[RUMOR] FileMaker to release Version 7 in March[

From Think Secret ...

Sources: FileMaker to release Version 7 in March

FileMaker Inc. will announce and ship its major database upgrade in March, sources told Think Secret.

Multiple sources allege that the company will ship FileMaker 7 by the end of next month, and will release the database's server version later in the year. The company will likely announce the new version on March 9 or 10, and has been ramping up for the release with worldwide launch events. In the UK, for example, technology journalists have been invited to a March 10 "major launch event" at a private London club. FileMaker's PR representatives there called the introduction "one of the most significant announcements made by FileMaker in the last 10 years." FileMaker executives and other personnel will be on hand at that event, sources said.

The server version will ship a few months later, sources said. One informant told Think Secret that the Pro and Developer versions of FileMaker 7 will ship in March while the Server, Advanced Server, and Mobile flavors will ship later in the year.

Earlier, some sources anticipated that FileMaker would announce the new version at Macworld Expo/San Francisco, but the company instead opted to push back the announcement, which has given the company more time to demo Version 7. "This upgrade is bigger than any other upgrade in the past," said one source who recently got his first look at FileMaker 7. "This release is going to keep FileMaker a best-in-class app for several years."

Think Secret first broke the story on FileMaker 7 in August 2003, and this month published an exclusive special report on the upgrade's new features. FileMaker 7 will incorporate massive changes, and many sources who are familiar with the product have called it the most significant FileMaker upgrade to date.