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8-13-2009 - San Francisco, CA - .com Solutions Inc. Introduces FmPro Migrator Developer Edition 5.23 wth Microsoft® Access® to FileMaker® Pro Migration Feature at FileMaker DevCon2009
Using FmPro Migrator Developer Edition, FileMaker Pro developers can automate the conversion of Microsoft Access Forms/Reports, Relationships, Value Lists, Queries and Visual Basic code to FileMaker Pro database solutions. The new Access to FmPro Migration feature can easily save hundreds of hours of development effort in a typical Access to FileMaker Pro conversion project.

FmPro Migrator Developer Edition can re-create hundreds of Access Forms or Reports as new FileMaker Pro layouts in a matter of seconds. FmPro Migrator Developer Edition uses AppleScript(MacOS X)/WinAutomation(Windows) to copy the newly generated layouts into a FileMaker Pro database file at a rate of approximately 200 layouts per hour.

The pricing for the new Microsoft Access to FmPro migration service is based upon the quantity of Forms/Reports in the Access database and is equivalent to paying an experienced database developer $5 per hour to perform the same tasks.

Features of the Access to FmPro Migration feature include:
• Upsize Microsoft Access Databases to FileMaker Pro for Increased Capacity and Ease of Use - Access databases can be migrated to FileMaker Pro 10 in order to take advantage of FileMaker Pro's legendary ease of use and increased data management capacity. Migrated Access databases can now grow to the maximum 8TB file size offered by FileMakerÊPro 10 and can be run on MacOS X and Windows.

• Fixed Price - You know up front what the cost will be to convert the structure and data within any Microsoft Access database into a cross-platform FileMaker Pro database solution.

• Offshoring to Your Desktop - Since this new feature is built into FmPro Migrator Developer Edition, proprietary database information and source code never leaves your desktop. Purchasing a license key for the Access to FmPro feature enables its use for an unlimited number of Access database files for the quantity of Forms/Reports to be processed per file, for the duration of the key. Furthermore, each database is converted much more economically, quickly and in a more repeatable manner than could be done manually.

• Microsoft Access 97, 2000, 2003 and 2007 File Formats - The migration process uses the AccessDDRExport utility to extract information from within Access 97 - Access 2007 mdb/accdb database files. The AccessDDRExport conversion utility is an Access 2000/mde 2007/accde database file supplied with FmPro Migrator Developer Edition.

• Save Time, Get Up and Running Quickly - It can be a tedious and time consuming process to manually re-create each Access Form/Layout control into any other development environment. Rather than spending weeks or even months of valuable time manually converting hundreds of Forms/Reports, FileMaker Pro developers can utilize the Access to FmPro Migration feature as an economical alternative.

• Font Remapping - Access databases often utilize fonts which are not cross-platform compatible, since Access only runs on the Microsoft Windows operating system. Since the definition of the Forms/Reports are extracted into a text file, a FileMaker developer can simply perform a search & replace with a text editor to replace any operating system-specific font names within the AccessDDRExport text file.

• Visual Basic Code Conversion - Each Visual Basic Subroutine or Function is converted into a FileMaker script documented with the name of the original code module, and global variables, followed by the commented text of the Subroutine or Function. FmPro Migrator uses the clipboard script handling features included with FileMakerÊPro 10 to batch copy all of the converted scripts into the FileMaker Pro scripts window.

• Relationship Conversion - Relationships are retrieved from the Access .mdb/.accdb database file when the tables and fields are gathered during the initial drag & drop processing of the file.
Access relationships are converted into FileMaker Pro relationships during the conversion process. Each relationship is then built in an automated manner using AppleScript(MacOSÊX) shortcuts or WinAutomation(Windows) jobs.
Being able to see the relationships at a glance on the FileMaker RelationshipGraph makes it easier to understand and utilize the structure of the original database.

• Radio Button/Checkbox Group Conversion - Microsoft Access radio button/checkbox groups consist of multiple objects within an acOptionGroup object. Access always writes a numeric value into the underlying database field whenever a checkbox or radio button is clicked. The numeric values are defined within each individual radio button/checkbox object. The text values seen by the user are defined as caption text within a text label object corresponding to each button.

Objects which make up the group button are related to each other in a hierarchical parent/child relationship manner, which enables FmPro Migrator Developer Edition to traverse the object relationships and extract the data values and labels. For a group of 3 radio buttons, the 7 objects contained within the acOptionGroup radio button group are converted into 2 objects (field and label) and a value list assigned to the field on the FileMaker Pro layout. The size and rectangular shape of the converted FileMaker field corresponds to the coordinates of the original group button object rectangle. All generated value lists are de-duped and created as individual value lists. The correct value list is automatically assigned to the field on the layout, and the field is configured to display as either a group of radio buttons or checkboxes based upon its definition on the original Access Form.

• Custom Value Lists - Access database fields can be configured with semicolon separated lists of text based Row Source values. These Row Source values serve the same purpose as FileMaker Value Lists, providing for the selection of text value entries into fields.
Access databases do not contain a centralized storage location for these Row Source values. These lists of values are scattered throughout the Forms/Reports of the entire database file. FmProÊMigrator extracts and analyzes the Row Source values for duplication prior to creating new Value Lists for the FileMaker database file. Therefore if a file contains dozens or even hundreds of Row Source value definitions, they will be consolidated down into a much smaller number of unique Value Lists within the FileMaker Pro database.

• Text & Field Formatting - Text label and field formatting attributes are read from the Access database and recreated within the objects placed onto the FileMaker layout. These attributes include: Font Name, Font Size, Foreground Color, Background Color, Font Style (Bold, Italic), and Text Alignment.
Access Control Tip text is converted into FileMaker Tooltip Text for each object.
Access timestamp fields having a Date Picker are created with a Drop-down Calendar on the FileMaker Pro layout.

• Embedded Form/Report Images - Embedded Form/Report graphic images from Access acImage objects are placed onto each FileMaker layout in the same size and location as the original image.
Each image is extracted from the Access database as a JPEG image and written into an Images folder during the AccessDDRExport processing.
Having the images available as external files prior to building the FileMaker layouts makes it possible to substitute new images for the original images. As long as the filenames remain the same, FmPro Migrator will utilize the replaced image when creating the new layouts.

• Rectangle and Line Objects - Rectangle objects can be used as Form/Report backgrounds within Access. Filled and unfilled rectangles are converted, as well as the border properties.
The color and thickness of Line objects is also converted.
Line and rectangle objects from Access are converted directly into FileMaker Pro Line and Rectangle vector graphic objects. As vector graphic objects they are displayed at high resolution for on screen display and printing purposes.

• TAB Control & Enclosed Objects - Access Tab Panel objects are converted into FileMaker Pro Tab Controls, including the objects embedded within each tab of the control. Each type of object which is converted for the main section of the Form/Report is supported for conversion within each tab of a Tab Control.

• SubForms/SubReports Converted into FileMaker Portals - Microsoft Access Forms/Reports can include SubForms/SubReports, having functionality similar to FileMaker Pro portals. FmPro Migrator automatically creates a new portal to represent each SubForm found on the original Access Form/Report. FmPro Migrator divides the width of the portal by the number of fields on the original SubForm and creates each portal field of the same size. The fields are also created in the same left to right display order as they were displayed on the original SubForm.

• Queries Converted to FileMaker Scripts and TOs - Each Microsoft Access query is converted into a Table Occurrence on the FileMaker RelationshipGraph, since a FileMaker TO represents how the query is used within the structure of the Access database. Layouts and Fields on Layouts will immediately display the data referenced within the base table specified in each of the TOs.
Access queries are also converted into FileMaker scripts which use the DoSQL plug-in from myFMButler/SHPartners. These scripts are pasted directly into the FileMaker Manage Scripts window, along with all of the converted Visual Basic code. Having the source code for each query enables the FileMaker developer to configure relationships representing the functionality of the original SQL query.

• Form/Report Field Formulas - Access Forms/Reports often include calculated fields which consist of completely calculated values or database field values combined with calculated values. Since the field data source does not translate directly into an existing field name, the FileMaker layout will designate the table/field as missing. In order to prevent the calculation formula from being lost during the conversion process, FmProÊMigrator appends the text of the calculation formula to the end of field's tooltip text. The text can easily be copied from the tooltip and used within new calculated field definitions or scripts.

For more info about the Access to FmPro Migration feature, including an online price quote, please see:
http://www.fmpromigrator.com/services/access_to_fmpro_service.html

FmPro Migrator Developer Edition is priced at ($200) per developer and includes a copy of FmPro Migrator Developer Edition for both MacOS X (Universal Binary) and Windows platforms.

A functional demo version of FmPro Migrator Developer Edition may be downloaded from
http://www.fmpromigrator.com/downloads/demo_software/index.html#fmpro_migrator_demo
For more info please see: http://www.fmpromigator.com/products/fmpro_migrator

About .com Solutions Inc.
.com Solutions Inc. develops multi-platform graphical applications and services supporting FileMaker Pro, Bento, SQLite, Oracle, MySQL, Access, SQL Server, Sybase, DB2, OpenBase, PostgreSQL, FrontBase, Valentina, and Revolution developers. FmPro Script Diff, compares and edits FileMaker Pro scripts. FmPro Migrator ( www.fmpromigrator.com ) converts FileMaker Pro databases to and from FileMaker Pro, SQLite Diff ( www.sqlitediff.com) compares SQLite database schema and data.

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