Introduction

[Todd Dignan]

After attending FileMakers DevCon in Phoenix, I was inspired (as many where) as I watched Cris Ippolite demo in the opening session. I have been developing in flash for three years and in FileMaker for seven. This is a great mix of a very user friendly, flexible tool (Macromedia Flash MX 2004) to develop a user friendly, interactive rich UI (user interface). Over the Web or as a standalone app the delivery is the same. If you coupled this with the new power of FileMaker 7 Server Advance or FileMaker 6 Unlimited, you end up with the ability to deliver a very powerful Interactive system to exchange data. I would like to use this Forum to promote Flash as a new UI tool, to bring the two communities together, to share sample files, ideas, tricks and links.

To start this off here is a couple of links:

Examples files:

Cris Ippolite

http://www.filemakerflash.com

Sample websites of Flash to FileMaker:

Cris Ippolite

http://www.isolutions-inc.com

John Mark Osborne

http://www.databasepros.com

Sample websites of Flash:

http://www.flash.com

http://www.wayofthemaster.com

http://www.volumeone.com

Resource:

Flash MX 2004 Acton Script Bible.

Most important HAVE FUN!

Thanks

Todd Dignan

[Garry Claridge]

We used Flash and FM about four years ago for a major site which used a login and kept scores for a browser-based game.

A handful of other people have had discussions here about Flash and FM over the last few years.

We have mostly been using the LoadVariable() action for the integration. However, I can now see the need to use the XML features of Flash!

All the best.

Garry

[bigcookie79]

Hi,

Thanks for starting this thread and let's hope people contribute to it. Have you been able to connect FM to Flash?? I can see how Filemaker could export XML and I know how Flash can open an XML socket that can sense changes in the database

...um, but where this detection takes place mystifies me. Does filemaker's web companion act as the go-between? How does flash talk to the web companion and vice-versa? How quickly can a user update the flash site by making somekind of imput to the database? I haven't framed these questions very carefully... I'm not a developer... maybe that could be the first step to figuring out how to use flash and filemaker... coming up with some precise questions we need answered.

Chris

[Ocean West]

here is a real live example...

http://www.databasepros.com/main/databaseprosflash.html

[norwood]

I, too, see a HUGE potential with Flash and FileMaker. As a part-time FileMaker developer, Flash developer, and moderator at http://www.ultrashock.com (considered to be one of the world-renown Flash development communities), there's definitely been a push in recent years to integrate Flash and backend development, particularly with open source products such as PHP/MySQL.

I LOVE PHP and I am currently integrating it with FileMaker (via FX.php which uses XML) to create a Flash <---> PHP <---> FileMaker solution, if nothing else to make backups and administration easier overall, IMO.

As I develop more stuff with Flash/FileMaker, I'll try to share it here. I'd say I'm an intermediate user of FileMaker (have developed a reservation system and so web stuff), but I'll keep tinkering...

Unfortunately, FileMaker Server 7 Advanced is so ridiculously expensive that it will keep me working more with MySQL for now...

-Matt Norwood

[bigcookie79]

Matt,

Interesting to here what you're up to. Could you clarify a few points? Have you been tinkering with Flash and FileMaker Server 7 Advanced, PHP and Flash or with some other version of FileMaker. I realize that Server Advanced is the most robust of FileMaker's offerings, but is it the only one that can be queried by PHP?

Thanks,

Chris

[bigcookie79]

I'm also wondering, since I haven't used MySQL, if there's a comprehensive online paper that compares Filemaker to MySQL.

Chris