Kate.B

I'm not at all upset about the number of responses or how active the forum is. I appreciate that people are busy and I value any time people put aside to answer my questions. However if I receive one more message (there have been several personal communications saying the same thing) that I am in over my head and don't know what I'm doing then I'm going to scream. What do these people expect me to do? Turn up to work on Monday and hand in my resignation coz some faceless guy on a forum told me that I can't do my job?

I feel that there is some confusion over the question I am asking. I was NOT asking for opinions on whether I am capable or qualified to do the job that I have been hired to do (and indecently, the job that I have been doing for the last five years). My question was on platform suitability. I'm beginning to feel that FM may no be right for me, as it is missing one major feature that I have relied on and enjoyed being a part of in the past, a SUPPORTIVE online community. I was not expecting the protectionist response that I have received, both here and in personal communications, that can be summarised in "you can't do this, I can, so pay me!" Thank you everyone for your responses but I have enough self doubt without the addition of your ill informed opinions of me and what I am capable of. I anyone has any GENUINE opinions on the suitability of FM for what I plan, then I would be glad to hear it. If however you would like to tell me that I'm ill-equipped, naive and incompetent, than may I respectfully request that you **** off.

They will be running filemaker server in the near future, with the purpose of pushing "bespoke" applications such as this onto filemaker.

Probably about $0. There may be some money for a few new iPads and a server license, but thats about it. We have server side support people from hospital IT. Aside from that, basically I'm it. Time, thats a bit harder. The aim is to work with individual groups within the department sequentially. I'd want the first module up and running within a few months, but it may take years to work across the whole department.

Hi all, Thanks for all the replies. Using FM12 is a fait accompli for me, version control is outside my sphere of influence, although once I have "my" databases up and running I will have some control going forward. I'll try to get my filemaker brain on and see how I go. Oh, and I'll get the advanced version. Well, I'll ask nicely anyway. K PS I have posted a question about the appropriateness of FM for my purposes under "FM Go For for iPhone and iPad" and would be grateful for any and all opinions.

Hi all, I'm currently deciding if FM is the best solution for me going forward, and have come here to hear from the experts. My role is develop clinical data management systems for a medical department in a large hospital. The aim is to capture clinical data in a way that will improve clinical care, but also so that this data can be used for research purposes. I should first of all point out that I'm based in Australia, and we are not known for our brilliant clinical data systems, my understanding is that the US is miles ahead of us (a product of the different funding arrangements, our health system is funded primarily by public money). My aim to is to develop a simple system that can be accessible from a web based version as well as an iPad version. I will need the back end to be able to tap into a SQL database and possibly some old Oracle databases. We'll be looking at multiple users, maybe 10 concurrent users, all on site but across two different and not at all connected networks. My main reason for looking into filemaker is the hiring practises of medical research. While the hospital has some main databases that are maintained by central IT, research money comes and goes. I think there is money for someone to be in this role for about four years, but beyond that, the databases I create may well have to stand on their own two feet without support, so I want the simplest possible platform that someone with no database experience can maintain and alter as needs change (I realise that this is a huge ask and maybe impossible, but I would like to get as close as possible). I know the mess that people with no experience can make to databases, but I would prefer this to having the whole thing fall over. So, the impression that I'm getting is the FM is probably the simplest database platform for novices. And from all that I've read it should do what I want in terms of FM Go and web publishing. Am I right? Am I wrong? Thought, opinions, anything at all would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks, K PS I have no FM experience, I have a development background is MSAccess but with no real expertise. See, these medical research places hire people like me! Crazy right?

Hi! I'm new both to this forum and to filemaker, and have a (have figured out as I've gone along) development background in MSAccess/VBA and a tiny bit of SQL. I'm looking at developing in filemaker for a number of reasons, and have started to have a play. I'm already feeling incredibly limited by not having the advanced version. My immediate problem is that I have legacy FM databases that contain one massive table of hundred of fields, and I would like to start splitting things up, but I can't copy tables or move fields from one to another. I can't figure out how to pull a schema across without trailing data everywhere I go. I understand that FM advanced has a script debugger which I would envisage will be useful, but havent even go that far yet. Before I march in to my (new) bosses office and ask for an upgrade; Is the advanced version really all that fantastic? Are my current limitations stemming from my MSAccess mentaliity and not the software? What would most developers be using? Thanks! PS Oh, and does it annoy anyone else that you have limited control over field properties from the table level, you do all the rest only once you stick it on a layout?