Containor fields, storing, printing

[LiveOak]

A1: There is a HUGE advantage in storing just a referenced and not the whole image. If you store the whole image, your file will grow by the image size with each image you store. If you store just a reference, the file will grow very little with each image as only the path to the image is being stored. The image is converted and rendered on your screen "on the fly" and "as needed". To use this approach, the images must be stored on a network volume accessable to all of the 10-20 FM machines. The volume must be mounted on these machines and all must have privileges that allow access to the volume. This is easiest if you have an additional file server running say, Windows NT, AppleShare IP, etc.

A2: I would use two files, not serveral container fields. Store the images as separate related records in the second file. Print you reports from the second file. Records that don't exist, don't take up space in a report. Information from you current/primary file can be display using related fields in a sumsummary part sorted by whatever is a record in your current file (a client? a project?, etc.).

-bd

[GregFM]

I store lots of data in records by scanning typed reports into containor fields. Initially I have been scanning pages into 10 containor fields for each client, (ContField1, ContField2...up to ten) I had hoped to do this indefinately but have learned that a single FMP5 file can contain only 2 gigabyutes of data, I will be running out of space after just a 2-3years. Also, I hoped to print the contents of the fields as I would text fields by using sliding and printing formating, but this doesn't seen to work with containor fields, i.e. my print layout has the 10 fields formated to slide, but I still get,for example a record with just two containor fields filled, 2 printed pages and 8 empty pages.

Q1: Is there an advantage to storing the data as a "referrence" to another file on the disk. Will the file holding this referenced data have the same data storage limitations that a FMP5 file would? Where would the non-fmp5file containing the referenced data need to be located when the database is being used on a network of 10-20 users using FMP5Server (on the server HD in a shared file in the FMP5file ?) If I needed to make changes later, would I be able to the "reference" from one file to another as with any text data?)

Q2: How can I print the multiple page data stored in containor fields (referrenced or otherwise)without ending up with lots of emptly pages.

Thanks. Greg