Highlights and unique values in portals

[Tricky]

FEEL LIKE BEING CREATIVE? YOU CAN HELP ME!!!

I am not sure this title covers my question, but let me give it a try.

My file setup consists of a server part and a part that users have locally on their own computer, as many times as they have projects. The local file uses the data that are kept on server.

When users make their selection from these data, they do so via 8 portals. Each choice filters the available choices in the next portal.

I have two questions, hoping for solutions / alternatives that i am overlooking.

NOTE: I do NOT use plug ins (not allowed to due to budget cuts) and I am not familiar yet with VB etc.

NOTE2: there is no option to make the solution all-server-based. I have been asked my times: why not move all to server, but there are definite reasons not to want to go there. Too complicated to explain here, but it is a fact I have to live with.

Here are my challenges:

1) portals do not automatically show unique values only. Value lists do, based on the same relationship, but my users do not want to work from value list pop ups.

So, I have tracked down the unique records by comparing the unique record ID with the same unique record ID via a selfjoin relationship by the values that distinguish it as unique. Example:

My product has a name, a category and a group.

The selfjoin relationship includes all three of these. The calculation looks like this:

Case (

record ID =

selfjoin_relationship::record_ID;

1)

So, I can now find the unique records, but: the calculation cannot be stored and thus not be used in a relationship.

So, I have to have set regular number fields with the values of the calculated uniqueness identifying fields (pardon my bad English). This is a bit of a hassle, but it is acceptable, because the action only has to be done when a new release of the file is distributed. Once or twice a year.

However: I would love to hear suggestions to do this in a different way. I seem to be stuck where I am now.

2)Because of the server/local setup, I find myself trapped when I want the portal that references the server file, to show highlights (colourchanges) for the user choice. If I want to do this, I need to have this file locally, because I believe that even in FMA8, Filemaker is unable to show selections for all users (300) at the same time, without locking the records the portals reference.

I would hate to have to make a separate local copy of the referenced table, but if that is the only option, I will do that.

What I am looking for here, is maybe totally different approaches to the matter.

I will include in this message a screen shot from the portal as I have now designed it to test with. The final user interface will of course look better, but this will give you all an idea of my situation.

[Ender]

A few things are not too clear to me:

1. I can't tell what the significance is in the fact that you have a local file and a server file involved here. Why does this matter as to what the relationships show?

2. You haven't really said what this selection/filtering process is used for. Are you populating a foreign key in the local file or is this just for users to search for a record in the server file?

3. It sounds like you're trying to figure out a way to make a portal filter out duplicates from the related table, but duplicates based on what?

I have no idea what the structure of your solution is, but perhaps you can add a table whose records are the unique combination of things you are looking for.

[Tricky]

I will try to explain...

The local file are calculations of prices for projects my company does. The server file can be described as a product component catalogue, from which the project is assembled.

ad 1:

what the relationships show is not the issue. What is the issue is that users pick from the choices offered in the portals and I would like for them to see their choices highlighted.

ad 2:

The selection/filtering is used to lead the user to a valid unique product component. There are different varieties of components, but at the end of the selection process, only one unique component remains, we zoom in on that component. Each choice filters the next one, leading, eventually to a final choice that distinguishes a unique component.

ad 3:

Let me try and explain duplicates. We have a product which is a conveyor belt. Its code is BF. We distinguish different types of BFs, depending on how these are used. The full string, that makes each BF unique, can look like this:

Release 8.0

Industry Airport

Supply chain europe

Function category Conveyor

Function Transport

Conveyor BF

Equipment type pallet

Width 1000 mm

Within one release, each of these paramaters can be different. The supply chain might be USA. Or the function might be Sorting. So, all of the categories exist multiple times in different varieties. And when the portal shows the varieties, there will always be duplicates, except for the very last one: width. They will always be unique in the portal, no duplicates there.

I hope this makes sense. As this is a large solution there is no way I can post an example. I was merely hoping for somebody to come up with a different selection process. Or a smart idea that gets rid of the portal duplicates....

[Ender]

Perhaps you can mock up a demo illustrating the method you are using (along with some fake data), and maybe we can think up a way to get those other portals to show only unique values in each category.