I have file with layouts 1, 1a; 2, 2a; 3, 3a and 4, 4a -- four sets of pairs. At any one time there will only be one pair that is used per record and the other layouts per record are left blank.

Is there a way to ensure that when selecting a record only the first of the active pair, 1, 2, 3 or 4, is the layout that comes up?

For example, in record one, layout 1/1a is used and for record two, layout 3/3a is used. When choosing record one, the record opens to layout 1; if record two is choosen, it opens to layout 3 ....

I assuming here that you have some way withing the record to identify which layout the record should should be displayed with?

This would be a good one for the new parameter passing capabilities of FMP 7, but that's for another time.

You are going to have to make sure that your users can only navigate using scripts, otherwise this will be useless. Write your script using a nest if statement:

If (fieldx = (layout 1,1a)

Goto layout 1

halt script

end if

else if (fieldx = (layout 2,2a)

goto layout 2

halt script

end if

etc until you have completed all you choices.

I usually add a final error choice, just in case the field has been left blank or non-matching entry sneaks into the field.

hope this helps

I will be porting this to FM 7 too -- I will check out you solution later -- thanks.

Walter B -- worked great. btw: what's in FM 7 that will accompish this?

I'm not looking at my machine right now, but I seem to recall that you can go to a layout based on a calculation (such as the contents of a field). I do just that in a number of places in my solutions. Assuming that you are storing the destination layout in the base record, you can go to that layout. Or maybe that's a feature of 7?