Author: Kevin Frank

ExecuteSQL, Level: Advanced, SQL, Version: FM 18 or later

Exploring Wordlespace with SQL and While

Kevin Frank

Recently we’ve discussed optimizing SQL queries in FileMaker, and had some fun with various SQL experiments. Today we’re going to explore some ways FileMaker can use ExecuteSQL and the While function to perform letter frequency and text pattern analysis on candidate words for the popular Wordle game.

The list of words comes from https://github.com/tabatkins/wordle-list and purports to include the actual answer words, as well as all allowable guess words. I don’t know how valid this list of words actually is, or, assuming it is currently valid, whether it is carved in stone or will change at some point in the future.

Demo file: SQL-Multi-Table-Experimentation-Wordle.zip

Some Notes

  • Today’s file is functionally identical to the one from last time; if you already have it, there’s no need to download this one.
  • No attempt is made to differentiate between daily Wordle words that have already appeared vs. those that have yet to appear.
  • SQL is case-sensitive in the WHERE clause; all our examples today use lower case letters so we may safely ignore the issue for the duration of this article.
  • For a general-purpose introduction to SQL in FileMaker, see Beverly Voth’s Missing FM 12 ExecuteSQL Reference.

Continue reading “Exploring Wordlespace with SQL and While” →

ExecuteSQL, Level: Advanced, SQL, Version: FM 18 or later

SQL Multi-Table & Miscellaneous Experimentation

Kevin Frank

INTRO

Today we’re going to pick up where we left off last month, and today’s article will assume the reader is familiar with the material we covered last time (in SQL Multi-Table Query Optimization).

This time we’re going to dig a little deeper into multi-table SQL queries, conduct some SQL experiments, and look at a way the While function can help speed up and/or extend the capabilities of an ExecuteSQL query.

Demo file: SQL-Multi-Table-Experimentation.zip

Continue reading “SQL Multi-Table & Miscellaneous Experimentation” →

ExecuteSQL, Level: Advanced, SQL

SQL Multi-Table Query Optimization

Kevin Frank

Demo file:  sql-multi-table-query-optimization-v2.zip

Recently a colleague requested help w/ a SQL query that was performing slowly. I wrote back:

  1. Make sure there are no records open locally, i.e., on your machine, in the tables you are querying (for more information see this article by Wim Decorte: ExecuteSQL – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly)
  2. Only query stored values — if you’re querying a single table it should be fast
  3. If you’re querying multiple tables, make sure to construct the query to run optimally

Well today we’re going to take a look at #3 and see what we can learn re: optimizing multi-table queries. But first, I should point out that what follows reflects my current understanding of how things work. I hope this can be the start of a conversation where others will chime in and share their knowledge. Continue reading “SQL Multi-Table Query Optimization” →

JSON, Version: FM 18 or later

JSONQuery at FM-DiSC

Kevin Frank

When / Who / Where

On Friday, January 14, Steve Senft-Herrera and I presented JSONQuery at FM-DiSC (FileMaker Developers in Southern California).

Useful Links

Recording of the presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dztdZrHdrUQ

Current version of JSONQuery:  CF_JSONQuery_20211130_0120_PUBLIC.fmp12.zip

Our recent two part in-depth interview series:

Coming soon: Steve Senft-Herrera’s demo file from the presentation

Kevin Frank’s demo file from the presentation: jsonquery-sandbox.zip

More information re: JSON + FileMaker:

JSON, Level: Advanced, Version: FM 16 or later

Connecting Portals to JSON Arrays

Kevin Frank

Have you ever wished you could connect a portal to a JSON array? Portals and JSON arrays seem like they should be a natural fit, but FileMaker doesn’t offer us an obvious way to connect one to the other.

(Why would you want to do this? One use case would be to provide dynamic scrollable selection criteria for a report.)

At any rate, today we’re going to take a look at a little proof-of-concept I threw together to enable portals to display and edit data in JSON arrays. In a real-world implementation, the JSON would likely be sitting in a $$variable, which, among other things, would help make the technique multi-user friendly. Here, in the interest of simplicity, I’ve opted to store the JSON in a regular text field. A couple benefits of doing so:

  • You will see changes made in the portal immediately reflected in the JSON, and vice-versa.
  • As you navigate from record to record within the demo, the portals will reconfigure themselves to accommodate the corresponding JSON.

(Yes, it’s possible to accomplish the preceding with variables as well, but the aim here is to keep things simple).

Demo file: connecting-portals-to-json-arrays.zip

Continue reading “Connecting Portals to JSON Arrays” →

JSON, Level: Advanced, Version: FM 18 or later

JSONQuery, part 2

Kevin Frank

Continuation of interview with Steve Senft-Herrera

[Editor’s note: the demo file and custom function have been significantly updated since part 1.]

Demo file:  CF_JSONQuery_20211130_0120_PUBLIC.fmp12.zip

KF: Welcome back Steve for part 2 of our JSONQuery conversation.

SSH: Thank you, Kevin.

KF: One thing we didn’t mention last time, because they were late-breaking additions, were the inequality operators.

Continue reading “JSONQuery, part 2” →

JSON, Level: Advanced, Version: FM 18 or later

JSONQuery, part 1

Kevin Frank

Interview with Steve Senft-Herrera

[30 Nov 2021: Custom function and demo file have been updated. Some of the screen shots and example numbers referenced here in part 1 will deviate slightly from what you will find in the updated demo.]

Demo file:  CF_JSONQuery_20211130_0120_PUBLIC.fmp12.zip

KF: Good afternoon, Steve. You’ve been developing JSONQuery over the last few years, and today I have the honor of presenting and discussing it here with you on FileMaker Hacks. I was wondering if you could start out with a brief description of what JSONQuery is?

SSH: Sure. JSONQuery is a custom function, and it operates on JSON. Typically you’re going to be feeding it a large JSON array you’ve received back from the FileMaker Data API, or somebody else’s API, where each record is a JSON object within a larger parent JSON array, and the purpose of this function is to be able to find child elements in that parent array that match certain criteria and return just those elements to you. 

Above and beyond that it has a lot of bells and whistles, some of which I’m sure we’ll cover, but the main impetus for writing it was giving you an easy and fast way to essentially query a JSON array.

For example, let’s say you have an array filled with a lot of orders, but you only need to get the order items that are being shipped to a certain city, or to a certain state, then this function would allow you to easily obtain those elements in an efficient manner. Continue reading “JSONQuery, part 1” →

JSON, Level: Intermediate, Version: FM 18 or later, Virtual List

Virtual List Reporting, part 4

Kevin Frank

Introduction

Back in 2017 I wrote about a technique to enable users to a) produce multiple on-screen reports, and b) interact with those reports in browse mode. The article was called Virtual List Reporting, part 3, and while the approach it advocated works well enough under most circumstances, today I’d like to share some fresh ideas.

Note: as you might guess from the title of this article, implementing this technique in your solution, and/or understanding what’s going on under the hood, requires some knowledge of virtual list. If you are not familiar with virtual list, or need a refresher, you may find this article helpful: Virtual List Simplified.

Demo Files (require FM 18 or later)

Continue reading “Virtual List Reporting, part 4” →

Level: Advanced, Version: FM 16 or later

Set Variable By Name Re-Revisited

Kevin Frank

Demo files: set-var-by-name-v4 and set-var-by-name-md5

Background

This is a quick follow up to last December’s Set Variable By Name Revisited, and to avoid repetition will assume the reader is familiar with the material that was presented in that article. But to briefly recap:

1. FileMaker does not provide an obvious way to programatically name a variable.

Continue reading “Set Variable By Name Re-Revisited” →

Level: Intermediate, Version: FM 13 or later

PSOS – Run Script in File not open Locally

Kevin Frank

Update: See Jason Wood’s suggestion in the comments section for making this technique more secure.

INTRODUCTION

Today I want to take a look at a certain Perform Script On Server (PSOS) behavior, and for those who find this behavior to be inconvenient, propose a work around.

Here’s the behavior, or misconception, actually: a server side script initiated via PSOS (apparently) cannot access files on the server unless the user already has those files open locally. But of course there may be circumstances where you’d like to be able to access files server side that the user does not have open client side, either because the user’s credentials do not allow access to those files, or because you’d rather not have to open the files client side merely to facilitate a PSOS call.

If we consult the online help entry for running scripts on server, the official word is that server-side scripts can access other FileMaker files only when…

…in other words, if you want PSOS to be able to access files, you need to either a) already have the files open client side, or b) throw caution to the wind, and configure the hosted files to auto-open with pre-entered credentials.

Hmmm… I think we can agree that from a security standpoint “b” is a non-starter, and the whole point of this article is to avoid “a”. Fortunately there is a “c” option not mentioned above which I’ll get to shortly, but first let’s demonstrate the issue. Continue reading “PSOS – Run Script in File not open Locally” →