I need to have FM perform a scripted lookup in date order, because later records will be dependant on the lookup of earlier records occurring first. The lookuup is based on a self-join relationship.

My question: will this be determined by selecting 'date' for sorting records in the relationship definition, or has that got nothing to do with it? Or does the current sort order of the records determine the processing order?

Enlightenment gratefully received.

FileMaker Version: 6

Platform: Windows XP

If there are multiple related records, then the lookup value will come from the first record in the sort order, if the relationship has the sort option selected. If the sort option is not selected, then the value will be taken from the first record found in the unsorted order (ie, the earliest created related record).

Thanks Bob. I should have stated my question more clearly. The concern is not with the record where the looked-up value is coming from, but the records that are doing the looking-up. Those records need to do the process in chronolgical order. How can I enusre this?

Anyone?

You could probably experiment with your Relookup to see what it does. If you want to be sure, you can Sort, then use a Loop with a Set Field to update the fields.

Hi,

You'd need to move to another calculated key, upon which the lookup would be triggered or not.

It's not clear enough what your settings are though, but it may require an extra field, which would be looked up as well and which value (if not empty) would be used as a variable for your conditional lookup.

FileMaker Version: 6

Platform: Mac OS 9