Excelisys, Inc., a leader in the FileMaker community since 2001, rose to new heights when they were hired by FileMaker, Inc. in 2004 to create a solution that would utilize the power of the new FileMaker Pro 7 format to afford FileMaker, Inc. customers and developers alike an inside look into how to build something sleek and solid for their clients and/or their own use. To fulfill FileMaker’s request, Excelisys created the FileMaker Business Tracker and the rest, as they say, is history. With over 50,000 downloads and a continued growing customer base of satisfied users, Excelisys recognized - “We have something here!”.

The FileMaker Business Tracker is still one of the hottest free templates available for download. Developers and end-users find the GUI and feature-set very attractive, as it offers their clients and employers an advantage in building intuitive custom solutions. http://www.excelisys.com/web/downloads/fmp-bus-tracker.php

Excelisys made much needed improvements to the FileMaker Business Tracker and released their own version in 2006 called the Excelisys Business Tracker and Business Tracker Pro; incorporating the use of the Web viewer engine, a better multi-user foundation, tweaked report interface, AP and AR modules, and several other foundational enhancements.

So for 2008, hold on to your keyboard cause Excelisys plans on giving something more by taking something away from the Excelisys Biz Tracker…

The run-down of new features added to the eX Biz Tracker:

* Solid multi-user foundation supports easy expansion
* Dynamically built navigation interface based on user privileges
* Home screen with quick view of invoices and products in need of re-ordering
* Familiar BACK and FWD controls behave just like in a web browser
* Advanced multi-sorting of lists and portals
* Dynamic re-sizing of layouts; objects stretch to fit
* Track customers, products and invoices with basic inventory control
* Unlimited locations, phone and email addresses per company/contact
* Contact import takes a flat file and parses it for proper normalization
* Automatic phone number formatting based on country
* Integrated web viewer displays published product info without leaving the solution
* Processed invoices are automatically locked down to prevent unauthorized editing
* Integration with NRGship software provides a complete fulfillment solution
* Track shipment status over the internet
* Tracks payments against invoices and automatically calculates profit
* Email PDF invoices directly to customers
* Extensive use of helpful Tooltips throughout
* Powerful report engine with report preview
* Demonstration data can easily be cleared out

What we are taking away…

THE LOCK-DOWN! The Excelisys Business Tracker is now Unlocked and absolutely FREE!

To find out more - go here: http://www.excelisys.com/web/exfiles/ex-biz-tracker.php

Excelisys Contact:
Christo
866-592-9235
(574) 273-5805
christo@excelisys.com

# # #

©2008 Excelisys, Inc., All rights reserved. FileMaker is a trademark of FileMaker, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.

Systems management software maker FiveRuns announced Monday that it had garnered $6.2 million in funding from Austin Ventures.

The company previously received a $2.95 million investment from Austin Ventures in October 2005, and FiveRuns executives say the additional $6.2 million validate the market interest in and significance of the Ruby on Rails platform on which the company built its product.

“All of the industry signposts are pointing to Rails becoming a significant framework for Web application development. FiveRuns is squarely positioned to augment this wave by delivering products in support of its growth,” said Olivier Thierry, president and CEO of FiveRuns, in a statement.

http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/10/29/ruby/index.php

FiveRuns was founded in 2005 and began its business using a software-as-a-service delivery model for its product designed to monitor systems running Apache, JBoss, Linux and more. The company over the past year updated its business model and launched in May a new software platform, Rails Management Suite.

Ruby on Rails is an open source Web application development framework on which FiveRuns built its management platform. The company has made available two applications from the suite: RM-Manage and RM-Install. The latter is a freeware application that helps customers develop, deploy and manage Rails applications. The company says RM-Install has been downloaded more than 1,000 times since its release in May.

The company also announced this week that Thierry, previously of Mission Critical Software and NetIQ, was recently appointed to his current position at FiveRuns.

Company to showcase new built-in FileMaker API for PHP for creating dynamic data-driven Web sites

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Oct. 8, 2007 – At this year’s Zend/PHP Conference and Expo, FileMaker, Inc. will showcase the new award-wining FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced, as well as FileMaker Server 9, Oct. 8-11 at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport.
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?FileMakerInc./9aa049513d/ba5cec212e/3090a217f1

Attendees will see the certified FileMaker API for PHP, which is now built into FileMaker Server 9
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?FileMakerInc./9aa049513d/ba5cec212e/0f25be029c
and FileMaker Server 9 Advanced
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?FileMakerInc./9aa049513d/ba5cec212e/9c71b24fac.
The API helps developers deploy dynamic data-driven Web sites from applications built with FileMaker, a development tool that combines graphical layouts, scripting, and business logic programming into one seamless package. FileMaker will also showcase how anyone can make live connections to MySQL data sources, create reports and analyze data in a fraction of the time required for traditional programming tools.

FileMaker will also demonstrate the new PHP Site Assistant, which enables users and Web developers to easily publish information to external Web sites, gather information from Web visitors and create new solutions combining a Web-based front-end with a rich, FileMaker Pro back-end.

New PHP Site Assistant Accelerates Web Site Development

A link in FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced provides a one-click launch of the PHP Site Assistant in FileMaker Server 9. The PHP Site Assistant and FileMaker API work together to put FileMaker data on Web sites quickly. The PHP Site Assistant asks step-by-step questions to produce PHP-based Web pages that address the most popular Web uses. These include data collection forms, list searching and database record editing. Users can then publish the pages as they are or edit them in Dreamweaver or another html editor.

*********
About FileMaker, Inc.
FileMaker, Inc., a Silver Sponsor of the Zend Conference, develops award-winning database software for Windows, Mac and the Web. FileMaker products combine legendary ease of use with the power to grow from individuals to large workgroups. Millions of people in business, education, non-profit and government organizations around the world rely on FileMaker software to manage, analyze and share information. FileMaker, Inc. is a subsidiary of Apple Inc.

Customer contact:
800-325-2747
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?FileMakerInc./9aa049513d/ba5cec212e/2176a24e27

©2007 FileMaker, Inc. All rights reserved. FileMaker is a trademark of FileMaker, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

The third Scandinavian FileMaker Devcon will take place 4-6th. of October in the heart of Copenhagen. Developers Northern Europe will meet and take part in an impressive conference… To accommodate attendants not speaking the Scandinavian languages the conference will be held in English.

http://www.fmpro.org/news/305895365650/

We Want 2 Remote FileMaker Experts Wanting to Work 30+ Hours a Week:

- Certified Lead FileMaker Pro Developers
- Junior FileMaker Pro Developers

EXCELISYS, Inc. (www.excelisys.com), a custom database solutions development and consulting group, is currently seeking talented and motivated individuals to join the Excelisys FileMaker production team. Our goals are to foster solid long-term technology partnerships with our customers, and provide a creative and positive environment for our team members that empowers each with the confidence to thrive and do his or her best.

You’ll be working side-by-side (either virtually or physically) with some of the best-of-the-best in the FileMaker development industry while honing your own skills and talent designing, developing, and managing a variety of custom FileMaker projects.

The benefits of being part of the Excelisys team are numerous:

- Work wherever you like – at home, at Starbucks – anywhere!
- Pick your own hours – bit of a night owl? No problem.
- Tap the knowledge pool of our talented and experienced team
- Learn while you work – think you’re hot now, just wait!
- In-house contests that award winners with full-paid trips to DevCon!
- Advance access to new technologies and product development
- 50% reimbursement of the FileMaker Certification Exam fee upon passing
- Better pay and incentives for Certified FileMaker Pro Developers
- We help you stay organized using our web-based project mgmt system
- A refreshing “culture” that stimulates growth and emphasizes individualism

————————————————————————————————————-

Here’s what some of our developers have to say about working with Excelisys:

“I used to spend a lot of my time looking for development work or chasing down clients who owed me money. In between, I’d squeeze in the time to do the actual work. Even though I charged a decent hourly rate, I was really making much less since I couldn’t work 40 hours a week, let alone 20. Excelisys has allowed me to focus on what I really love most: creating, designing and programming. I don’t have to wear all those other hats anymore; instead I have more time to work and earn a living, plus more leisure time to spend with my family!”

“Since joining Excelisys I’ve learned so much. I used to think I was a pretty good programmer; they must have thought so too since they
hired me. But now I’ve become so much more valuable! It’s not enough to know how to program, you’ve got to know how to get the customer excited about the work, show them your passion. Before, I used to try to impress them with some wicked code I wrote. But since it’s hard to see what’s under-the-hood, that wasn’t always enough. Being part of the Excelisys team has taught me not only how to be a better developer, but how to present my work with much higher value and keep the customer steadily satisfied and confident.”

“I’m proud to work with Excelisys. They’re not just another meat grinder looking for “code monkeys”. They are the real deal. They truly care about their customers, AND their developers!”

————————————————————————————————————-

The individuals we’re looking for can handle projects of all sizes and possess strong analytical and creative problem-solving skills. In addition to being well organized, efficient, and able to work with limited supervision, candidates must be reliable and possess strong communication skills.

These openings are for skilled and experienced FileMaker developers willing to commit to 30/hrs+ a week who can work well within a virtual office environment under minimal supervision as well as part of a team.

VERY IMPORTANT- Samples of your FileMaker work will be required and reviewed as part of the interview process.

We are looking for both junior and senior level developers…
PLEASE, FILEMAKER NOVICES NEED NOT APPLY!

Min. requirements for these 2 positions include:

- 4+ years experience developing with FileMaker Pro (2+ years with v7/8)
- Strong understanding of relational database design
- Working knowledge of complex calculations and conditional scripting
- A good eye for human interface design
- Experience with requirements gathering, cost estimating, and scope preparation for FileMaker projects
- Must be a team player
- Must have broadband (Cable/DSL) internet access or better
- Mac AND Windows workstations, or the ability to run Windows and OSX
- Working knowledge of OSX, Win XP, NT, 2000, 2003 and Vista environments a plus
- Hands-on experience working with FileMaker Pro Server & (Advanced) a plus
- Committed to making and meeting deadlines
- FileMaker certification preferred, but not required

Optional BONUS Skills:

Proficiency in Web programming languages such as HTML, Lasso, PHP, and XML as well as development experience with Servoy, .NET, SQL Server, MySQL, ODBC, JDBC, and Excel is a definite plus.

Responsibilities:

- Reports to Project Manager
- Works close and participates with Project Manager and Client from concept to completion
- Provides weekly build deliverables and progress reports
- Writing and debugging code for custom solutions

Compensation and perks:

- Hourly ($30-$60) plus bonuses and LG commissions (lead generation).
- Hourly rate determined by skill set, proficiency & certification status.
- Annual bonus plans based on performance

To apply for a position, send your resume in PDF format to:

< employment@excelisys.com >

We review all employment submissions.

Adds Web integration and enhanced customization; available with free trial of FileMaker Pro 9

SANTA CLARA, CA – September 12, 2007 – FileMaker, Inc. announced today the immediate availability of its upgraded Business Productivity Kit (download it now at http://cts.vresp.com/c/?FileMakerInc./ed02597e63/3441985089/abab2f5ae6), which is designed to help small businesses be instantly productive and grow as the business grows. Improvements to the Business Productivity Kit include integration with live Web data with the FileMaker Web Viewer, improved layout design and increased customization.

Small businesses can use the Business Productivity Kit immediately for tracking customer and vendor contacts, sales, product information, invoicing, shipping and other key business data – all in one integrated database solution. The kit also provides a “How to Build This Solution Yourself” learning guide complete with sample graphics to assist users in customizing their database.

“The FileMaker Business Productivity Kit provides a fast-track for getting productive in just minutes using FileMaker Pro 9 and has been tremendously popular with small business users since its introduction in 2005,” said Ryan Rosenberg, vice president, marketing and services, FileMaker, Inc. “With our upgraded kit, users can now deploy our latest Web and customization tools to intelligently, quickly and easily manage all the data essential to small business success.”

Using FileMaker’s Business Productivity Kit, small businesses can:

- Manage contacts and companies
- Organize products and inventory
- Process sales orders
- Track projects and productions
- Send targeted mailings to customers
- Produce invoices, reports and mailing labels

The Business Productivity Kit is an integrated set of business solutions (it manages contacts, e-mail, inventory, projects and sales orders) with an easy-to-use Main Menu. Each of the five solutions “talks effectively” to the other. The kit eliminates the duplication of tables and fields normally associated with having multiple files and is visually enhanced and differentiated from the built-in FileMaker Pro 9 Starter Solutions.

Takes Advantage of New FileMaker Pro 9

The Business Productivity Kit incorporates groundbreaking Web and ease-of-use features specific to FileMaker Pro 9 to help users connect with live Web data, work faster and customize with ease. With the FileMaker Web Viewer, users can now connect directly to a contact’s Web site with a single click and view a map to the customer’s location right on the contact record. The new Conditional Formatting feature in the inventory module enables users to receive a visual alert regarding important inventory details. And using Auto Resizing, all forms will automatically adjust as your window size changes.

FileMaker Pro 9 runs on both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X platforms and its support for nearly all major office applications, such as spreadsheets, means that existing data can be easily imported to the Business Productivity Kit. Less technically adept users can also customize the solution further, for instance by adding specific company information or custom navigation buttons. Because it is based on FileMaker Pro 9, the Business Productivity Kit can also be shared over the Web or over company networks.

How to download the Business Productivity Kit and the free 30-day trial of FileMaker Pro 9

The kit requires the new FileMaker Pro 9 database software and is available at no cost when you download a free 30-day trial of FileMaker Pro 9 at: http://cts.vresp.com/c/?FileMakerInc./ed02597e63/3441985089/004fc66fb3.

The news release is available at http://www.mysql.com/news-and-events/press-release/release_2007_04.html.

FileMaker, Inc. posted a small site providing further details and a form for those interested in receiving trial code when it becomes available.

Regardless of what DB platform you are using, I always recommend making this data conversion DB a SEPARATE DB from that in which your main solution is. This way no matter what happens to this DB (I have trashed these things many times) it will not effect your main solution DB. Also make sure to make a backup of your data conversion DB, so that if you have to trash it, you can just copy the backup and have a fresh empty DB to try again.

Now you need to create a temp table within your data conversion DB that will store the raw data imported from the source files. Once created import the source data into this temp table. Now you do not need to deal with the source data and you are not having to repeatedly import, or even worse mess around with the source data.

I usually backup again at this point as well, just to save me the trouble of having to import from source again.

Now go ahead and use the scripting and other tools at your disposal to massage the data from the temp table into the data conversion table, cleanup all the bad characters, make the formatting the same, normalize the data, etc. When normalizing the data, make sure that you properly setup the IDs so that they are compatible with your final solution.

Once you have gone through all of this and reviewed the data in your conversion tables and are satisfied with the results, you can import from the data conversion table into your main solution (you backed up your main solution correct?) and then just review to make sure that everything came over correctly.

+++

This was written by Kurt Knippel, vice-president of operations for Excelisys, Inc and host of Database-Resources.com. This was original posted on FMForums.com. It is about data conversion in FileMaker Pro, but the concepts can be applied to just about any database, be it in MySQL, Oracle or MS SQLServer. Kurt is a FileMaker 7 & 8 Certified Developer, a project manager for Excelisys, Inc and has been working and developing in FileMaker Pro since 1994 (FileMaker Pro 2.1).

I have written this as part of my standard setup for all FileMaker Pro database solutions that I develop, however the concepts are valid for any kind of database solution no matter what development environment or platform you choose. Obviously the functions listed are specific to FileMaker Pro, and should be substituted for the appropriate functionality in your development tool.

Here is a listing of the standard fields that I think all databases should have.

Serial Number: This is the classic auto-entered sequential Serial Number. This is simply so useful in a number of different situation that no database should be without it.
Creation Date
Creation AccountName
Modification Date
Modification AccountName: All of the above are part of the audit logging of the database record and provide the developer with lots of good information.

There is one field that I left out of the above list. The PRIMARY ID. What is a primaryID and why is it useful? Why not just use the Serial Number from the above list.

In what ways can a primaryID be implemented? What is my preferred method?

Since I am continually explaining this concept, I thought that I might post a FAQ on how to create a unique, non-sequential, non-random automatically entered record ID for you to use as the Primary key in your files for a relational database system.

I give all of my files a PrimaryID_key, which is setup as part of an auto-entered calculation into a text field. The calculation is basically the concatenation of an internal RecordID, plus the current Date and the current Time. In general it is implemented as follows:

Right( “000000″ & Status(CurrentRecordID), 6 ) & “-” &
Right( “000000″ & Status(CurrentTime), 6 ) & “-” &
Right( “000000″ & Status(CurrentDate), 6 )

This produces a result something like this: 00080-105221-032207

Why is the a PrimaryID a TEXT (or STRING) type field? Well there are several reasons: there is virtually nothing that you cannot do with a text field; actual text characters as well as numbers and symbols can be put into a text field and are indexed; leading and trailing zeros are preserved correctly. These are my main reasons for doing this.

Additional Details

The following details are all specific to the implementation of this function in FileMaker Pro, specifically version 8.0 and above.

Some changes to the functions were made in FileMaker v8 to the behavior of auto-entered calculation. They also introduced the Evaluate function, which adds alot of power to this. So I reformatted the calc a bit and made it a custom function called PrimaryID.

Let (
[
recID = Right( “00000″ & Get(RecordID); 6 );
timeCode =Right( “00000″ & Hour ( Get ( CurrentTime ) ) & Minute ( Get ( CurrentTime ) ) & Seconds ( Get ( CurrentTime ) ); 6 );
dateCode = Right( “00000″ & Month ( Get ( CurrentDate ) ) & Day ( Get ( CurrentDate ) ) & Right ( Year ( Get ( CurrentDate ) ); 2 ); 6 )
];
recID &
timeCode &
dateCode
)

In either of the above cases this generates a value something like:
7865040474730452

This is now a variable length ID that allows something like 100s of trillions of different unique values. You are unlikely to ever run out. But should you need more Filemaker Pro v8 will index a line up to 60 characters in length. So you simply need to add more items into the evaluation, I would suggest possibly adding a few random numbers in here.

NOTE: The evaluate function only works with numerical values, so stick with numbers only.

A couple of the great things about this method: it is not any more difficult to implement than a simple sequential serial number, but has none of the limitations or flaws; it can be used in as many files as you would like and all will get unique IDs; it can be used in synchronized solutions and all records will get a unique ID; the IDs cannot be accidentally replicated.

THE FLAW (and its solution)

The only real flaw in this system (and in ALL systems that use IDs) is Filemaker’s Duplicate function. Since this creates an EXACT duplicate of the entire record, including all fields, you will end up with duplicate IDs. This is easy to deal with as you should simply not allow users to use the Records menu and give them buttons and scripts to control the duplication of records. (I have actually never had this problem occur with users, only when developing with a team and having other developers use the Duplicate step without updating the ID.)

However just because this is a flaw, does not mean that I do not have an answer to it and it is a simple modification to the calculation. This assumes that you already have an automatically entered serial or record number (separate from any internal database engine recordID).

This is where the Evaluate function comes in so handy. Remember to UNCHECK the box called “Do not replace existing value of field (if any)” in your auto-entered calculation setup. We want this to replace the value, but we will control when by the Evaluate function. Setup your auto-entered calculation as follows:

Evaluate ( PrimaryID; zSerialNumber )

PrimaryID is the name of my custom function described above, and the zSerialNumber is a simple sequential serial number that is the trigger for the reevaluation. This will auto-enter every time the serial number changes, which should only happen on New Record creation or when a record is Duplicated.

+++

This was written by Kurt Knippel, vice-president of operations for Excelisys, Inc and host of Database-Resources.com. This was original posted on FMForums.com. It is about PrimaryIDs in FileMaker, but the concepts can be applied to just about any database, be it in MySQL, Oracle or MS SQLServer. Kurt is a FileMaker 7 & 8 Certified Developer, a project manager for Excelisys, Inc and has been working and developing in FileMaker Pro since 1994 (FileMaker Pro 2.1).