Datasheet

11
Chapter 1 ✦ What Is a Database?
Until FileMaker Pro 7, each FileMaker Pro database file contained a single table,
which resulted in solutions that could comprise dozens of files. Beginning with
FileMaker Pro 7, a single database file can contain multiple tables, eliminating
Desktop clutter and making your task still easier because you no longer have to
ensure that all the related files are present for a specific task. Of course, you can still
relate separate files; however, maintaining separate files is no longer mandatory.
If you run a business, you might already have an invoice database, for example.
Instead of retyping a customer’s name and address (or using a series of lookups to
copy this information from another file) whenever he or she places another order,
you can store the address information in a separate, customer address database
and then merely reference it in the invoice file. No matter how many invoices you
create for a customer, the name and address information is recorded only once and
is always current.
FileMaker concepts
Before you sit down to try out FileMaker Pro, understanding a few key concepts and
features is important. Although all database programs have much in common with
each other (as we explain earlier in this chapter), FileMaker Pro has distinct ways
of doing things that clearly distinguish it from other programs. (These differences
explain — at least partially — why FileMaker Pro has long been the database pro-
gram of choice for Macintosh users and is making great strides in the Windows
world.) In the remainder of this chapter, we introduce you to these key concepts
and explain how you can use FileMaker Pro to tackle many database needs, both in
the business and home arenas.
Understanding layouts
Much of the power of FileMaker Pro comes from its layout feature. A layout is an
arrangement of a set of database fields. Every layout is a view or window into the
contents of a database, and different layouts present different views (frequently
using different groups of fields). You can create separate layouts for doing data
entry, generating reports (onscreen or printed), and printing labels or envelopes.
And you can have as many layouts for each database as you need.
FileMaker Pro 8 introduces tabbed layouts that allow you to partition your layouts,
whether to eliminate scrolling or because previous input makes a subset of the
fields unnecessary. (For example, in a movie collection, you might want to display
different fields for videotapes than you display for DVDs.) We demonstrate the use
of tabbed layouts in Chapter 4.
Whenever you create a new database and define its fields, FileMaker Pro automati-
cally generates a layout that is a standard arrangement of all the fields that you
have defined (see Figure 1-3). If a quick-and-dirty database is all you need, you can
use this standard layout to start entering data immediately.
New
Feature
Note
06_082771_ch01.qxp 8/25/06 3:23 PM Page 11