Innovative new FileMaker 9 PHP Site Assistant enables non-programmers to create PHP-driven websites
SANTA CLARA, CA – July 10, 2007 – FileMaker today announced the immediate availability of FileMaker Pro 9, (http://www.filemaker.com/fm9_announce_pr) a major new version of the most award-winning desktop database for Windows and Mac OS.
The new FileMaker 9 product line, which the company called its most dramatic new offering in years with over 30 ease-of-use breakthroughs, is available today, and includes FileMaker Pro 9, FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced, FileMaker Server 9 and FileMaker Server 9 Advanced.
FileMaker Pro 9 includes many new features, for end users and developers, to simplify creating, automating, sharing and reporting from databases, including a new Quick Start screen for new users to be quickly productive; Conditional Formatting, which highlights data based on parameters the user sets; and the ability to email a link to other FileMaker users, which they can click to instantly access your database.
The new version also offers breakthrough easy-to-use tools so FileMaker users and workgroups easily can connect to the world of company and Web data residing in external SQL data sources: MySQL, Oracle SQL and Microsoft SQL Server.
The new Server 9 products, which enable workgroups to share databases over the network and the Web, come with a completely modernized and streamlined Admin Console, so FileMaker Pro users can easily set up and administer Server software.
“FileMaker is the acknowledged leader in easy-to-use database software which empowers workgroups,” said Dominique Goupil, president of FileMaker. “With FileMaker 9 we go further. We make it easier than ever for developers and users to manage information in amazingly productive and creative ways. For example, our goal is to make FileMaker Server 9 so easy that FileMaker Pro customers can install it in 20 minutes or less, and quickly share database solutions.
”FileMaker 9 is perfect for innovative organizations who realize the benefits of empowered self-service workgroups,” Goupil said.
Early Evaluator Customers and Developers Laud New FileMaker Pro 9
“The best part about FileMaker Pro 9 is that we can now develop new layouts and interfaces in the fast, easy-to-use FileMaker environment that we are completely comfortable with, without knowing a lick of SQL, and we will be able to integrate our data with other Oracle based products,” said Lee Snover, president, Technologies Plus, Inc (www.tplus.com), a FileMaker developer based in Bath, Pennsylvania.
Paul de Halle, development director at Linear Blue, (www.linearblue.com) a FileMaker developer in London, U.K., comments: “The new functionalities in FileMaker 9 will allow us to integrate the database software with live data from other technology such as MySQL, Oracle and SQL Server, which will prove to be a huge benefit to the businesses we work with. Features such as the new Quick Start Screen will enable us to improve the user experience making favorite databases easier and quicker to access. In addition to all this, the back-end technology has been simplified and will ultimately enable us to build and customize solutions even quicker for customers.”
“FileMaker 9 will make both our client’s data environment more satisfying for them to use and our development timeframes shorter,” predicted Frank Heinrichs President/Owner/Chief Technical Officer of Sound Advice (http://www.soundadvice.net/), an Apple Value Added Retailer and Small Office/Home Office automation specialist in Costa Mesa, CA. “The ease of accessing data from the Internet and being able to incorporate that information inside the database are phenomenal. We have a client who will require the new Conditional Formatting feature for tracking job status with his shop, which will allow us to meet his requirements without any workarounds.”
“FileMaker Pro 9 is another successful revision of a great product,” said Todd Marchal, Applications Developer, Plastic Technologies, Inc. (http://www.plastictechnologies.com), Holland, Ohio. “The new features build upon a solid foundation of performance and ease of use. FileMaker Pro 9’s External SQL data connectivity will enable greater interoperability with other software solutions. It is remarkably easy to use and provides a means for utilizing the strengths of FileMaker with the strengths of other data sources.”
Connect to the world of data in External SQL Data Sources
Using the new one-way or two-way live connectivity to popular SQL sources, FileMaker Pro 9 users within any business or organization can safely and securely create custom reports, add calculations and other fields, and even build relationships with existing FileMaker data – just using the easy-to-use tools of FileMaker Pro.
“Linking FileMaker Pro 9 solutions to the open source strengths of MySQL will greatly empower the developer and user communities of both product lines,” said Zack Urlocker, MySQL AB’s executive vice president of products.
With the new PHP features of FileMaker Server and FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced both users and Web developers can publish information to external websites, gather information from Web visitors, and create new solutions combining a Web-based front-end with a rich, FileMaker Pro back-end.
Mac users of the new FileMaker products can connect to SQL sources with the Actual ODBC Pack version 2.7, now available from Actual Technologies LLC (http://www.actualtechnologies.com).
New Data Integration and Easier Database Design Features in FileMaker Pro 9
FileMaker Pro 9 (http://www.filemaker.com/fm9_announce_pr) features many new capabilities to make databases more “connected” for users, as well as a suite of advanced but easy-to-use development and customization tools for developers. New features include:
• Connecting to a world of data, by easily creating links and integrating live MS SQL server, Oracle and MySQL data as if it were FileMaker-based data.
• Ease of use breakthroughs, including the FileMaker Quick Start Screen, which remembers your favorites and gives you access to the new videos in the FileMaker Learning Center, Send Link Database Sharing, a one-click feature that sends an email with a hyperlink so you share a database with other FileMaker Pro users, and Append to PDF, which allows users to consolidate multiple data reports into a single PDF file.
• More productive database design, including script grouping and editing tools, conditional formatting, auto-resize, enhanced layout objects, enhanced tab control and an improved Web Viewer.
Advanced Database Design Even Easier with FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced
New features in FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced ( http://filemaker.com//fm9_announce_pr) that are focused on giving users faster and easier ways to create advanced and customized database solutions include:
• Enhanced Database Design Report and File Maintenance tools, making it even easier to modify and maintain databases.
• Improved Script Debugger and Data Viewer, for identifying and correcting script errors earlier in the design process.
• PHP Site Assistant Link, providing a one-click launch of the PHP Site Assistant included in FileMaker Server 9.
FileMaker Server 9 Products Feature Most Significant Upgrade in its History
FileMaker Server 9 and FileMaker Server 9 Advanced feature one-click integration with the Web using PHP, a simple 20-minute or less install time for basic installations, plus the most significant redesign of the server interface ever. With FileMaker Server 9, users can generate a fully working PHP website using FileMaker data without writing code in just minutes.
Other major new features include PHP Custom Web Publishing for creating dynamic data-driven websites, shared access to live data from external SQL sources, and a web-delivered server console.
Pricing and Availability
All FileMaker 9 products are immediately available. New users may purchase FileMaker Pro 9 for $299 (U.S. suggested list price) and FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced for $499 (U.S. suggested list price). Existing users of FileMaker Pro 7, 8 and 8.5 may upgrade to FileMaker Pro 9 for $179 (U.S. suggested list price). Existing users of FileMaker Developer 7, FileMaker Pro 8 Advanced and 8.5 Advanced, and FileMaker Pro 7, 8, 8.5 and 9 may upgrade to FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced for $299 (U.S. suggested list price).
FileMaker Server 9 is $999 (U.S. suggested list price) and FileMaker Server 9 Advanced is $2,499 (U.S. suggested list price). Existing users of FileMaker Server 7 and 8 may upgrade to FileMaker Server 9 for $599 (U.S. suggested list price). Existing users of FileMaker Server 7 Advanced and 8 Advanced may upgrade to FileMaker Server 9 Advanced for $1,499 (U.S. suggested list price). FileMaker offers license discounts for volume purchasers as well as for education and non-profit organizations.
Special FileMaker Pro 9 Limited Time Offers
Two limited-time offers mark the launch of the new products:
Buy FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced and get a free 1-year FileMaker Technical Network membership, valued at $99. Available through Sept. 21, 2007 (more details at www.filemaker.com/technet_pr) .
The FileMaker 9 VLA Workgroup Bundle (10 FileMaker Pro 9 licenses, one FileMaker Server 9 license and one FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced license) lets corporate, education and government customers save more than $750 off regular prices, and is available through Sept. 28, 2007 (more details at www.filemaker.com/bundle_pr).
About FileMaker, Inc.
FileMaker 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.
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