Totally agree with you, Paul. I'm sorry to be a stick in the mud.
I would never go back to where I started with FM4, and I'm REALLY liking 11 a lot more lately. But it's not done.
In a glass-half-empty sort of way it's frustrating to see where FileMaker is NOT. Looking from that perspective can't help but skew one's thinking and reinforce the negative.
When you have to restart one of your several servers every few days because it just wants to take the afternoon off you get an attitude. (I have a client that has a boatload of SQL and FMP and the SQL guys just shake their heads and chuckle.)
When you have to manually update layout elements all over a large solution to reflect one tiny little change, you dream of better tools.
When your users are griping at you that the solution that was built to accommodate THEIR convoluted way of working is running so slowly they have to plan it around their lunch hours, you are stuck between a rock and a FileMaker. (Don't talk to me about bad design: it's been optimized by some FM gurus waaaay smarter than me.)
When you have to spend 30+ grand on a super fast server so your critical data can be backed up in a timely fashion throughout a high-data-volume day and not shut the place down every time you think you should grab a snapshot...
I know it's easy to be a grumbler. The goods really do outweigh the bads. That's why I'm still here. I KNOW we have it good.
That does not mean we cannot wish (and pray to the gods of Santa Clara) for something even better.
Or at least bug-fixes.
j.
On Jan 25, 2011, at 11:04 PM, [log in to unmask] wrote:
> Seriously? I'm of the exact opposite opinion, Jonathan. There have been some amazing features for developers since v6! Think of how much faster you can develop now than you could back then.
>
> 7 offered the ability to have multiple tables -- and external tables -- in one file which (along with the addition of script parameters) made scripting easier.
>
> 8 gave us tabs, which totally reduced the number of layouts needed -- and the time to create them -- as well as the data viewer (which is HUGE for debugging and for writing new calculations). We also got custom menus, which helped to clean up our layouts even more.
>
> 9 gave us conditional formatting and auto-resizing, to make our layouts cooler and faster to create, as well as non-modal scripting windows (which is just the coolest!).
>
> 10 had the ability to insert objects into the tab order (huge time-saver), and script triggers, which gives us more control over the interface, and just about every other little thing.
>
> 11 has the Inspector (I like it!). It also has charts, portal filters and quickfinds: things that we've been creating for years, but are now native.
>
> When clients ask me if they should upgrade, I always tell them about the cool new stuff I can offer them. But the biggest thing the most recent versions have to offer is that the clients won't have to pay for so many hours to get things done.
>
> Paul
>
>
>
> --
> Paul Spafford
> FileMaker Database Superhero,
> Spafford Data Solutions
>
> Tel: 613 838 9956
> www.paulspafford.com
> www.ottawafilemakerdeveloper.com
> www.fmlayoutmode.com
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Jan 25, 2011, at 6:48 PM, Jonathan Fletcher wrote:
>
>> That's all you asked for?
>>
>> What about better management of memory variables?
>> What about a server console that doesn't lose its connection with the server frequently?
>> What about script control of layout objects?
>> What about scripting in a text editor?
>> What about script control of schema modifications?
>> What about syncing between an FMGo app and the server for intermittent connections?
>> What about better scalability of Server?
>>
>> I could go on and on...
>>
>> Honestly, FM12 will be loaded with surprises, and--if history is any guide--it'll be chock full of stuff for the users and not so much for us developers.
>>
>> j.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Jan 25, 2011, at 6:18 PM, Richard S. Russell wrote:
>>
>>> On 2011 Jan 25, at 15:57, Lee wrote:
>>>
>>>> Any idea when the next version will be released ?
>>>
>>>
>>> A good guess would be right ...
>>>
>>> ... abbbouuuuttt ...
>>>
>>> ... ouuuttttt ...
>>>
>>> NOW.
>>>
>>> No, FMI is famously tight-lipped about when they'll release upgrades, or what those upgrades will entail, but they've been pretty good about giving you something worth getting right around January or February of each year, and that's where I'd be putting my money this time, too.
>>>
>>> While we wait, we can always engage in the parlor game of speculating about what feature we'd most like to see. I've got 3 things I've dropped into the FMI suggestion box several times the last year, and I'm hoping we get them both:
>>> • Bring back the "Tools" floating toolbar (tho now it'd be called an "inspector").
>>> • Give us 1-click vertical-alignment buttons right next to the horizontal-alignment buttons. (Note that they've already done this for formatting container fields.)
>>> • Stop auto-scrolling the "Manage Scripts" window so the most recently worked-on script is always at the bottom.
>>>
>>> Then there's the one that I've been suggesting for most of the last decade, applying only to the Windows version:
>>> • Why CAN'T I drag something out of the printable area when "Show Page Margins" is turned on?
>>
>> --
>> Jonathan Fletcher
>> FileMaker 9 & 10 Certified Developer
>>
>> Fletcher Data Consulting
>> [log in to unmask]
>> http://www.fletcherdata.com
>> 502-509-7137
>>
>> Kentuckiana's FileMaker Users Group
>> Next meeting: February 17, 12:00 pm to 3:00-ish
>> Special Location!
>> Info & RSVP: http://fmpug.com/scheduleMeetings.php
>> Listserv signup: http://fmpug.com/mailman/listinfo/louisville_fmpug.com
>> Blog: http://www.kyfmp.com
--
Jonathan Fletcher
FileMaker 9 & 10 Certified Developer
Fletcher Data Consulting
[log in to unmask]
http://www.fletcherdata.com
502-509-7137
Kentuckiana's FileMaker Users Group
Next meeting: February 17, 12:00 pm to 3:00-ish
Special Location!
Info & RSVP: http://fmpug.com/scheduleMeetings.php
Listserv signup: http://fmpug.com/mailman/listinfo/louisville_fmpug.com
Blog: http://www.kyfmp.com
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