Questions about OnObjectKeystroke

[Ron Cates]

I have a file hosted on FMS 12 on a windows server 2008 r2 machine, serving up the databae to about a dozen users in the office, all but one of which are a mix of windows xp and windows 7. The otherone is the only mac we have in the office ( sorry Mac lovers ). Each work station has a an openner file stored on the local machine that opens the database remotely through an open script, then closes the openner file. It never was very pretty, but it got them there. Recently we had a new logo design and we're doing some design makeovers on websites and other things. So I was asked if I could make a nice splash screen with our new logo and improve the openning experience. I gave it a try but when the file opens the new splash screen only shows for a split second before the window goes white while waiting for the remote connection to be made, and stays that way until the login dialog is filled in and submitted. Then the database runs an open script and takes the user to thier appropriate layout. I wrote in the ability to abort when I hold shift and login using the admin account. Then when I continue the login dialog comes up nicely in from of the splash screen, But I don't really want the openning file to stop and have to wait for the user to click continue or press a button.

 

So, question number one is. How can I accomplish an openning screen that stays visible as the open remote is making the connection without having to stop on the layout and require further input?

 

After trying it that way I decided it might be nice to just open to a screen with a username and password field so the user could just fill in and hit a button and then not have to login using the native dialog. I set up the openner file with one table and 3 global fields.

 

gAccount
gPassword
gPasswordMask.

 

The gPasswordMask field is the field the user enters the password in, by using OnObjectKeystroke, eack time the user types a letter the script ads the letter to the gPassword field ( which by the way will not be on the layout ) and then substitutes the letter in the gPaswordMask field with a bullet. It actually works quite nicely except for one issue. When the user types the letter, it fires the script but the letter remains visible and the password field does not get the letter added until either the nextkeystroke or by clicking out of the field. I've tried experimenting with adding a commit record step and then going back to the field at the end of the script, but when I do that, on the first keystroke i get a popup dialog that says I must be in a field before typing ( not the exact words, but close). So i don't understand since the script fires and the fields should be set with data, why is it that the commit record step at the end of the script seems to kick me out of the field before acknowlaging the setfield steps have set the data in the fields? Because the last letter typed remains visible until the next keystroke before being transferred to the password field and converted to a bullet in the passwordmask field It lmost seems as though the process doesn't complete until the next keystroke fires the script again.

 

So I'm looking for any suggestions on how to keep the last letter typed from being visible to anyone looking over the users shoulder. I've tried changing the background and text to black during entry but I don't like the feel because the user can hardly tell they are even typing withought seeing the bullets appear after each keystroke. And as far as I can tell ( and of course I could be wrong ), but using format text color on the bullets to show them in a different coller changes all data in the field to the format color, including the last letter, making it visible again.

 

So question 2 is wether anyone has any thoughts on how to keep that last letter from being seen?

 

Thanks for any help

 

Ron

 

 

Script.pdf

[Matthew F]

Regarding question #1, it would seem that you could put the Logo/Splash screen on your local "opener" file.  An "OnFirstWindowOpen" trigger would fire a script that starts off with a pause for 2 or 3 seconds before running "Open File" to launch your remote database.  This seems to work fine on a high speed network. 

 

In regards to #2, I think using a bullet font is one way to accomplish this. It sounds like you only need to obscure the data, since your script handles the security issues.  Nightwing has a nice example of obscuring typing with bullets using a script (like you are doing), mentioned in this Filemaker Forum post.  

[bruceR]

Exit script false.

[Ron Cates]

It took me a while to figure out what the problem was with the last visible letter. But using script debugger i finally realized that whatever letter is typed is not entered into the field intil after the triggered script has run. So I was trying to figure out how to stop the letter from entering.

 

Then I saw Bruce's post about exit script false. That prevents the letter from being entered into the field. So instead of trying to substitute the last letter with a bullet. I set the script to add a bullet for each key stroke, set the password field with Get ( TriggerKeyStroke ) and then exit the script false and the letter typed never shows in the field!

 

Thank you Bruce!!!

[Ron Cates]

Now that I have that all figured out. How would I open the remote file with the username and password the user has entered? I seem to remember there was a way to use Open URL or something and include the username and password.

 

I'm searching for the answer now but it would be a big help if anyone could point me in the right direction.

 

Thanks

[Ron Cates]

Found my answer here:

 

http://www.filemaker.com/12help/html/sharing_data.16.7.html

 

Now I'm just trying to figure out if I can error capture if the user name and password are wrong and go back to the openner screen with a message to try again?

[Josh Ormond]

How is the security aspect of including the account name / password in the URL to the server / host?  Is it encrypted? Can it be encrypted?

 

Found my answer here:

 

http://www.filemaker.com/12help/html/sharing_data.16.7.html

 

Now I'm just trying to figure out if I can error capture if the user name and password are wrong and go back to the openner screen with a message to try again?

[Ron Cates]

That's a good question. I would be interested in knowing the answer..

[Josh Ormond]

From asking others, and doing some research.  The url can not be sent encrypted to the server. Which represents some risk.

 

It may be better to use the opener file with a limited access guest account to open the main file.  Log into that file using a default, limited access guest account and use the relogin script step to login.

[Vaughan]

Why use opener files at all? Shortcuts can be made that link to the server and file directly.

[Ron Cates]

I'm currently exploring a few Ideas. The guest account with locked down access to the login screen only is one route I am exploring. One of the things I was being asked for was a way, especially for a couple shared client computers, to allow a logout that would log the user out but return to an attractive opening screen for the sake of professional appearance when the computer is not in use. Currently I am working out the ability to hide the starter file window on loggin and then after the main file closes on loggout, reshow the login screen from the starter file.