Two companies have released new FileMaker Pro plug-ins this week at the FileMaker Pro Developer Conference in Orlando, FL.
Comm-Unity Networking Systems has released POP3it 3.0 (which lets users receive e-mail directly into FileMaker without the aid of any helper applications) for FileMaker Pro 4.x and 5.x for Mac OS 9, Mac OS X and Windows. To use it, all you will need is an e-mail account, a POP3 server, and FileMaker Pro 4.x or 5.x.
You can integrate POP3it into your existing solutions. However, a basic knowledge of FileMaker scripting is needed; the documentation for POP3it covers how to use the POP3it plug-in. Besides Mac OS X support, POP3it 3.0 adds support for downloading Japanese and Central and Eastern European characters into your localized databases. There’s also a new status window to show you what POP3it is doing at all times. The new AutoCheckEmail function lets you check e-mail at regular intervals. And POPit 3.0 provides better multi-tasking support on the Mac, useful for running FileMaker Pro and your mail server on the same machine.
A fully functional 30-day demonstration version of POP3it, along with the POP3it Example Database and full documentation, is available from the Comm-Unity Networking Systems Web site. If you bought POP3it after May 1, you can upgrade for free. If you purchased it before May 1, you can upgrade to POP3it 3.0 for US$9 for a single user licenses or $36 for a site license.
A new single user license is $65 and a new site license is $250. A developer’s license (which allows you to redistribute POP3it, royalty free, with any one solution you make) is $780. A single educational/non-profit license is $45.
Meanwhile, Waves in Motion, developer of a FileMaker solutions and plug-ins, has released an update of one of its application, as well as the beta of a new utility.
With Visualizer 1.0, FileMaker Pro databases become instant visual entity relationship (ER) diagrams, according to Vincenzo Menanno, President of Waves in Motion.
With Visualizer 1.0, your databases become instant “data-maps,” allowing users to see and identify entity relationships, Menanno said. Control what fields are displayed, pick your custom colors and see a visual map of your selected files and relationships, all with the click of a button, he added.
Features include instant ER diagrams; the ability to control how fields are displayed, including table view, show key fields and show all fields; custom color-coding; the capability to animate relationships associated with a selected entity; layout and alignment capabilities; and an assortment of print options. Visualizer currently supports Mac 8.6 or higher, including Mac OS X.
Visualizer works with Analyzer 3.0 (which requires FileMaker Developer 5.5) and ships with a copy of Analyzer Lite. For complete product information or to download a demo copy, visit the Waves in Motion Web site.
This week Waves in Motion is also showcasing Analyzer 3.0 beta, a new comprehensive system for documenting and debugging FileMaker Pro databases, at the FileMaker Developer’s Conference.
Completely rewritten to take advantage of FileMaker’s new database design report, Analyzer 3.0 lets developers find and cross-reference any element in their database and works with Mac OS 8.6 or later, as well as Mac OS X.
Analyzer pinpoints common database problems with its automatic problem detection system with red dot alerts showing missing items, broken relationships, broken value lists, missing scripts, and more, Menanno said. The product provides all dependencies for fields, layouts and buttons on layouts, relationships, scripts and script steps, value lists and passwords. With expanded hotlinking capabilities, users can jump to information about a referenced item with a single click and work across databases in both directions.
Analyzer 3.0 comes with multiple solutions and multiple analysis support. It quickly documents all your solutions, even multiple times, and stores information in one convenient place. Add comments and notes to any element in the database and create difference reports to track changes over time. Users can also generate summarized or detailed reports for printing or exporting in HTML and XML for online documentation.
“Analyzer 3.0 is completely new,” said Geoff Coffey, chief developer for Waves in Motion. “The only thing we haven’t changed is the name.”
The beta version can be downloaded from the Waves in Motion Web site. The final version will ship this fall.