ISO FileMaker Magazine: FileMaker Video Tutorials, Templates, Help & More

[General]...by Matt Petrowsky

The Future of ISO & FM Support

Many of you reading this article are probably charter subscribers to ISO. In fact, I would go so far as to say that all of you reading this issue are charter subscribers. ISO has yet to hit the one year mark, but it's coming soon. I wanted to write a short article about what will be happening with ISO in the near future. I would also like to make a couple of requests.

Throughout creating, updating and supporting ISO I have learned MANY valuable tips and tricks as well as other valuable information that deals with FileMaker Pro. I am proud to be able to pass on these tips and tricks as well as a few of my own. It has been indicated to me, by the many letters that you the readers send in, that ISO is a valuable source for FileMaker information. However, I have come into a situation that dictates that ISO now make a transition into a monthly publication. This added time allows me to accumulate more worth-while information and also the time needed to research more of the FM possibilities. Since ISO is a volunteer publication it is under the whims of consequence and other factors. ISO is a true love and I have a stronger desire to keep it open and free to all who desire the information it has to offer.

I have many changes that will be made to the upcoming ISO Browser 3.0. As well as more direct input into the ISO Web site. It has long been known that information related to FileMaker and it's little tricks and tips can be difficult to find, and there is no all-in-one source for the information. True, there are books and other sources, but there is no single source for A LOT of good information. Even ISO does not currently solve this problem. It has been a goal of mine to accumulate this information and pool it into one resource that is known for that information. I have, unfortunately, found this to be a difficult thing to do when the whole project is based on voluntary efforts. Will I be asking for money directly in this letter? No, but I will be making an open invitation for donations to the ISO publication. While I have, for the last four months, been trying to work out some sort of arrangement of support from Claris, I have found that corporations are slow to move and there are some things that just can't happen overnight. All of the advertisements that you see in ISO are of parties that I have some relation to and they do not pay, either because they cannot afford to or I told them not too. I sought after advertisers that would have products that are useful to FM users. These include credit card authorization software and bar code scanners that can be used with FileMaker. To date none of them have gotten back either. I have treated the advertiser section as one being open to the readers to promote the things that they have to offer.

The decision that I came to was that I would write this letter at the time that I would be starting the transition from a 2.0 ISO Browser and biweekly publication to a 3.0 ISO Browser and monthly publication. I foresaw many advantages to the monthly route and would like to create an intermediate solution for the "URGENT" information. I will be creating a simple single template called "ISO Urgent Update". I can use this file to send out urgent information to readers. While there is actually no information that is of an urgent nature, it allows me the flexibility of sending out information that just can't wait until the next monthly issue. This solution was satisfactory to my own personal goals in concern to ISO.

While working on ISO there have been a few things that I have learned. (yes, here it comes...) One, I have learned that information wants to be free. This is a theory that I have long subscribed to. I know from experience that if you share the information that you have then someone else will share the information that they have. You are, both, then wiser for the better. However, at the same time I have learned that information has a price. Creating this publication is a love for me and I do it willingly. I have, however, learned that it usually amounts to more time than I anticipate. So therefore because of this factor I have decided to appeal to those of you that may have, at one time, volunteered to support ISO. I am not writing this open letter as a tool to get you to join in a pity party for the editor of ISO. There are many people that I know that would start a publication like this and then because of pride, feel ashamed to appeal to the readers. Realizing that many of you enjoy and receive value out of ISO, I decided against my own pride.

Your support can come in any shape or form. While financial help does help me personally to produce ISO (by allowing me to reduce my paying work hours) there are other methods that you can contribute if a financial route is not one that you can take. Any article about your experiences with FileMaker Pro is of interest to other readers. Human interest stories help us to learn from other people's mistakes or share in the glory that they receive after accomplishing a task with FileMaker. Technical articles are always welcomed by seasoned developers. There are beginning readers that may be able to offer input as to what parts they don't understand the most. There are many things that are of benefit to many of the readers of ISO. This publication is not geared to be a bland technical aid to the user manual of FileMaker Pro. I would like to see it become a part of an experience with a product that allows us to control more aspects of our lives - and free up some time in other areas.

At the end of this article I will be attaching my address. Many of you have already sent in signs of your appreciation via email. I am not adding my address because I am expecting those appreciations in a hard copy format. Please continue to send in the thank you's and other information like the suggestions and comments. I am leaving my address for those of you who have made the offer previously or would like to privately help out with ISO in a financial manner. I am striving to continue ISO as a free publication to those that could not afford a monthly subscription or would not justify the price and loose that one valuable tip that could make their database efforts so much easier.

Having said that, I would like to close by saying a very BIG thank you for those of you who have written in. While I don't publish these appreciative letters in every issue it is necessary that you know they exist and that I appreciate them. In most of my articles I shoot for a personal edge because I like to feel closer to the readers. I appreciate authors that take this approach, so I try to emulate it. I wish you the best of luck with FileMaker and want you to know that whatever you're trying and then saying "Oh, it can't be done." that it can be! Even my own problems with FileMaker have found solutions that I would have never thought of!

Sincerely,

Matt Petrowsky, ISO Editor

If you need to contact me about helping out with ISO please feel free to use the following contact information.

Matt Petrowsky
c/o FileMaker ISO
723 Swallow Dr.
Livermore, CA 94550

email = macventure@aol.com