Drag-n-Drop Groupings

As a long-time developer, I can certainly say that FileMaker development has advanced quite significantly over the past decade. However, I can also say that FileMaker was never developed from the ground up to have a highly robust event model. The bolt-on method of supporting events through script triggers never really planned on having too much support for drag-n-drop between various layout objects.

Fortunately, there are a number of little tricks you can apply with your knowledge of how the FileMaker client works. And, within this knowledge, you can accomplish some really cool features within your FileMaker solution. In this video, I present a wonderful solution to a problem one of our subscribers was having with trying to support a method of drag-n-drop between portals and allowing for the groupings of various people within the context of a specific event.

If you'd like to know more about how to take advantage of drag-n-drop within FileMaker, then you'll find a number of valuable tidbits in this video.

AttachmentSize
Drag-n-DropGroupings.zip368.88 KB

Comments

There are a lot of small details to study and to learn in this technique. That's the reason I have keep with th subscription for so many years ;) Thank you, Matt

Candido Tomás
Cleodora

I think that the override formatting option in the inspector solves the issue with showing the second value in the group value list and avoids the need for the global vars / sql?

I'm getting old in my FileMaker years. I knew there was something I was overlooking.

Hopefully, my proposed solution did provide insight into another method which can be used to control the display of values.

-- Matt Petrowsky - ISO FileMaker Magazine Editor

Hi Matt,
You are still my hero. A LOT GOOD stuff in here!

Did you test this also on IOS? I think this might not work properly because DnD is not supported on mobile FM, am I right or is there a workaroung?

Thank you thank you thank you for this really great tutorial
Greetings from Germany

True, because iOS does not support Drag-n-drop I don't believe it will work. Hence, I didn't test it there.

-- Matt Petrowsky - ISO FileMaker Magazine Editor

So cool, thanks a lot. This can also be used to assign e.g. equipment to employees or something like that. I'll definitely use it.

But just a small question about the display: Don't you get the same effect with displaying the groupnames by using "Override data formatting with value list"?

So the only thing to do would be the commit to refresh.
Just wondering.

P.S. Using the DragGlobal field behind the participants without any parameter will remove the participant form the group ;-)

Best, Mattina

Thanks for the great technique video. Learned a lot. One little thing. In your video at 34:26, the displayed text v.s. key from a value list. Could check "Overwride data formatting with value list" in inspector then you don't need to have 2 objects one on top of the other to create the affect you have shown there.

FileMaker Dreamer & Designer

It's been a while since had used that settings and I guess my years in FileMaker is catching up to me. So, for anyone who doesn't want to use the SQL method of displaying text you can simply check a box and avoid the extra onscreen variables. Thanks for pointing it out!

-- Matt Petrowsky - ISO FileMaker Magazine Editor