how to find from many files

[Kurt Knippel]

Capture the find criteria as globals. Then either run a find script in each DB or use the globals to create a relationship to the other DBs.

[smillerdad]

We have reached the 2 gigabyte ceiling for a file size in a picture filing system. How can I find data in multiple files simultaneously? I'm afraid to store pictures as a link only in case the link is lost and all my filing work goes out the window so I want to keep my data in multiple files but search only once.

[smillerdad]

I'm still stumped. Maybe I didn't describe my problem clearly.

Each record contains a customer#, order#, and up to 10 pictures of various documents: original orders, pick slips, credit memos. etc. When the single file was still not "full" I could find by a customer number or order number and the result was a set of records containing all the documents which would have been in the customer's manila folder in the olden days. Now that I have reached the 2 gig limit on my first file, I have data in 2 files and I have to search both separately to find all the related documents. The original order will most likely be in file 1 and the shipping documents (weeks later) in file 2 with more and more files being created over time. Something which used to be slick is now very cumbersome.

I'm not familiar with globals but help indicates I can't use a global field to find records. When I create a relationship using the global I created in my "master find" file, it can only return the value from a field, I need the entire record, or at minimum the non-blank fields of the 10 document fields. Do I need a stack of 10 relationships for each file I'm searching in? The header information for each record would be helpful too but searching 10 or more relationships in multiple 2 gig files sounds unwieldy.

Am I overlooking something in your reply?

Thank you for your assistance.

Steve

[danjacoby]

CaptKurt means you could capture your find request in global fields, and then use the contents of the global fields to create find requests in the other files.

Another (seemingly simple, but then I don't know how your data is organized) solution might be to split the master file up based on some grouping where you know which file the information is in. Just like knowing which file drawer a particular manila folder is in.

Incidentally, have you tried the "Save a Copy As" command, and then saved a compressed copy? You might find a great deal of room that way.