FileMaker Pro 5 Bible
by Steven A. Schwartz
IDG Books Worldwide
http://www.idgbooks.com
ISBN 0-7645-3406-8, 749 pages plus CD
$39.99 U.S., $59.99 Canada, £36.99 U.K.

First of all, let me say that Steve Schwartz's earlier book, FileMaker Pro 3 Bible, launched me on my present course of FileMaker aficionado. It was so clear and well-written that I read it before I read the manual.

Second, let me say that I don't have version 5. All I can do is read about it. Also, this is not strictly a review of the book. It is also a preview of v.5 for you others who haven't bought it yet, with a little ranting and raving thrown in for fun.

This book is very similar to the earlier one. That's a good thing. It is very well laid out, beginning with "What is a database," and taking you through every one of FileMaker's many aspects.

I want to mention one small change in the overall layout that shows consideration for the student. There are not one, but two lists of FileMaker's built-in calculation functions. In the chapter on calculations, there is a list of the functions, with basic definitions of what they do.
I was just looking for it right now, and it took me awhile to find it. This was often a problem in my old book (until the binding got tweaked to always open there). In this book the detailed list, with longer explanations and examples, has been moved to an appendix at the end of the book; very easy to find in a hurry. And it includes all those status functions.

All in all, the appendixes are almost 100 pages, including comprehensive keyboard shortcuts, including a separate chart for Windows (an obscure operating system), a glossary, and a very good index.

The only real complaint I personally have with the book is that is covers the basics so well that there just isn't space to go on into advanced techniques. However, at 750 pages already, this would be impossible. And, to be fair, it is very difficult to write a comprehensive advanced book about FileMaker. Two different well-respected authors have attempted it, then given it up, after publishers had already announced the books, one of them for more than a year.

I will now skim through the book, pointing out some of the changes from my version, which are the changes in the program itself.

Resizable dialog boxes: This is good. Most of us had to hack ours in earlier versions, which is not only "unsupported," but they cannot then be dragged smaller. Calculation Options, one of the most cramped, is still small. The dialogs don't remember their size either; many people resort to macro programs (KeyQuencer, QuicKeys, perhaps even AppleScript) to zoom them.

Value lists based on a relationship: Great! This is one of the most useful tools added in v.5. For the first time, we will get truly dynamic value lists across all related files; the end of clunky conditional value lists.

Table layout: This is very new. For the first time, we can create layouts that function like spreadsheets. Users will be able to resize and even rearrange columns while in Browse Mode. They can Ctrl-click on a column heading to get a drop-down list of sorting choices, or you can specify them.

I personally will use this feature for my infamous (hidden) "calc. list" layouts. These are the layouts where I can see all those cryptic IDs and calculations in a list, so I can try to figure out what the heck is going on. It's a pain to create them now, not only resizing each of the fields, but having to eliminate the extra space between them.

Microsoft-"compliant" toolbars: The word you should use here is "obeisant," which is a cut above "subservient." You "comply" with laws, or open standards, not one company's little do-da's (unless we can also say Windows is an "Apple-compliant" interface). BTW, this is FileMaker Inc.'s wording, not Steve's. It's everywhere; it's not his fault. Perhaps FMI was "advised" that "compliant" was the "appropriate" wording. "Well, that's one for the judge," as they say... ;-)

It's not like MS is the only one with "toolbars" anyway. Big deal. Huff, puff. Still, they might be useful, especially if they were more configurable.

3D effects for fields and objects: Get those raised and sunken boxes quickly without having to draw little gray and white lines.

Import Scripts: Finally. Though you'd better check them carefully, as many of the steps are bound to have lost their no-longer-available targets.

Web publishing: There's a short chapter on web publishing, both with instant and custom publishing. To his credit he mentions that there are limitations. You will need another book if this is your main interest. I believe Maria Langer's is good.

In conclusion, this is one of the best books to begin the long journey into FileMaker. It doubles as an easy-to-read narrative and a well-indexed reference. On the other hand, if you, like me, are wandering around somewhere halfway up the road, you're going to need something more.

The best advanced reference that I know at present is the "Scriptology" book and CD, by John Mark Osborne. It has the best collection of example files that you'll ever see.

While I'm on the book wagon, let me mention one last book (again), which I happen to own, Michael Hernandez's "Database Design for Mere Mortals." This is a good book for beginners approaching relational database work. While it doesn't cover any specific program, and in fact steers completely clear of anything but design itself, it is a good, easy-to-read explanation of to how to go from "a whole bunch of stuff" to a "system of information."

He covers such important concepts as "entity relationships," "data integrity" and "business rules." Despite the fact that you will have to apply the concepts somewhat imaginatively to work in FileMaker (which in its implementation is different from many databases), the basic underlying principles are the same. Some people find that the book is rather abstract and lacks specifics, but it is good for FileMaker beginners for that very reason.

So, hopefully there's at least one book for everyone here, and I'll cover more if I come across them. You don't have to figure it all out alone; not all of it, but some of it.

Fenton Jones
manavesh@mymac.com