Great benefits for developers

Would you like access to exclusive technical information, discounted products, Invitation Only events, co-marketing opportunities and special offers? Then become a member of the FileMaker Solutions Alliance (FSA) today! Whether you are the in-house FileMaker 'Pro', a consultant, a commercial solution developer or a trainer, you can enjoy the following benefits:

Get exclusive technical information
Membership in the FSA gives you access to 'members only' technical information, Developer Resource Central, and the FSA Talk web forum. In addition, you may be invited to preview and test select pre-release software.

Free and discounted products
Receive up to AUD$560 (ex GST) in free FileMaker software just for joining. You'll get the current versions of some of our most popular titles, and significant discounts on others.

By invitation only
Our members participate in Invitation Only events and exclusive technical briefings held in major cities in the region (including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Auckland and Christchurch) up to three times a year.

Co-marketing opportunities
Take advantage of our co-marketing: web links, logo use, and listing in our online FSA Directory, which promotes FileMaker-related products and services. You may also benefit from extended co-marketing support, depending on your membership level.

Go to www.filemaker.com.au/developers/join_fsa.html for more information.

FileMaker 8 certification now available!

Translate your FileMaker skills into an industry-recognised credential. Deepen your knowledge of essentials necessary to develop and deploy business or organisational solutions using the complete FileMaker 8 product line. Then, prepare for FileMaker 8 Certification, pass the exam, and earn the only certification sponsored by the makers of FileMaker. Increase your rewards, recognition and competitive advantage today!

Click here to read more.

10 things you can do with FileMaker Pro 8 Advanced

FileMaker Pro 8 Advanced replaces FileMaker Developer and has all the features of FileMaker Pro 8 plus advanced development and customisation tools that enable users to quickly and easily design, develop, maintain and modify databases, and debug and troubleshoot more efficiently.

The top 10 things you can do with FileMaker Pro 8 Advanced that you can't do with FileMaker Pro 8:

1. Customise menus by executing your scripts, renaming, adding, or deleting menu items or replacing entire menus with your custom choices for a completely customised solution. Your customised menu behaviour will also affect toolbar icons, context menus, window options, keyboard shortcuts, and the Mode menus.

2. Make your layouts more informative and intuitive by adding text-based or calculated Tooltips to fields or layout objects. Tooltips can include static text or calculated results to provide more insights into your data or to temporarily provide information that you don't want permanently displayed on your layout.

3. Build or modify databases faster by importing multiple tables at once or by using copy/paste to move fields, tables, scripts, and script steps in or across files.

4. Pinpoint problem areas as you step through scripts in a script debugger. You can even temporarily disable scripts to test portions of a script.

5. Keep an eye on current field values, variables, or expressions with the Data Viewer. This is particularly useful when debugging scripts or to test calculation formulas without modifying the database schema.

6. Create standalone runtime solutions that do not require the FileMaker Pro application.

7. Create a kiosk-based application where all menus are hidden - great for mailing list sign-ups or event registrations.

8. Build more robust calculations and extend database capabilities with Custom Functions and the External Function Plug-in API.

9. Generate a report that provides comprehensive information on your database schema and options, like fields, tables, Custom Menus, and more with the Database Design Report. It's invaluable as a troubleshooting tool by locating missing fields, broken relationships, problem calculations, and more.

10. Use the file maintenance tools to maximise performance and to compact and recover unused space.

Did you know that FileMaker Pro version 6, 7 & 8 users can upgrade to FileMaker Pro 8 Advanced?
For further information go to www.filemaker.com.au/products/fmpa/