I must be missing something here...

[MovieBoy]

OK. I have a purchasing database. The main purchase entry table has a unique ID field that is related to the line items table. It is also related to a coding table.

So a PO may contain 5 items that are split between 3 departments.

All of this is working fine. Here is my problem. In order for the purchase requisition to print with variable sized line items, I have to print from the line items table, but when the PO is split between multiple departments, I need to generate multiple purchase req's (to be signed off by different department heads) that show the proper coding information. But when it prints, I only get the data from the first coding record.

Is this because everything is linked via the reqID field? Is there any way to get the printout to show data for each coding line?

[John Mark Osborne]

I have an example file that demonstrates how to print from an invoicing solution which is essentially the same many-to-many scenario you have. I would like to answer your question directly but there really isn't enough information in your post. So, try picking apart my file and I am sure you will be able to figure out where you went wrong.

http://www.filemakerpros.com/joinprint.zip

[bruceR]

Maybe you aren't familiar with FileMaker print options. You have the choice to print current record or records being browsed. Sounds like you are printing current record only.

[MovieBoy]

So, the problem is that I have several tables all related to a parent table and I have to print from one of the child tables to have variable hight lines.

So the parent table is Requsitions and the children are Line Items and Coding. I have to print from Line Items, but filemaker will only let the first record from the Coding table print. (I can't cycle through different Coding records from the Line Items screen)

I got past this by creating temp fields in the Requsition table that update depending on which coding line I want to print, but it still seems like there should be a way to do this.

[comment]

What exactly is this Coding? Earlier you said "a PO may contain 5 items that are split between 3 departments". Does that mean the PO has 3 related records in the Coding table, or what?

[MovieBoy]

Yes that is correct. The purchase requsition may contain 5 items (each a separate related record in the Line Items table) and be coded to 3 departments (each a separate related record in the Coding table)

So we could have something like:

5 - blue boxes - $50.00

5 - yellow boxes - $100.00

2 - red boxes - $20.00

10 - white boxes - $100.00

1 - orange box - $5

and the coding might be:

marketing - 20%

accounting - 20%

overhead - 60%

so I need to printout a req for marketing, accounting, and overhead (each with their required signatures, coding information and appropriate total)

[comment]

I am still confused by the term "Coding" - it's such a cryptic name for an entity. Anyway, if the record in Coding knows which PO it belongs to, and to which department, and so does each line item, you should be able to link them directly (using another occurence of Coding, of course). Then you can place the related coding fields onto the subsummary-by-dept. layout part.