Hi everyone- I have a database where there are duplicate contacts that have been entered by different users, which means that records with identical first name and last name fields have different unique IDs. I have found scripting solutions (I'm a scripting beginner and just learning the ropes) for identifying and deleting duplicate unique IDs, but how do I script for a search that will identify records that have both identical first name and last name fields and delete the duplicate? This is for FMP11 on a mac. Thanks so much!

Create a calculation field that concatenates the first and last name fields, and search for duplicates on this field. (Search for duplicates by entering ! into the field.)

However the plan is flawed. Removing duplicates is significantly more complicated than just comparing names.

There WILL be different people with the same name, and telling them apart is not always easy. Usually, concatenating the city name to the field can help identify uniqueness. I've also found that mobile phone numbers are good for identifying people even if their name changes (particularly women who often use both their married and maiden names in different circumstances).

I'd hesitate scripting a process that *always* removes duplicates automatically. I usually select the duplicates and present them to a person for deletion.

a person for deletion

I believe that person would rather be deported than deleted... (sorry, couldn't resist either).

:D

Thanks everyone!