lending library

[Yogesh Nath]

Hi

I am trying to create a lending library similar to the one provided by FM. I come from Access database so I have few questions and really hoping somebody could please help.

The lending library template has 3 tables but they are not joined. I am confused as why they are not joined like Business Tracker is.

Anyway, I have 3 tables, an inventory table with

Inventory-Table

Inventory ID and other details

Customer-Table

Customer ID with other customer details

History-Table

This should show who has hired what and when or/and atleast the items that are on loan..

How would I be able to join all tables together?? I am thinking I need a lineitem table which joins to inventory and customer..but what happends to history table.

I hope somebody will be able to pointme in the right direction.

Many Thanks

[stanley]

Yogesh Nath:

Welcome to the Forums.

The Lending Library can be a bit confusing at first. The History table is the line-item table. If you look at the relationships graph, you'll see how everything is linked together. And they should actually be joined - the version I have is fully relational.

-Stanley

[Yogesh Nath]

Thank you Stanly

Oh yes the database is relational and works just find. But why there 3lots of different table Occurrence. For example, Contacts table has 4 tables attached to it and Assets table has 2 table Occurrence..I don't know if I am using the right words to explain.

I find it very difficult to follow the TO scattered over!

I would like to create the same database but all tables are joined not "Scattered over independently"

I dont know how to attached a zip file, otherwise I would have attched a sample file which is very small.

[T-Square]

Yogesh--

If you start to think about the Relationships graph as a combination of Access's Relationship and Query windows, you will begin to understand better, I think. FM's Relationship graph sort of combines the two concepts in one, and many of the things you are used to doing in a query window in Access are actually done in FM's relationship graph. This is why there are so many table occurrences on the FM Relationship graph.

Any time you want to create a new view of a table (to build a layout, for example), you will (most likely) create a new instance of the table on the relationship graph and create links to manage the data in the table.

Filemaker does not allow you to reuse a table in the chain of links because it would make the reference to the data ambiguous--in other words, FM would not know which path to take to a given TO.

So, that's why there are so many TO's on the graph.

HTH,

David

[RalphL]

The relational graph is not an E-R diagram. Table Occurrances (TO) are not Tables. What you are seeing is 3 Table Occurance Groups (TOG). Each of these is used by a layout or layouts for a point of view. The first set of layouts use Assets TOG. The second set uses Contacts TOG. The last layout uses History TOG.

I am looking at the file that came with FMP7. I like to color code the TO's by Table. This is easy to do in FMP8. Click on Contacts then Click on rightmost tool and select "Select table with same source tables". Then choose a color. Repeat for Assets and History.

[Yogesh Nath]

Ok

Now it is starting to make sense. Thank you all guys. I really appreciate the help.

We have just purchased FM8 and want to do lending library, track projects, invoicing and payment.

[Yogesh Nath]

Hi

I would like to create a lending db like one provided by fm.

I have 3 tables:

Inventory --- InventoryID as PrimaryKey

Client --- ClientID as Primary Key

RentalLineItem ---RentalID as PrimaryKey

I know RentalLineItem is the join inbetween client and Inventory table but I dont know how to create the join.

Also once the join is created. Then I need atleast 3 layouts to start of with

Layout1(inventory layout)--records inventory details

Laypout2(client layout)--records cleint details

So on if I create a 3rd layout(called rental layout) --does this record inventoryID,name of item etc and client id, fName, lName etc? But this is only possible if I can get the join all the tables correctly right?

Please if someone can tell me if I am on the right track and how to join those 3tables,,I would greatly appreciate it.

Kindly

Yogesh

[RalphL]

Actually the primary key for RentalLineItem is a concatenation of the foreign keys InventoryID and ClientID.

You should be able to use the template that comes with FMP8 as a starting point even though it has a lot of pre 7 & 8 thinking in it.

[RalphL]

You will find a sample file I posted at http://fmforums.com/forum/showtopic.php?tid/170923/post/180289/hl//#180289 that goes into detail of a many to many relationship.