
 |
|
May 13, 2013
David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church
May 10, 2013
Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be
May 8, 2013
Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas
Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate
Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility
May 6, 2013
May 3, 2013
Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine
April 29, 2013
Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust
Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?
Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA
April 26, 2013
Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty
April 24, 2013
Morgan Housel Admit it: No one has any idea what's going on
April 22, 2013
US man departing country arrested on terror charges
Barbara Williams: An unorthodox but growing treatment in a 9-year-old's battle against cancer
April 19, 2013
Caroline B. Glick: Why Obama's visit to Israel had no impact on public opinion or government policy
Morgan Housel: Gold collapse: The start of something big?
Pete Spotts: Livable super-Earths? Two candidates among Kepler's latest finds
April 17, 2013
Shira Rubin: Too much of a good thing? 'Palestinians' realize downside of foreign aid boom
Morgan Housel: BAD NEWS: EVERYONE IS RIGHT!
April 15, 2013
Kristen Chick: Egyptian Christians respond with harsh words to attack -- rocks, Molotov cocktails, and gunfire -- against main cathedral
Marcy Darnovsky and Karuna Jaggar: High Court to decide if you should own your DNA
Howard LaFranchi: US bracing for more Russian blowback after taking action against 18 more human rights violators
April 12, 2013
Mark Clayton: New cybersecurity bill: Privacy threat or crucial band-aid?
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jackie Robinson's Friend, Hank Greenberg; CNN's Jake Tapper; Texas County in the News is named for 19thC. Jewish soldier and Congressman
The Kosher Gourmet by Susan Russo: FRUITY QUINOA STUFFED PEPPERS: A flavorful, colorful and edible vessel of delicately fluffy, mildly nutty filling combined with chewy apricots, tangy cherries, and crunchy pistachios
April 10, 2013
Peter Grier: North Korean missiles: Could US shoot them down?
Morgan Housel: Warning: Don't waste your capital being fooled by profit prophets
Donald Hensrud, M.D.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Take vitamin supplements with caution --- even approved, they may actually do damage
Eryn Brown: 74 DNA discoveries move cure closer for three cancers
April 8, 2013
Jonathan Tobin: What Part of No Preconditions Do American Jews Not Get?
Fred Weir: Is Putin finally trading his own party for a new power base?
|
| |
Jewish World Review
March 12, 2010
/ 27 Adar, 5770
New database version crosses platforms
By
Mark Kellner
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
If there's anything in computing that's the antithesis of "sexy," as in "attractive" or "exciting," it's probably the humble database. Sure, there are more than a few propeller-heads out there who are excited about what a database can do, but most of us are rather blasé about it. If we absolutely must use such an application, let it be over quickly and painlessly, kind of like sedation dentistry.
Well, all that changed yesterday, as FileMaker Inc., the Santa Clara, California-based unit of Apple Inc. launched the newest version of its flagship product, FileMaker Pro 11, details of which are at www.filemaker.com. This new version is quite something.
The flip side of nonchalance about databases is that sometimes, they're absolutely necessary. If you want to keep a catalog of your product line, a detailed file of your customers, a proper record of your home's contents, a database is going to be needed. Probably, you'll need to do more than one of these tasks to justify the $299 price tag this cross-platform product carries for either the Windows or Mac version.
FileMaker Pro is, as its name implies, a professional product. You get loads of help, however, in the form of 30 "built-in solutions," such as a model database for invoicing, which lets you integrate your customer file, inventory list and even a sales tax schedule spreadsheet to come up with a rather slick way of generating invoices. That may not sound like much until you sit down and try to design it all on your own. Having a "starter," which can be easily customized to fit your business and your needs, is a blessing.
Particularly appealing in this new release are the visual elements. The program looks and works very much like a Mac application, using a "quick find" feature similar to that found in Apple's iTunes software to search across a range of fields for the desired information. There's also expanded charting features that make it easier to analyze and report on the data you've collected. And, it's possible to customize reports so that the invoice you've created with the "starter solution" looks rather sharp.

Of course, there are also plenty of tools for those who've used FileMaker over the years and want to design their own databases. A number of federal agencies use FileMaker, along with outstanding nonprofits such as CURE International, a global medical charity which has outposts in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Ethiopia and elsewhere.
In the Washington area, there's the DC FileMaker User's Group (www.dcfilemaker.com), which meets at the firm's downtown offices as well as online.
All this means that someone using the program is far from alone: there are plenty of resources that'll make it easy to learn, set up and administer FileMaker Pro databases, which can come in handy since there are networkable versions that workgroups and departments will appreciate.
Another collaborative feature is a new "Snapshot Link," which allows you to flag a specific set of records at a point in time, preserving the same layout, view and sort order. Then, changes made to the file are automatically updated in the database. The firm says the "Snapshot Link file can be emailed to anyone who has FileMaker Pro 11 for easy collaboration."
What I appreciate most as you may surmise is the graphical approach FileMaker Pro takes. Once a database is set up, it can all look rather good visually, which makes it easier to work with the data at hand.
If you enjoy working with databases, FileMaker Pro will bring a smile to your face. If you grind your molars at the thought of such work, FileMaker Pro will unclench your jaw and give you an easy (and successful) way of making lighter work of a demanding task. It's a program I highly, and happily, recommend.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Mark Kellner has reported on technology for industry newspapers and magazines since 1983, and has been the computer columnist for The Washington Times since 1991.Comment by clicking here.
Archives
© 2009, News World Communications, Inc. Reprinted with permission of The Washington Times. Visit the paper at http://www.washingtontimes.com
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Christine Flowers
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
A. Barton Hinkle
Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ch. Krauthammer
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Greg Schwem
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Lenore Skenazy
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Lisa Benson
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
Matt Davies
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Walt Handelsman
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
David Horsey
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Jimmy Margulies
Jack Ohman
Michael Ramirez
Rob Rogers
Drew Sheneman
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Scott Stantis
Danna Summers
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters
Dan Wasserman

Tech Q&A
Mr. Know-It-All
Ask Doctor K
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|