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The Pro's

Okay look there are 3 or 4 features that I would really call quite cool with this update:

1) SQL Connectivity
2) CWP packaged with Server Standard
3) ScriptMaker Overhaul
4) Conditional Formatting

1) SQL Connectivity
Well, this is one of the new features that MAY and I stress MAY, give FileMaker the right to charge people the cost of upgrading. With SQL Connectivity, FileMaker can finally trully connect to Enterprise class database systems and actually exchange data with MySQL, MSSQL and Oracle - Something that competition has been able to do for years. At least the IT guys might be a bit nicer now - then again they aren't that nice to Access either. Anyway, point being, great feature, finally possibly brings FileMaker to par with MS Access (though the lack of thin clients and the overall cost still leaves it lagging behind in the Windows world).

2) CWP Packaged with Server Standard
Well, this one is actually quite great - The FileMaker XSLT and XML engine is now pacakged with FMS Standard departing from the previous idea that a developer should have to fork out the cost of FMS twice again to bring their content to the web with FileMaker Server Advanced. This means that we may not see the demise of FileMaker's web publishing abilities (to be replaced by any of the SQL databases now advailable) for a while yet.

3) ScriptMaker Overhaul
Good feature for development I'll admit, though it really should've been there long long ago. This allows you to group your scripts into Folders for better organisation, and finally its non modal (i.e. you can have multiple scripts open at once, and work on the db at the same time) -- too bad they apparently didn't have the time to do the same thing for layouts

4) Conditional Formatting
Nice -- saves you adding unecessary calc fields all over the place, a simple feature but saves clutter in tables helping to make FileMaker more of a database by limiting the number of fields you use for "display purposes" - This may also reduce the reliance some have on the seperation model to keep their data and their display fields seperate (Then again you could just build the structure in MySQL and use FileMaker as a plain ol' front end.

The Cons

Frankly at this point, I think FileMaker is just trying to pull extra money in without really providing a new product. The lack of the rumoured Thin Client is also a shame, as are the event triggers, the dynamic set field, my progress bar (god i want one lol), copying custom functions, using custom functions over different files and finally the simple short cut keys for things like custom function definitions and all those other menu items that are missing keys etc. I would just like to express my opinion that the resizing which was apparently causing their developers problems is really little compensation for all the small features above that would make the product so much better and would likely only have taken a comparably short time to implement.

A conclusion

Oh well, I'm updating in either case just for the sake of it, but don't see any real reason to update existing clients sitting on FM 7 / 8 / 8.5 given that it's not really providing that much in the way of new.

Last thing -- this release should have been green!!!

For a decent look at the new features see:
http://sixfriedrice.com/wp/category/filemaker-9-tips/ (plus they have an API for integrating FM CWP with Ruby... not that i really use ruby, but the more technologies the better)

And for a look at the opinions of other developers:
www.fmforums.com

Well I hope my slightly random rant was informative.