This set entered on 7-26-14. 7-26-14-3.
- The RESULT of a calc has a TYPE. What is a calc type?
The TYPE can be any of the standard FIELD TYPES, such as TEXT, NUMBER, DATE, TIMESTAMP, or CONTAINER. The type of the calc is chosen at the bottom of the SPECIFY CALCULATION window.
- When you REFERENCE a FIELD in a calculation, FM takes the data stored in the field and:
uses its value when it determines the calculation’s result.
- Say your calc is:
First Name & “ “ & Last Name.
When FileMaker EVALUATES the calc, it replaces:
the First Name and Last Name field name with the person’s first and last names FROM A GIVEN RECORD.
- When a VALUE is going to be the same on every record, you should use a:
CONSTANT, and you simply include it in your calculation. SALES TAX is one of the most common constants.
- When you use a calculation, you are asking FileMaker to do something with your fields, constants, and operators and come up with a result. This is called:
EVALUATING THE CALCULATION
- You can also use a constant to have FileMaker plunk some text in with your results. If you want a TEXT VALUE instead of a number, you:
put it in QUOTES:
Age & “ years old”
- Everything within the quote marks is:
a TEXT CONSTANT, aka a STRING, as in “string of characters”
- Why are QUOTE MARKS important?
Suppose you have a field called First Name, and this calc: “this is my First Name”. The result of this calc is ALWAYS “This is my First Name”, as FileMaker makes no connection between the First Name field and the words “First Name”, BECAUSE THE TEXT IS IN QUOTE MARKS
- What if the calc you enter is: “This is” my First Name ?
FileMaker will show a message that says “The specified field could not be found.” When you try to click out of the Manage Database window, FM will highlight the words “my First Name” to tell you which part of the calculation is wrong.
- How is the correct calc written?
“This is my “ & First Name
