Developer’s Guide

Creating a database solution 2-5
Using scripts to control your solution
You can use scripts to automate much of your database solution,
control startup behavior, emulate menu commands and window
controls, navigate, and much more.
Note FileMaker Developer 5.5 includes a Debug Scripts command
to help you create and test scripts.
For more information about scripting in FileMaker Pro, see
“Creating scripts to automate tasks,” in the FileMaker Pro 5 User’s
Guide or see FileMaker Pro Help. For information about using the
Debug Scripts command, see FileMaker Pro Help.
Creating startup scripts
Startup scripts are useful for controlling what appears when users
open a file in your solution. For example, you can control which
layout is displayed and the size, position, and magnification of the
window. See “Creating a custom web site using a database layout”
on page 6-7 for information about using a startup script with Instant
Web Publishing.
To create a startup script:
1. In FileMaker Pro, open the file that will contain the script, such as
the primary file.
2. Choose Scripts menu > ScriptMaker and create a script to perform
the desired actions.
3. Choose Edit menu > Preferences > Document.
4. In the When opening “document.fp5” area, select Perform script and
choose the script you created from the pop-up menu.
5. Click OK.
Now, the script that you specified is automatically performed
whenever the file is opened.
The Kiosk Solution Example contains buttons
for navigating between screens, adding and
deleting records, and quitting the database