Custom Functions Discussions

Hi, I've adopted "DateDifference" custom function by Brian Dunning, created and tested working perfect in FM Adv 8.5. However, it doesn't work when I hosted it with FMServer 8 and accessed by FM8 Pro clients. But the same hosted database works fine in FM Adv 8.5. Please help. Thanks, Garu

I am trying to get a application that functions for my establishment On the 3rd tab, classes, i have a record view up of a person in the persons table with a portal to the class tables. im trying to make a button to enroll in class with, it would open a fresh window with a drop box asking what class i am trying to register for and a next button. Then on hitting next it will close window, open another one, and ask you to choose from a drop down menu what classes we have upcoming of the current type Then Prompt you a payment choice of cash or credit Then from there you would click register and it would commit a record that has First And Last name,Class Start Date&…

OK, I did some looking around, but ended up more confused than when I started. I have a database with close to 100 fields and I use a lot of daily import features to keep the info up to date. The problem is, from time to time new information is incorrect and I need to review previous phone numbers, or contact names, but can't because they were over written. I have about 20 layouts, 100 fields and about 6000 records. I am trying to figure out the simplest solution to achieve a change log. I was thinking of adding a log tab and having something along the lines of Nightwing's UltraLog in that tab for each record. Problems are, I haven't got a clue how to implement …

Hey All, I am working on a small database for our inventory team and need some help with Autofill. In the DB we are tracking serial number, model number, and the sales person that picks the item up from our inventory room. All our serial numbers are 11 or 12 digits long (letters and numbers) and the last 3 digits correspond to their model. When we scan the serial I would like to autofill the model field based on the last 3 digits of the serial. I have a table that tracks the last 3 of the serial and the models that match. What is the best way to calculate and autofill the model based on the last 3 of the serial? Thanks in advance, …

Hello, I am a long time, but remedial, FM user. I would like to know if anyone has a solution for my call scheduling needs. I would like to add two functions to my main contact information layout. First Function When I call a client or cold call a prospect I would like to have a way to easily schedule a call back. I would like to be able to select from options in a pop-up window that has an entry field for a whole number and a drop down to select the units as follows. Call back in: (enter whole number) Minutes Hours Days Do not c…

Hi, New to the forum and to FM, but not db/scripting in general. I see how powerful FM can be and would like to get more out of it. One thing I can see that would save us huge amounts of time is automating retrieving shipping quotes from various providers (UPS, fedex, DHL, USPS/Canada Post). I've searched the forums and looked online in general, the most I've found developer wise was a .php solution that integrates with UPS. Can anyone shed some light on this or pass me some info where I can see how this can be done within FM, or how I can get FM to leverage .php and make this code work? We have a very simple custom invoicing db that we use right now. My…

I need a function that will take a value list of file paths and a corresponding value list of file sizes ( in MB ) and out put the file paths into groups no larger than 4300 MB so they will fit onto a DVD. Has anyone seen a function like this?

This is the default posting pattern that will appear when posting a new topic in the Custom Function Library Just edit each section preserving the formatting and markup code. Remember to title your topic with the following Format: FunctionName ( parameterOne ; parameterTwo ) Name & Parameters: FunctionName ( parameterOne ; parameterTwo ) Description: Recursive: Yes or No Sample Input: inert input values Results: insert results Formula: insert your code here Required Functions: requiredFunction requiredFunction Credits: Disclaimer: FM Forums does not endorse or warra…

Is there anyone who could easily figure out how to write a custom function - probably a recursive custom function - which would find the text in the biggest gap between a repeating variable. Say we called the function 'crux', with the parameters, 'text' and 'v', crux (field ; " - ") would equal "Hello world. How are things?" when field equals "orange - blue - green - red - yellow - Hello world. How are things? - apples - cherries - cranberries"

I'm looking for a function that will generate a relative path from one file path to another. for example: GetRelativePath ( "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\pls\test.wpl" ; "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\pls\LogMeIn.msi" ) = "LogMeIn.msi" GetRelativePath ( "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\pls\test.wpl" ; "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\pls\New folder\LogMeIn.msi" ) = "New folder\LogMeIn.msi" GetRelativePath ( "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\pls\test.wpl" ; "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\DP0304P.exe" ) = "..\DP0304P.exe" GetRelativePath ( "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\backups\pls\test.wpl" ; "\\TYPELEVEN-HOME\Done\Software\cr-1nb03.zip" ) = "..\..\Done\Software\cr-1nb03.zip" Anyone seen a function like t…

Hi, we are working in a company that interested to invest on filemaker but since we are located in middle east and we need solar calendar for our calculation. but I haven't found anything about solar calendar in FM. I just want to know is there any third party component for this purpose in FM or is it possible to write a specific date field for FM? regards.

I have a medical record database with a table of +200 fields for different input data. I would like to collect the filled fields and their content, in tabular form (one result per record). Such as: patient_id w45680989 name John surname Donne visit date 01/01/2005 The empty fields should be ignored. Is it done?? Thanks in advance,

Hi all I have used a custom function created by Fabrice Nordmann that holds all fields on a layout in global variables using the field name as the the variable name. I have found this function to be extrememly useful so far, but have found a limitation - If a field contains a quotation mark ", the variable will not be created. Here is the function: /* VariablesFromFields ( ) by Fabrice Nordmann with thanks to Agnès Barouh, Ugo di Luca and Daniele Raybaudi v2.1 : Sept 2007. Fixed a bug with carriage return v2 : no more parameter is needed (was VariableFromFields ( start )) Loads all current layout fields in named global variables i.e.…

Hi, guys I need some help converting a work order data base from Access to FM. Our work order numbers are department specific. Electrical as an example would use E0001…. Where plumbing would use P0001… In Access my table used 3 fields to accomplish this. 1- Type – This is a stored value from a look up table, this is a letter that defines the type of work order . E= Electrical, P= Plumbing, C= Controls… 2- WOSeqNum – This field keeps track of previously used numbers. 3- WoNum- this is the combined number IE .. E0001 I would like to point out that I require sequential numbering. Each division uses the same numbers IE. Electri…

Hi everyone... I have run into a small snag -- I have included a sample to help me explain my situation... I have two tables -- Insured and Physician... a insured can have many physicians. Also the physicians can also be used for other insured in the data base. (makes less typing). I would like to have a way to go to the physician layout and either select the physican from a list and it auto populate the table or have a field that auto completes itself and the rest of the table when the correct name is selected.... BUT -- if there is not the name in the listing I would like the option to fill in the physician table manually. After I fill the table in manu…

Hello, I need to make a function (or script) that will auto generate the next order number for me. first 4 numbers: the first 4 numbers are unique. every order has to get a unique (next in line) number. 0001, 0002, 0003 and so on. I dont wont it to have 'wholes' like 0001, 0003, 0004 because someone started to make 0002 and deleted it before commiting, so it has to check what was the last number that started with 0 (because we have old orders that start with 2010) and do a +1. the 2nd part is also 4 numbers: these numbers are given by us (client number) and the last 2 numbers are shipment numbers. this also has to check if the client already …

I'm currently using SmarterProper by David Tremmel. Excellent for curbing ALL CAPS data entry. However, there's one place it goes too far — instances where something like NATO or CIA turns up within the text of the field. Reverting to Nato and Cia doesn't really cut it. I can think of two possible ways to a solution. 1. Let SmarterProper do its thing, but only once. Allow the user to re-edit the text after initial entry. Possible? 2. Revise SmarterProper to maintain all caps if the word is two to four characters long. That would also require some re-editing after the fact. Not nearly as satisfactory. Any thoughts? Much appreciated.

Each month, on the 21st, I have to pay all the sales tax I've collected since the 21st of the previous month, 'sales tax' being a field on each job record. I have a running total of 'sales tax', but it includes ALL visible records. Without Finding or Omitting, is there any way I can set up a field(s), script, or calculation - or any combination - that helps me keep a running total on collected 'sales tax' that falls within one of 12 cycles (from 21st to 21st)? I'm rather a neophyte when it comes to this stuff, but if someone could steer me in the right direction, I think I can do it. And I'm open to any suggestions other than that which I've outlined. Thank…

I am trying to set a calculation to a field to auto update a "class of" year based on a students current grade. My calculation will look at the students current grade and set a variable value based on that current year value. Then it will add the variable to the current year and return a year in a "class of" field. My calculation that im trying to do looks like the following below but it will not let me do it because I get an error that says list usage is not allowed in this calculation. Please help me I dont know what I'm doing wrong. Let([PK=13;K=12;1=11];child_1_grade+Year ( currentyear )) Thanks For The Help! Erik

Hi all Is there any easy way to add an event into iCal, via my Filemaker DB? I have fields: Eventdate Start time Finish time I would then also like to add some other fields into the notes section. Look forward to any advice... Thanks Adam

I have a personell management file that keep track of school faculty and staff. I have a field on the form called hire date. I have another field called years of service that show how many years the member has been with the school. I want that years of service field to relate to the hire date and automatically update the number of years of service so i dont have to do so manually. How do I go about doing so? Thanks For The Help!! Erik

FM7 by default shows numbers in scientific notation, here's a custom function that takes a number to text, but keeping the zeros around. It has an option to add commas every three digits also: So, the call:

Need a custom function that calculates the duration of two fields that are formatted: ####:##:## filemaker doesn't recognize milliseconds.

Hi all I am new to the concept of recursion. I am trying to create a function that returns a boolean if a word contains an uppercase character after the first character. This is what I have wrote so far for MidCaps (text) If ( Length ( text ) > 1 ; MidCaps ( Exact ( Right ( text; Length (text) ); Upper (Right ( text; Length (text)))))) This ends up in an infinite loop. Could anyone offer any advice on where to go here and any information on debugging custom functions? How do I watch the text parameter to see what is happening? Thanks in advance Lee

What is wrong with this function? It is telling me that an operator is expected at the last semi colon and beyond. Like it doesn't like the last part. If ( Appointment Type = "C" ; If ( Total TIme > 1 ;"O" ) ; Appointment Type ) ; Appointment Type

Hi, can someone help me build a recursive function which will do the following: Out of a given list of fieldnames on a layout, recursively test how many of them are empty and produce a fraction of the total number. The field list would result from the function FieldNames(Get(Filename);Layout), where Layout will be the parameter of the custom function. I am really awful at recursive unctions, so please help!

I've perused Brian Dunning's custom functions but can't seem to find what I'm looking for. I'm attempting to find a custom function that will use two different dates -- DateSent and DateReceived -- to then calculate if DateReceived was, say, the first Monday after DateSent. In other words: if the DateSent is 9/7/2010 and the DateReceived is 9/15/2010, I'd like the DateReceived to also be shown as the second Wednesday after DateSent. Make sense? Ultimately this information will be [hopefully] used as plot points on a line graph where the horizontal axis will mark the 1st M,T,W,Th,F, 2nd M,T,W,Th,F, and so on.

I'm new to Filemaker Pro and am moving my Training Diary over from a spreadsheet. A calculation I want to repeat is calculated as follows: I have a table with a field called load. This table has an entry for every day. I have a field called Chronic Training Load which is calculated by taking the previous value of Chronic Training Load and applying a factor to it and then adding in that days training load. What I can't work out is in the calculation how to refer to the previous days value. Any help appreciated.

It appears there are problems with certain types of custom functions on FileMaker GO. In my brief tests, both CustomList and ApplyToList fail on FM GO. http://www.briandunning.com/cf/868 http://www.briandunning.com/cf/899 Both these functions use $variables and a basic technique of building a large calc string to evaluate. OK: CustomList ( 1 ; 418 ; “[n]” ) Fails: CustomList ( 1 ; 419 ; “[n]” ) I also tried CustomListOLD and it failed at a slightly higher number; 425.

: Can someone Pleeeease help me? I have created a database for a car show. In one of the fields I want to be able to put the space # on the blvd. I got that! Now what I want is to NOT assign that space to any other person, and I REALLY don't want to use a value list because there are over 350 spaces!!! For example...If I add John Smith space #369...I don't want to be able to give anyone else space #369. If I give them that space # I want that field to NOT accept it. Is this possible and how do I do it if it is?: I have taught myself how to use this program so I don't know a whole lot. But I would be soooooo greatful for any help!

I have been researching many different techniques for passing multiple script parameters. Most if not all include using a custom function. Unfortunately I have had difficulty wrapping my head around how to implement custom functions so thus far I have avoided them. I know that all it will take is the right approach to make it all click for me but thus far I feel lost. The documentation for the techniques I have found just seem to be lacking in some of the basic instructions that perhaps the authors are assuming the reader is already familiar with. Unfortunately I am not. So as my first attempt at using a custom function I would like to impliment a way to pass multipl…

Hi All I have found a fantastic video tutorial on logging changes made to records freely available at the following url: Filemaker Magazine Super Audit Logging Tutorial Moderators: Please edit this post if this infringes copyright. I am assuming not on the basis Matt Petrowski mentions copyright issues in the video. All credit goes to Matt Petrowski and the original function creator Ray Cologon,NightWing Enterprises, Melbourne, Australia www.nightwing.com.au/FileMaker Function usage: AuditLog (Logfield; Fields; Format; Seperator) The code to the function is as follows: Let( [ // Setup _Trigger = Fields; _LogLength = Leng…

Hi I have taken the template for contact management and converted the fields to suit my needs. Each record will be for a client and I will be recording their address, my main contact, secondary contact and various information about their company. So far so good and all up and running! The bit I am stuck with is to do with recording marketing activity. I want to be able to do the following Do a search/sort and select say 50 companies. Then I will print an address label for these companies to use for a mailshot. I then want to be able to record on all of their files that I have sent them the mailshot eg flyerJuly2010. I would need to…

This is a highly optimized version of the "Unique List" function. I was having terrible performance problems with the common "unique list" algorithm (as seen http://www.briandunning.com/cf/596 ) and similar. The issue is that these functions use both the RightValues and CountValues functions -- both of which require filemaker to (A) separate the list into separate values, and (: process the entire list. I realized that when looking for unique values, we only need to find the First non-unique value -- at that point we can short-circuit the calculation. And, since values are separated by paragraph characters, we can actually just use a character-base…

Hi! I got a quick question. Is there any way to make my Filemaker solution to send and recieve emails strait from within my solution? I need the outgoing and incoming emails to be saved like a "chat" or "log" so that i can follow the Email conversations for each and every client in my database. There will be multiple users and they will all be using Gmail. Really really grateful for any help I can get. Thanks Freddy

Hi There Need some help with this Looking for a custom function. that does this field 1 = jim sally susan dave ------------------------------------- the output should be jim jim sally jim sally susan jim sally susan dave sally sally susan sally susan dave susan susan dave dave Any help would be appreciated. I did this in a script but it was way to long and I felt that a recursive function would be alot shorter Thanks Again Stu

Hi! I have a problem. as a Customer and equipment, I have two layout. I will give auto serial number for customer id. I want to give also auto serial number for equipment as a related by Customer. For example My Customer name "John" and id number 1. If John takes five equipment, five equipment id number get 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. after that Customer name "George" and id number 2, George takes four equipment. four equipment id number get 6, 7, 8 and 9. It will go on like this. How can I make me by using file maker? Thanks all friends.

Hi again. So, I've been told I need to use a "recursive custom function" to accomplish a task, and I'm wondering if that sounds right. I have about 1500 records that represent individual chimpanzee urine samples. Each record has a field for "cortisol". This represents the amount of the hormone cortisol found in the sample. I am trying to establish a baseline cortisol level for each individual chimpanzee. I currently have the "urine sample" table linked to the "chimp" table via "chimpID#", and the new "baseline" field will live in the "chimp" table. Basically what I need the "baseline" field to do is the following: 1. Calculate the mean of the numbers 2. …

Hi guys, Is there a MD5 custom function available for FileMaker 10 as I would like to store usernames and passwords in a filemaker table, but hash the password. The solution will be using a php web front end and the md5 hashing function is built in, however I will want the FileMaker app to also include a portal into the application - so in other words I need a custom function md5 hash that is compatible with the php md5 hash. Many Thanks

Despite how hard I try I can't incorporate the logic of recursive functions into a working syntax, so any help is appreciated: The task is to selectively remove from a return delimited list either a certain number of characters from the start of each line or up to a certain character (e.g. inderscore _). I suppose that the logic should be something like the following pseudo-code (as if it was a script) 1. Count the number of lines 2. Define the number of characters from start 3. Go to first line 4. Loop 5. Do Replace Function (String; From;To;"") 6. Go to next line 7. Exit Loop if Line > Number of Lines Another thing would also be to be ab…

Well hello I am try to pass a function A as a parameter to function B. This function A will return true OR false. I want a second function B to count the number of records, based on the first function A. The condition is the function A I am trying to pass. Problem: The passed function A is not evaluating correctly. The condition is always being evaluated as True. Example: I am calling this code out of a table field(Type: formular). Let([ expression="GetNthRecord (rekla_rt_Ersatz::Type ; start_recordno)="Loaner"" ]; recordcount_on_expression ( rekla_rt_Ersatz::ID ; expression; 1 ) ) This is the function: recordcount_on_exp…

Now I know im not the only one who has had problems trying to print their own custom barcode labels . I started trying to print my own about 6 months ago but kept encountering lots of problems. I downloaded good software and bought a label printer (Zebra), but still I came across problems. Does anyone have any suggestions on software to use? Im close to giving up and really need some help! Thanks

Name & Parameters: [color:red][big] PhoneFormat ( Phone ; Format ) [/big] Description: The Format parameter, enclosed in quotes, can be changed to any series of pound signs (representing numbers) and other characters for separators. Any length phone number or format can be used due to the nature of the recursive custom function allowing a single calculation to format international and domestic numbers. Even numbers with extensions can be used. Sample Input: 9093934664 Results: (909) 393-4664 Recursive: yes Formula: Case( not IsEmpty(Format); Let( [ NumbersOnly = Filter (Phone; "0123456789"); NewFormat = Left(Format; Lengt…

i am looking for a way to insert text from another table. I have created the other table with fields and have a relationship setup already. I am wanting to have a button that will copy that record into another record's fields. example table a will house family , species, subspecies common name. table b will be the master record of an animal and will have fields for the area's listed above. i would like to have a button automatically input the table a records when selected from a popup window.

Hi there. I'm trying to modify a custom function called CollapseList by Michael Horak that I found on the Brian Durning website. Sample input 1: Gala 2005 Gala 2006 Sample input 2: Gala 2005 Gala 2006 Gala 2007 Sample input 3: Gala 2005 Gala 2007 Gala 2008 Sample output 1: Gala 2005, Gala 2006 Sample output 2: Gala 2005 to Gala 2007 Sample output 3: Gala 2005, Gala 2007, Gala 2008 The modification I need is for output 2 to be: Gala 2005-2007 I understand how to change the placeholder from " to " to a hyphen, I just can't figure out how to change the programming so that only the number portion shows in a …

I'm stuck: I want to use a pipe symbol "|" to represent a forced tab character (Ctrl + Tab in Windows, Option+Tab in Mac) in a Let statement (to be used in text block-related calcs in a solution) but I just can't seem to nail it. How do I code that? TIA for your help!

Is it possible to check for an internet connection? Thanks in advance!

I apologize if this has been covered. I searched & didn't find anything. Could have missed it though. Writing our first Custom Function. My background is in C, C#, Java & what not. Logic isn't an issue. We have a 30 Day billing month & I am moving our date diff logic into a single function. No matter what I do, I cannot get the Date Parameters to read in the function correctly. I have tried GetAsNumber for the parameter & GetAsDate in the function. I've tried all sorts of combinations. No luck. I have hard coded the dates, in the function, and it works. Such as Date (5,1,2010). I even hard coded the parameters the same way...an…

If I have an existing record for web hosting (Jan - June), how can I automatically trigger on July 1, the creation of a new record for the next billing period (July - December)? and so on? And how cool would it be to copy the information in the previous record into the new one... maybe I am asking too much:)

I require a way to formulate the number of records in a specified table. I've looked through the function list but to no avail. 'Get' functions have no parameters and so can only display the number of records in the current table which is useless as I want to use this as part of a trigger for a script. Alternatively something that triggers when a new record is created in a specified table would do. I find it hard to believe that something so simple doesn't exist and am consequentially betting that the function exists under a confusing title. So, does anyone know what it is? I suppose if the worst comes to it, I could make a custom formula that lists all record UIDs from a…

Hello I'm trying to produce a list of all possible unique combinations from another list. The order does not matter. For example: combinaisons_uniques (a, b, c, d) will return : a, b, c, d a, b, c a, b, d a, b a, c a, d a, c, d b, c, d b, c b d b c, d c d any Idea?

Is it possible to have different text field boxes and have them connected? For example, can I have a large text field box on each of several pages (like for a letter that spans more than one page), and have the text in these boxes connected? If I add text to the top box on the first page, it should push the text down onto the next page. This is possible in a program like Quark, but I have not been able to figure out how to do it in FileMaker. I have always just used one very large text box that spans several pages, but I always have to manually reformat it where the pages break. There must be a better way! Thanks in advance for any solutions.

Hello, I'm trying to create a custom function that will search a text field for all duplicate phrases that start with a particular character (i.e., "{") and ends with a particular character (i.e., ":") and output a list of those. For example, if my text is: "{Memory: The patient's memory was measured in the above average range for visual stimuli. {Memory: On memory tests involving auditory stimuli, the patient's performance was impaired. " Then I would like the custom function to output: "{Memory" My reasoning for wanting to do this is difficult to explain, but basically it is part of a larger custom function that reorganizes reports based on he…

I want to create a simple Custom Function. I searched the web and found the explodedkey function and I am desperately trying to implement it. I follow the following instructions: I use the following formula: ExplodedKey= If( Length(txt)>1; ExplodedKey(Left(txt;Length(txt)-1)) & "?" & txt; txt ) Now its time to click ok and I get the following message: and in the formula box "Length (txt)" is highlighted. This is where I am stuck. Its probably a simple thing but for the life of me I cant figure it out. Please Help?

I'm looking for a way to create a credit system for our employees. They can use their employee ID as a credit/debit card whereby they are able to submit cash to our office as a deposit. Then go to our lunch room and then use their card to purchase items during their lunch break or various other things where they need to pay. (ie In the gym, they can bring their own towel or rent one for $1.) There is probably a better way to do this but I was thinking: For entering the amount a) we scan their emp ID, : then scan a barcode of the amount to deposit to their acct. on premade amount barcode sheet Then for deducting the amount they spent a) scan their emp…

[color:gray]The custom function library wasn't letting me upload anything for some reason so I'm doing it here. Included is a sample file so you can see it in action. Please check it out and let me know what you think. The sample requires FM 10 Function: fnGoogleLineChart Parameters: chtitle xtitle ytitle xfield yfield color Formula: //The chart will scale using the highest value at the top// Let ([ YAxis= If ( MiddleWords ( FieldType ( Get ( FileName ) ; GetFieldName ( yfield ) ) ; 2 ; 1 ) = "number"; "|" & Round ( Max (yfield) - ((Max (yfield) / 10) * 9); 2 ) & "|" & Round ( Max (yfield) - ((Max (yfield) / 10) * 8…

Hi, I am relatively newbie with CF, and therefore need your help to make a CF which does the following (probably recursively): From a number field (AFM) which must be 9 digits long (e.g 070878254), 1) Make a string using a Left(AFM;8) let's say for example 07087825 2)Separate each of the 8 digits and multiply it with 2 raised to a force from 8 to 1 (counting backwards), and then add all together. That would be like: (0*2^8)+(7*2^7)+(0*2^6)+(8*2^5)+(7*2^4)+(8*2^3)+(2*2^2)+(5*2^1) 3)Finally, it would divide the resulting number with 11, and the remainder once again divided with 10. If the resulting number is equal to the last digit of the initia…

Is there a way (without making a plugin), to have a separate file with your custom functions in it? When I develop, I usually make lots of little handy custom functions, and rather than copy/pasting and possible errors popping up (that and not knowing if a solution has that custom function in it) around everywhere, is there a way to have a file which filemaker points to for custom functions? I always start off with shell copies for my solutions, but when you have quite a few on the go, and you rework a function or create a new one, it would be very nice and handy to have it available everywhere with little work ....

I'm having trouble with a custom function that applies formatting to phone numbers. For some reason this custom function is only applied to new data that I put into the phone number fields. If I perform an import of data the formatting is not applied until I either add a digit or remove it and then readd it. Is there any way to apply this formatting automatically across all of my phone numbers?

Our company has been using FileMaker for at least ten years. Over the years, we have implemented 64 FM files on our server with thousands of layouts. We feel confident that a very large number of those layouts are actually no longer used. However, we don't know which ones. Each layout has a unique name. Is there any way whatsoever to put some function or script into each Filemaker file that actually tracks each time a particular layout is accessed? This way in a month or two time we could possibly get a good idea of what layouts are being accessed and which ones aren't. This function would need to be able to track layouts that are accessed both by users or scripts.

Hi all, I am currently using a wonderful custom function called TypeSumField which I found here. In short, it makes it possible to sum a certain field from records that meet a certain condition. (i.e. if category = "Bread and pastries" then Sum( amount ) ) The source code for this function is: //This function will sum all SumFields whose TypeField = Type //Start should =0 or blank Let([ End = Count(TypeField); counter = Start +1; total = If(GetNthRecord(TypeField;counter)=Type; GetNthRecord(SumField;counter) ; 0 ) ]; Case(counter )) What I need now is a comparable function, but then wi…

Hi, Is there any function available in filemaker to get the serial number of system except Get(SystemNicAddress) function. or any other method available to get that serial number. Thanks, John wiliams.

I'm having some problems assigning variables in a custom function. Essentially, I have 2 variables ($parameter and $value) that have what the variable name, and value should be. I'm having problems actually making the new variable with that information. I've tried Let with Evaluate statements and just Evaluate statements with no success. Let ( $expression = "$" & $parameter & " = " & $value; Evaluate ("Let (" & $expression & ";1)") ) Obviously there is something wrong with the above, but I can't figure out what it is, unless the data doesn't jive together that way? Thanks

Here's a challenge! I would like to add a visual indicator to my database which gives the user feedback on the level of completion of each record - in other words, how many fields contain information, and how many related records exist. The result could be a simple HTML status bar which varies in length and color: red and short for content in few fields and few related records, green and long for content in most fields and lots of related records. I'm assuming that a custom function would be the way to go? How do you collect such information on fields and related records without slowing down the database? How could the result be translated into a perc…

Hi, I recently started working with a non-profit foundation that helps highschool students make their homework after school. Im building a timetable to organise the presents of students. The timetable consists of: A constant timetable- CT: where the days in the week that students attend are stored. A variable timetable - VT: this is based on the constant timetable, but then with a related date. So, the CT is copied to the VT, and then changes the dates of those days are added for the coming year. Then changes can be added when a student wants to cancel a day,or come another day, just ones, this is stored in the VT. I have no idear how to go about th…

Hi this is my first post and I am stuck There are two tables, one for storage of codes and another where I would like to have a calculation reading from the other table. The second table is the table of codes and can look like this: Number Issue 1 Service Call 2 TV Issue 3 Mount Issue etc... And in the first main table I want to be able to enter in the number and it pull the issue from the other table. i.e. 1 will return service call. Here's the thing, that is really easy but the problem lies in what if there are more than one issue. I would like to be able to type in one field, 1; 3 and the secon…

Hey all, So finally I'm able to contribute something to this forum, not just ask for help. I'm sure I'm not inventing the wheel here but after finding no straight forward solutions to my problem in previous forum entries I toyed around with this and found a very simple way to have FileMaker send out an email notification a week before an upcoming birthday. I have a birthday field with a dropdown calander and a simple script that says: If: Contacts::birthday = Get ( CurrentDate ) + Day ( 7 ) Send email This works fine, so far so good. My one concern is that if the 7th days falls on a weekend, when FileMaker is not opened by anybody in the office, I'm …

Hi all, I'm currently trying to build a project tracking database. I'm running FM 10 Pro and have most of the database laid out. What I'm having issues with is figuring out how to display a count list summary with numbers next to each case status, i.e. Cases Pending: # Open: # Closed: # Referred: # I have all of these statuses in a value list which must be chosen for each record, but I'm unsure of how to show a count of how many of each status we have in the entire database on an overview page.

Hello, I need help creating a calculation field. I have a database with articles in it. I track the on-hold and off-hold dates, reasons, and number of days on hold. I track them in a portal. This portal is linked to another table within the database. So if the article has gone on/off hold multiple times there is a record for each occurrence. We have a field that sums the total number of days on hold for each occurrence. What we need is a field that will calculate total days on hold. This way, if we have something that was on hold from 12/1 until 12/2 (1 day) and also on hold from 12/1 to 12/5 (4 days) we want the total number of days to be 4 and not 5. I have attac…

Hi Everyone! I'm back with another problem I am setting a global field using the function (GetFieldasXML) which I downloaded from the Brian Dunning website. It generates something that looks like this into the global field based on the fields on the layout using the list fields function. Generated output 2 3 44 1234number> 12/1/2009 11/7/8854to format> 17of fields> frefile> dav dan 3508.8 123.50 test 3physicians::grpnum> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ here is the custom function Function Name = GetFieldsAsXML Parameter = theFields ------------…

Hi Everyone! I am new to recursive functions and need some help I am setting a global field using the function (field names) in a file called "test" that has a relationship to another file called "test2" It generates something that looks like this into the global field based on the fields on the layout field1 field2 field3 field4 test2::first_name test2::last_name test2::zip_code field 1, 2, 3 and 4 are on the layout and are part of the test database and test2::first_name, test2::last_name and test2::zip_code are related fields on the same layout I need to strip away the test2: from the global field so I am left with field1 field2…

What I need is a function that will test whether any member of a value list is in a text string, if true, it should return the value. "the brown cow needs milk" compare to value list "milk toast|jaguar|brown cow|red cow" should return "brown cow" This differs from most requirements in that the value list may contain multiple words, while the text string is a sentence. One option is to explode the text string into a list of each word, followed by pairs of words, followed by phrases of 3., similar to the ExplodeKey custom function for individual words. However, I am having trouble wrapping my head around nested recursive functions, and I don't …

New to FM, so bear with me, please. I'm trying to figure out how to determine the due date on a pledge for monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annually and annual pledges. Thus far I've got the Pledge amount divided by 12, 6, 4, 2 or 1 to return the No. of Payments and the Payment Amount based on the No. of Payments. i.e. $1200 pledge if done monthly produces a result of $100, bi-monthly produces $200, etc. etc. I'm stumped on how to show the Date Due for each scenario. Currently I have 12 Date Due fields on the layout. Hope this makes sense. Thanks for the help.

Hi, I have a FM database with one table with 28 columns. The first field is named: “RegNumber” which requires a unique value, in my case, something like: nsza001001 I create a new record, let’s say, RegNumber: nsza001001, the remaining fields are filled with other values. Now, I would like to duplicate the above new record an X amount of times, 5, 10, 15, whatever. What I need is this: 1) A field where I can type the amount of duplicates I would like to make. 2) A script I can trigger, that can duplicate the new record the amount of times I need, at the same time increment the unique “RegNumber” of the original record by 1, and assign the incremented…

I work in film and television development. I have created a simple database for managing our projects, but I need some help... Does anyone have a solution for keeping notes in reverse chronological order? I only have two layouts: Development Reports (one for each film, TV show, concept, etc.) & Development Slate (a list of all the projects). I need to be able to input notes in the reports and have the latest notes always updated in the project slate. That part is not so difficult, it's getting the notes organized in reverse chronological order that's stumping me. Ideally, I'd like to be able to just click a button that runs a script that bumps all th…

Hi, this is probably a very obvious question, but I'm trying to generate a number of letter templates that simply uses data base information in the letter. For example, -------------------------- << / />> Dear <> -------------------------- How do i get FM to insert data from another table? for example, I have a table of database users details, name, phone numbers, email addy etc. that I want filemaker to automaticall insert <<...>> into the letter templates so that users will have a personal yet generated letter for clients. for this, I've allready set up a get (accountname), but am not sure how to get it into the wri…

Hi , i am creating a solution in which what i want is that when i press a button it would automatically create a new record along with that new id should also be generated via script not by auto enter options.

brain is just a bit fried.... Trying to create a merge of names from a portal TableA - TableB will have First & Last Name and a option to Show/Hide boolean and and an sort display order field: 1 John Doe 2 Mary Doe 4 Peter Doe 3 Sarah Doe - 1 //boolean hidden The Calculated Display TableA the cf should return the following Results: [color:red]Doe, John & Mary & Peter Now if you change the order of the values: 3 John Doe 2 Peter Doe 1 Mary Doe Results: [color:red]Doe, Mary & Peter & John If there are multiple last names: 4 John Doe 3 Mark Public 2 Peter Doe 1 Mary Doe Res…

Intro: Hi, everyone. I'm glad to find such a vibrant community centered around FM. The included tutorial is lacking somewhat. Background: My database is designed around hours taught, classes, student evaluations, departments and professors. I work for a Med school. We're trying to create one which includes the following fields: First Name, Last Name, Department, Section (example: Renal, Cardio, etc...), Evaluation (student scoring professors on a scale of 1-5), Course 1, Course 2,... Course 5, Lecture Hours, Small Group Hours, Total Hours, Department Hours. Each professor gets an individual record page. I've managed to create a separate layout that…

I'm trying to use the Trim4 function to remove leading blanks, tabs and CRs from a block of pasted text (into Table::Text). I have a calculated field that is simply Trim4(Table::Text). The function works, except when there is an odd number of spaces immediately in front of the first character -- then the first character is dropped from the result. First, can someone confirm this behavior? Is there a valid reason for it working that way? I tried playing with the 1+C1 part of the definition by changing it to only C1 as the starting point. That fixed the leading space problem, but broke its ability to filter out CRs and tabs. Beyond that simple attempt, I'm un…

I have a custom function calculating Elapsed Time from when an email comes in to the database. heres the function: Let ( [ seconds = If( IsEmpty(tsEnd) ; "" ; tsEnd- tsStart) ; minutes = seconds/60 ; hours = minutes/60 ; days = hours/24; months = days/30; years = months/12; displaySeconds = Mod(seconds ; 60); displayMinutes = Int(Mod(minutes; 60)); displayHours = Int(Mod(hours ; 24)); displayDays = Int(Mod(days; 30)); displayMonths = Int(Mod(months; 12)); displayYears = Int(Div(months; 12)) ]; Case( IsEmpty(tsEnd); "" ; …

I want to build a login system. More like a ticket login system where a customer walks up to a system operator and presents a ticket with a number. The operator enters a search through the DB for the code. When it turns up the operator should make that code valid and should be notified if already made valid previously so as to avoid a double entry on the same code. I created a table for all the codes. a. How can I build a timer script so that it makes the ticket valid and starts counting till 12am, and makes the code invalid when looked up after 12am (like maybe the next day) b. How should the operator login in the ticket, ...drop down, check box? etc?? so as t…

I am stuck.. my fields are numbers, if I use a layout.. I can use the format to set 00.00 with 2 decimals.. Without though, my data is being sent out to email and other outputs with not 2 deciamls for dollars.... ..my data examples look like 19.3 or 10. I am pretty new to this.. I went through the number functions list

Hi, Is there any function that can return a string in which there are some parameters? Like a printf in C. Example of what the function could look like : C style printf("The sum of %d and %d is %d", 2, 5, 7) FM style printf(myString, lstParameters) I guess the in FM the function should receive a list instead of parameters. BTW, I know that printf doesn't return a string... Thanks

Hello All, I am working on a time clock for work. I was reading some of the forms and started with the template Personnel Records for the back end. Then with the thought that we would use a the card swipe we use for the gift cards to swipe our drivers license (the DL field is not yet Meddled). The way it works, click the “In” or 'End” )then you would swipe) type 123 and hit the enter click on “Stamp”. My problem is getting the timestamps to add up for each worker. Any thought on this would be greatly appreciated. I have added the solutions. time_clock.zip

Has anyone created a custom function to find the Yield to Maturity of a bond? There is a function in Excel named Yield(). It takes the following parameters: Settlement Date Maturity Date Coupon Rate Price per $100 of Face amount Redemption per $100 of Face amount (this is usually 100) Frequency of coupon payments per year (usually 2 payments per year) Basis (Whether the year is calculated at 360 days, 365 days or actual number of days) The function in Excel uses trial and error to find the Yield. It calculates to the 9th decimal place. The function has to use trial and error as this is the only way to do it. I have taken finance courses, and that i…

Hi, I am using a container field in which i am storing a reference of that file.i also want to store that file in a seperate folder through reference of that file.plz guide me what i do to perform this. Thanks, John

I need a script to be able to create a new set of records with dates for specific days of the week. Like: Generate 9 records starting with April 5th that fall into the following sequential pattern: April 5 April 5 April 8 April 12 April 12 April 15 April 19 April 19 April 22 and so on this is to facilitate creating service order records for church services (Two services on Sunday and one on Wednesday) Right now I have to create all the service/date records manually.

I would like to have a custom function that returns a delimited list of results when passed the xml source and the xml tag. xmlGetAll(theXML ; theTag) this is what i have so far Let ( [ tagNumber = PatternCount ( theXML ; theTag ); tagLength = Length(theTag); tagStart = Position ( theXML ; "<" & theTag & ">" ; 1 ; 1 ) + tagLength + 2 ; tagEnd = Position ( theXML ; "" & theTag & ">" ; 1 ; 1 ); tagLen = tagEnd - tagStart ]; If ( tagNumber > 0 ; Middle ( theXML ; tagStart ; tagLen ) ; "") ) This works fine for finding the first occurance, what I am struggling with is wrapping my head around how to make it r…

My client's users are entering invalid website URL's into a FMP field. I'd like a custom function which will at least test whether the URL is well formed, start with either http:// or https:// and end with a valid .com or similar. I've checked Brian Dunning's site and haven't found what I'm looking for. Any ideas? With appreciation

I have a database shared on filemaker server. I am writing a script using a remote login through filemaker 10 pro advanced, and i discovered that a custom function solves all my problems. Is there any way that I can remotely add this custom function to the custom functions recognised by the server, so that I can include it in my script? Any help hugely appreciated...

Hey, Again I appeal to the Forum. I have a script that looks like the following: Loop Set Variable [$loop1 : $loop1 + 1] Set variable ( [$variable] : $variable & ¶ & Evaluate ( "field" & $loop1 ) ) end loop if [$loop1 = 10] End loop What I'm trying to do is take values from 10 fields titled "field1", "field2", "field3" and so on and insert them into a list variable ($variable) that builds as the loop goes on. The problem I'm facing is with empty values, especially if "field1" is empty. The script will build so that if "field1" is empty, the value for "field2" will be preceded by 2 carriage returns, not one. If I change the calcu…

it is possible to implement some kind of ftp support? i would like to use: - transfer and download with status by the end; like it is completed tnx for help in advance!

Howdy, all: I have a copy of FileMaker Pro 9: The Missing Manual in front of me and I just can't "grok" the general set-up up of a Custom Function. Take for example this calculation I'm working on: Case(IsEmpty(eurodate);""; Case (Month (eurodate) < 10; "0" & Month (eurodate); Month (eurodate)) & "." & (Case (Day (eurodate) < 10; "0" & Day (eurodate); Day (eurodate))) & "." & Year (eurodate)) For report generating purposes--where I use calculation-based Text fields for their set-up instead of discrete fields--I have different date-related fields (car_date, plane_date, house_date, etc.) but they all need to use th…

I'm trying to find a way to identify duplicates contained within 20 fields in a single record. Duplicates are possible and acceptable, though unlikely. The 20 fields are populated by choosing from a valuelist drop-down via an alternate table. I've been researching possible recursive functions, hoping that I might bump into something that (a) I understood and ( having understood it I might be able to bend it to my own ends - but I am a custom function virgin! Where I've got to is a concatenated list of all the fields (List1) and a custom function which strips out the duplicates (List2). Hopes that I might be able to compare one list with the other (and displ…

Not sure this is the right place to post this because I'm not sure what method to use to do what I want to do. I have a database of street addresses and I want to create a walk list. This would mean sorting the addresses ascending/descending based upon even and odd house numbers, so that the walkers can have a sheet with the addresses they need to visit. The addresses need to be in the proper order to walk up one side of the street and then back down the other side. I've gotten as far as sorting the addresses by street and house number but I don't have a clue about how to isolate/sort even and odd house numbers. I would really appreciate any advice. Thanks, David40

Hi Guys, I need some help in getting a Custom Function to work. I am using one of Brian Dunnings Latitude & Longitude functions to calculate the distance between points. I copied and pasted it into a calculation field and it works great. I now want to use his "fnLatLon.bearing" function. It requires the use of his "Atan2" function. How do I get these functions to work? I can prob put the fnLatLon.bearing function into a calculation field (I assume) but it doesn't work for atan2. If I put atan2 into a custom function (copy and paste) I get and error about "X" being an invalid field or something. Cheers

There's probably a really simple answer to this, but I can't work it out: In a custom function, how do I set a variable so it is set to the value of a specific field in the current record? The name of the field is "PK".

Hi, I've just created a small C# program to test ODBC connection on my Filemaker files. Requirements : - Sequelink drivers (if for FM) - Framework 2.0 - Create an ODBC connection (eg Filemaker) You want to modify the program... go ahead You think your modification could be useful for others... post it here! See ya SOT.zip

Does anyone know of an issue where a CF written in Developer (of course) has dramatically reduced performance on a machine running basic FMP? I use a simple CF to navigate through layouts and a customer is complaining that 'Return' takes a long time to do anything - like a cup of coffee time. They all work fine for me and her machine is newer and presumably faster than mine. I'm using FMD 8.5v2 on XP, customer is using FMP 8.5v1, on Vista I think. (Note the 'v1'.)