Making the Case for FileMaker Pro

C2 is proud to offer an exclusive 5-day course of the Official FileMaker Training Series. Come join Cris Ippolite, one of only 24 authorized FileMaker instructors in the world, as he provides training on all 12 Official FileMaker Training Series modules over 5 days. The FileMaker Training Series is FileMaker’s official curriculum and is not offered elsewhere in Wisconsin. He is very excited to be coming back to his hometown of Milwaukee to teach the series to you!
Training will be held the week of September 15 and each course will be 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily.
Seating is limited for this fantastic opportunity! Please contact Kate Barrie @ 414.431.0062 or kate@c2gps.com for more information and pricing detail. We hope to see you all there!

A Word From Cris Ippolite...

FileMaker Pro. Many of you have heard of it or may have worked with it, but did you know it has been in the marketplace for more than 20 years?

In that time, more than 13 million units of FileMaker software have been sold around the world. FileMaker enthusiasts include ALL of the top 50 universities in the U.S., the top 250 U.S. school districts, and 70 of the Fortune 100 companies.

A wholly owned subsidiary of Apple, Inc., FileMaker isn’t just for Mac users anymore! Cross-platform capabilities that run natively on both Mac and Windows platform make FileMaker the premium database software on the market today. It has muscled its way into IT infrastructures in all industries.

Currently on version 9.0, FileMaker underwent a massive database engine redesign in version 7. It allows for multiple “tables” to be combined into a single FileMaker file. This feature has cut down both development time and cost, and has brought forward some of the most powerful features in the product’s history.

Most notably, FileMaker now allows for up to 250 concurrent users via Server, full support for php Web integration and a partnership with the MySQL alliance that spawned a connection kit (called “ESS”), allowing for LIVE connections to data sources running MySQL, SQL Server and Oracle!

Imagine connecting to your organization’s SQL Server, Oracle and MySQL databases from one place, and using the information without additional programming. With FileMaker, you can! FileMaker Pro 9 creates secure easy one-way or two-way connections to External SQL Data Sources. The SQL data acts just like FileMaker data. Create custom reports, add calculations and other fields, build relationships with existing FileMaker data, using the easy-to-use tools of FileMaker Pro.

There are new layout objects that allow you to do everything from automatically resizing your layouts to embedding FULL web viewing functionality into your existing FileMaker database layouts.

With the PHP features of the FileMaker Server, you can publish information to external websites, gather information from Web users, and create new solutions combining a Web-based front-end with a rich, FileMaker Pro back-end. Support for popular open source Web standards PHP and XSLT means you and your Web developer will be reading and writing live FileMaker Pro data in no time.

All these reasons support FileMaker Pro as the #1 best-selling standalone database for both Macintosh and Windows.

When business professionals outgrow spreadsheets, they depend on FileMaker products. Customizing, creating, and sharing easy-to-use software solutions is quick and easy. FileMaker is powerful enough to integrate with corporate data environments, share on the web, and evolve with your needs.

Want to learn more about using FileMaker or take your FileMaker skills to the next level?

slow day, snow day

Wednesday is my day to blog. Well, I got snowed out on 2/6 and if I don't post this tonight, I'll be a delinquent blogger two weeks in a row!

Last week I could have easily posted a blog from home. In fact, I should have. Instead I worked via phone and email all morning, then, realizing I had forgotten my power cord for my laptop, I trekked downtown in the blizzard-like conditions.

Ultimately it was a beautiful (but treacherous) drive. The snow was LOVELY! Truly amazing scenery. I called JC (aka Jim Conway, my brother...but since there's also Jim Fritz, Jim Simon and Jimmy "the Wams" Wamser at C2, we call my brother JC) to encourage him to drive up Lake Drive toward Shorewood to get some cool shots of the trees. He's a pro photog (check out www.jamesconwayphoto.com) and the effect of the snow coating the trees over the road was something I could only admire, but he could turn into a work of art (for me!). My brother, a sucker for a potentially great shot, decided to forge through the snow, alas, his Honda did not fare as well as my truck and he wasn't able to get any pics. Instead he got stuck in a snow drift. Bummer.

It was just that kind of day. I didn't accomplish as much as I would have liked to and JC didn't get his photos. Our dad, senior consultant for C2 North, didn't let the snow slow him down. He got some very pretty shots! He compared the snow up north to ivory soap flakes. I think it looks like MOVIE snow.

Maybe a snow day can be cathartic and relaxing every once in awhile. There's always time to to be crazy-busy. Next time it snows, enjoy watching a few flakes fall gently to the ground. Take a few seconds to cherish the miracle and beauty of nature.

For those of you seeking a big TECH blog, hold tight...I'm downloading BENTO, a new FileMaker application just for OS X Leopard! I'll share my experiences soon!