Soliant Consulting : Clients - Success Story

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Deliver multi-language and dual-platform installers.

Soliant's work didn't end with FileMaker Pro: installers support multiple languages on both Mac OS X and Windows XP and perform data migration routines for users when upgrading.

The installers built for the FileMaker Applications have a couple of special features. First, custom work was done to make the installer experience the same on Mac and Windows. The default language selector for the Mac version of the installer program is not the same as that on Windows. Custom code was used to make them as close as possible. Custom code was also used for other aspects of the Mac installer, like defaulting to the current user's Documents folder, but allowing them to change install locations. Second, the language strings provided by the installer vendor went through vigorous QA to ensure the quality and consistency of the user experience.

The FileMaker Application installers are also integrated with the FileMaker files in such a way as to support 'upgrade installs.' When the user reinstalls a FileMaker Application of the same major release into the same location, existing data from the previous install is migrated to the new install, with no user intervention. A final interesting point about the installers is that at build time, they run off of the exact same source files, a great help with the demanding build cycles of a shrink-wrapped product. This feature was accomplished by installing Virtual PC onto the build machine (a Mac) and sharing the drive that stores the build files, in this way it is possible to release a build for both platforms in a matter of minutes.

Keep costs down by leveraging the common elements in all FileMaker Applications.

The development team early on created a "FileMaker Applications Shell" and maintained its development-base in parallel with each shipping application. The shell provides the team the capability of having a large part of the application architecture already complete before embarking on a new project. This shell includes interface objects, language file architecture, security, and other elements common to all FileMaker Applications. Soliant estimates that at least 35% of FileMaker Recruiter was already finished on the day the project began.

The keys to reuse of application shells with FileMaker, and perhaps any other platform, are carefully thought out architecture, thorough documentation, and proper use of standards and abstraction. To the novice programmer, many routines in the FileMaker Application may seem complex, or 'over-engineered'; however, careful consideration of the overall goals of the suite of products and the individual features of each application are the driving force in the core methods and techniques.

The suite of FileMaker Applications serves as an example of what's possible with FileMaker Pro. One of their core strengths is their extensible platform and unlocked status: professional developers are able to modify and extend the applications to suit the specific needs of organizations throughout the world.

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FileMaker Recruiter 2.0

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