Next Start time to be Equal to Last End Time

[oakbridge]

I've got a working solution that allows users to record information for a project (header file) and then record specific tasks with the associated start and end times in the related detail file using a portal.

What I would like is for the start time for the next entry to default to the end time of the previous entry. For example, user creates a header record, then puts the first line of detail in the portal such as: Travel, 9:00 AM, 10:30 AM, and any comments. They then tab to the next line and enter Support, at this point I want the system to automatically enter in 10:30 AM as the start time (based on 10:30 AM being the end time of the last task.

I've tried using GetAsTime ( Max ( dtl::task_end ) ) where 'dtl' is the name of the child table and 'task_end' is the field that contains the end time for the task. Unfortunately it doesn't appear that the value is being refreshed correctly.

This is frustrating because I seem to remember doing something similar in FM6 that worked.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,

[John Mark Osborne]

Yes, it did work differently in FileMaker 6. I had a solution where you could grab the value from the previous related record without running an scripts. When I converted it and modified it for FileMaker 7, it works great for the second row you create but not for the third, unless you exit the portal. Apparently, FileMaker 7 doesn't refresh relationships as readily as FileMaker 6.

Other options include creating a script to add portal rows. The script would exit the portal (updating the relationship) and then add the new row. Unfortunately, this makes people pick up the mouse which could be a burden for fast data entry. Or, you could run a script upon exit of the field which commits the record and then enters the portal again. There is just such a plug-in included with FileMaker Advanced.