Customer Reviews

FileMaker 8 @work: Projects and Techniques to Get the Job Done

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This was either the result of an overzealous (non-programmer) editor or a poorly planned outline - but there is more material missing from this book than actually in it. Examples are given in one chapter with a statement that it is relating to something in another chapter, but it isn't there; projects are laid out without real explanation of the nuts and bolts of what you are doing, and the real power of Filemaker (calculations and scripts) are merely glossed over on a "need to know" basis. I am certainly left with more questions that answers.

The book did help me get some basic ideas for how to begin a project that related to one of the author's, but didn't really explain the logic behind the design in a way that I could translate that information to other projects.

So I am back at Amazon, buying another book which, hopefully, will take me a bit further in what I need.

This is not a book for a novice to FileMaker Pro! It moves way too quickly into advanced stuff. If you do not already know how to search, sort, create form, table and columnar view layouts then do not come to this book for help.

If you already know all the basics, cited above, and know how to create additional tables in a file then this book will walk you through setting up relationships and making productive use of them - sort of.

There is not enough stuff here for the pure beginner to get them up to speed so they can do the relational stuff, scripting, etc with any sense of confidence. For an experience FileMaker Pro user the book is a waste because you will learn very little here that is new.

If you are an Access developer, etc and already understand the world of relational databases then this will give you a quick primer in how to do similar things with FileMaker Pro.

The concept for this series of books is brilliant; however, the execution of the concept in this book sucks!

Neither the Publisher or Author provide the advertised download files. Have sent over 6 e-mails asking for the location with no response. The support that is touted by the book does not exist. Read it at the bookstore but don't buy!

Like some of the other reviewers have stated, the book suffers from poor editing and is definitely not user-friendly if you are new to FileMaker 8 - as a reasonably experienced FM6 user I struggled with get some of the examples working when going through it. The author also keeps assuming that you are using Filemaker Advanced when you are setting up the databases which can add to the confusion.

To hard for new users, too basic for advanced users and just plain confusing for those in the middle.

I am not a computer professional, but I had done some work with Filemaker Pro quite a few years ago and badly needed to update a database I had designed. I purchased this book to get up to speed with the changes in the last few upgrades of Filemaker. I spent a lot of time working through the examples in the book. It took a lot of work and thought to do this, but by the end, I had really learned a lot. The author does not do a lot of handholding in the book, but when I got completely stuck on one project, which was due to a simple misunderstanding on my part, the author responded quickly to my e-mails and was able to move me along. If there had been more "handholding" I probably could have completed the book faster, but would not have grasped the underlying concepts as well. I was immediately able to utilized the techniques I learned from the book, in the project I was attempting to upgrade.

As a previous reviewer noted, this is not aimed at the novice.

This book can be valuable for an experienced programmer to quickly get up to speed with FileMaker. It assumes some basic knowledge of database and programming concepts. The author bypasses all the handholding and gets right down to business. I solved a sticky problem with many-to-many relationships by reading one chapter. Thanks to the author for taking a pragmatic and professional approach to the subject.

Filemaker 8 @Work is a great way to learn Filemaker. The test files are available on the author's website which is an additional benefit. When I placed the order I selected the digital version as well as paper for a few dollars more. By doing so I made this available on-line through Amazon's website so the book is always a click away even when I travel. This is a great Filemaker reference book, recommended to me by the genius who creates and maintains our company database. He has dozens of Filemaker books but gave this one his highest recommendation. I have bought additional copies for members of my staff.