mode. This problems has happened with just about every employee. They sometimes look up a customers via find mode and then sometimes they dont leave it. Any help would be great thanks!!!

Trying to find out if Filemaker 5.5 supports double byte (Unicode) character values for textfields. We have an application that will need to support European, English and Chinese speaking clients. Thanks for any info. CK

I need to create a calculation that will notify me every 90 days that a notification letter needs to go out. I will have the open date of a case but I don't know how to make it calculate and notify me every time the 90 day timeline comes up.

I need to create a calculation so that I can know the number of days a complaint case is opened including the open date, the closing date and all days in between including Saturdays and Sundays. My fields are: Open date and Case closed. Any help would be appreciated.

Well, I love the feature which allows 'copy value from last record' but it's causing a problem. Staff enters service in the Service db on a form. I need to use a form because so much information needs to be displayed about each Client, their documenting requirements, Contracts, allowable procedures, remaining balance etc. Most of the data is the same as the last record. Most times, only one field changes (Date, ClientCode, Units or Location) so I have all fields set to "use last value". Problem: When I 'add new record' it looks like nothing happened. I DO have a record count, but I don't think users will be looking at that each time. I thought of creating a calc…

here's a fun one. given a STARTDate value and ENDDate value, the user sets the QUERYday field by picking a day (Sunday, Saturday, etc) from a drop down menu. She hits the Calculate button and it returns the number of x-days that occur during that range in a calc field, COUNTresult. So: STARTdate - 9/1/2002 ENDdate - 10/12/2002 QUERYday - Sunday would return: COUNTresult = 6 The practical application is that i have a community center that is open 12-12 on weekdays, 12-8 on saturdays, and is closed on sundays. I need to figure out how many hours the center is actually open during a given date range in order to calculate what our potential capac…

Hello ! I have links to pictures from a main page. I would like to open theses picture beside my main page. Until now I wasn't able to find a way to do this. I stored my pictures on layouts and when I click on the button (go to layout xx) the layout replaces the main page. I would like to open the picture layout in an other window. Does someone know how to open a layout in a different page ? Any other solution welcome. Thanks for helping. Polopo

NOTE: I solved my own problem halfway through typing this message out. I decided to continue posting it in case somebody else can benefit! See the attached GIF image

Talk about a real newbie question.... Once I have created a button and attached a script, how can I change the text of the button? Every time I click on the button itself in Layout Mode I get the Specify Button dialog box...I am obviously missing something...PLEASE HELP!

This is probably very easy, but I can't seem to find a way to do it: I have a letter layout that has two merge fields, one is the typical variable date symbol that enters the current date on any letter. I want to format it to read Month Name, Day, Year, but it keeps coming up mm/dd/yyyy. I've tried preferences and formating, but the the date option is greyed out when it is in this format. The same is true for my second problem, I have a date field merged into my letter, but it comes out the same as I mentioned before. I have the original field formatted correctly, but in the letter I still get mm/dd/yyyy. Thanks. Dezza

Hi there, I have a numeric field in my dbase, that contains hexadecimal numbers. I have to insert new numbers but they have to be 10 digits long. If not I have to get a warning. I cant use the option- range because it's hexadecimal. I've tried Length(NumtoText(Field)) = 10 but that didn't work either. (Because when your field is text, you can set the length) I hope there's some one who cann help me, Thx in advance, greetz.

Hi, I have a field called Placed that looks up its value from a parent database. When the value of the related record in the parent DB changes I want the value of Placed to change. I'd use a caculation, but Placed is used to caculate a match field, so I need to be able to store and index it. The value of Placed is a boolean, so I decided to make a button that called a script to toggle the value and then call Relook Content to refresh the children. The lookup happens fine, initially, but all Relook Contents attempts fail, whether through a script or from the Record menu. If I hilite the Placed record in the child and choose Relookup, I get an error thaty says…

I have two date fields Range1 and Range2 that define a date range. How do I validate that a third date field falls between Range1 and Range2 with the options/validation in Define Fields?

Hi I have this calculation to leave out the decimal separator: Left(Amount,2) & Right(Amount,2) When the user enters 20.34, the result is 2034. It works perfectly. The calculation won't work if the user enters 120.34 though. The result will be 1234 instead of having 12034. I cannot use Left(Amount,3) because it will not leave out the decimal separator when the user enter 20.34 Any idea? Bikeman17

FTP:DOWNLOAD:FILES:VERSO:AD.JPG This is the contents typed into a field. It represents a directory path to a file. Is there a way to have a calculation that will result in showing only the last item in a path, regardless of the length of the path: AD.JPG How about a variation that shows the last two items? VERSO:AD.JPG LR