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MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.5pr6

New in this prerelease of version 14.5 of the MBS FileMaker Plugin: Download at monkeybreadsoftware.com/filemaker/files/Prerelease/

You can subscribe to our FileMaker mailing list to get notified for new pre-release and release versions.


25 Years Monkeybread Software Party

Next year in April our company will turn 25 years old.
We'll plan to have a big party here in Germany near our office with over 100 guests.

Invitations are going out this month in several batches.

If you like to join and you miss an invitation, you can contact us and ask whether your invitation got lost.

As people confirm they are coming, we'll add them to the guest list. If we run out of space, we may put people on the wait list.
If you can't make it, please respond soon, so we don't need to contact you again later.

Simplifying Debugging in FileMaker with MBS Plugin on macOS

Debugging can be one of the most challenging aspects of software development, especially in complex environments like FileMaker. Thankfully, the MBS FileMaker Plugin offers a range of features that make this process more manageable and efficient. Here are six ways the MBS Plugin can transform your debugging experience on macOS.

1. Tooltips for Easy Value Inspection

The MBS Plugin enhances the debugger by displaying tooltips that show the contents of variables and fields. When you hover over a variable, a tooltip appears, providing instant access to its value without the need to run additional scripts or create temporary fields for debugging purposes. This real-time inspection allows you to understand how data flows through your scripts, enabling quicker problem identification. Additionally, the context menu allows you to copy these values directly to your clipboard. This means you can easily reference or share them without interrupting your workflow.

see also Tooltips for Script Debugger


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MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.5pr5

New in this prerelease of version 14.5 of the MBS FileMaker Plugin: Download at monkeybreadsoftware.com/filemaker/files/Prerelease/

You can subscribe to our FileMaker mailing list to get notified for new pre-release and release versions.


The failure of Digital River's MyCommerce platform

Something sad happened the last months and brought me lots of sleepless nights. A part of my business broke away, but let's talk a few details:

We have been using the Share-it aka MyCommerce service from Digital River GmbH to sell plugin licenses since 2006. It was working flawlessly for many years until August 2024. They sold our licenses in their web shop, issues invoices, collected any VAT or sales tax, report sales and paid us usually on 15th of the month. But since August they didn't pay us for sales.

On 20th August 2024 they announced to switch to report after 30 days and pay out another 30 days later, so effectively 60 day payout. Also they introduced a platform fee and customer support went to a $185/h rate. They put these changes into a new contract to go into effect in October 16th. (more)

MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.5pr4

New in this prerelease of version 14.5 of the MBS FileMaker Plugin: Download at monkeybreadsoftware.com/filemaker/files/Prerelease/

You can subscribe to our FileMaker mailing list to get notified for new pre-release and release versions.


Auto Complete Feature for Custom Functions

As developers, we’re always on the lookout for ways to enhance our efficiency and streamline our workflows. The MBS FileMaker Plugin has been a valuable ally in this regard, consistently delivering features that make development easier and more intuitive. Today, we’re thrilled to announce an exciting new addition in version 14.5: auto-complete functionality for custom functions!

What’s New?

Building on last year’s introduction of auto-complete for variables in the Script Workspace, we’re now expanding this time-saving feature to the custom function dialog. This enhancement allows you to effortlessly type and receive automatic suggestions for identifiers, making the creation of custom functions smoother than ever before.

How It Works

One of the most significant improvements in this update is the way auto-complete is triggered. Previously, you had to manually press F5 or fn-F5 to invoke the auto-complete for variables within the dialog. In version 14.5, the plugin automatically checks for possible completions with every key press. This means you can type your function name, and the plugin will instantly offer suggestions based on what you've entered, streamlining your development process.

For example, if you begin typing “Get(,” the plugin will immediately present a dropdown list of matching functions. This instant feedback helps you quickly narrow down your choices, allowing you to select the correct function without the hassle of navigating through extensive lists or trying to remember the exact syntax.

But it doesn't stop there! If you have the Script Workspace open, the plugin can also scan your existing scripts for variable names, presenting them as suggestions in the custom function dialog. This includes global variables that the plugin has recognized earlier, providing you with a comprehensive set of options to choose from. This context-sensitive auto-complete significantly reduces the cognitive load on developers, making it easier to build and manage complex formulas.

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Rectify document rectangle in images in FileMaker

For the next plugin version we add the Vision.RectifyDocument function for macOS and iOS to detect a document in a picture and rectify this. This is used internally for DocumentCameraScan function on iOS, but now can be used independently.

MBS( "Vision.RectifyDocument"; Image { ; ImageType; FileName } )

To give you an example. You may have the picture on the left and use the function to get the picture on the right side.

(more)

MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.5pr3

New in this prerelease of version 14.5 of the MBS FileMaker Plugin: Download at monkeybreadsoftware.com/filemaker/files/Prerelease/

You can subscribe to our FileMaker mailing list to get notified for new pre-release and release versions.


Using ChatGPT in FileMaker

From time to time we get asked to provide an example for ChatGPT. Since this is just another web service, we can just handle it with the CURL functions in MBS Plugin. But since we don’t like to block the user interface while ChatGPT processes the request, we use our CURL.PerformInBackground function to run it in the background. Later when finished, it triggers a second script to process the result. 

 

The request is build with a call to JSONSetElement here passing the various fields. We include a system message with the request, e.g. “Please translate text to English.” and then pass the text to translate in the user role. This way the user should not be able to provide instructions to the LLM in their text. 

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Security tidbits for FileMaker

We talked about various things at the FileMaker conference in Rome and security is a concern for everyone. Especially as scripted attacks got frequently.

Rename Admin

Have you ever put a FileMaker Server on the internet? You may note that people knowing your address try to connect with various account names and passwords. You may want to rename the Admin user everywhere to another name. Since there is a chance someone may try the Admin account and FileMaker locks accounts for 5 minutes if you have 5 incorrect passwords for login within 5 minutes, you may run into the Admin account be blocked. Just use a different name to avoid this.

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Validating schema for electronic invoices with ZUGFeRD

When receiving invoices in electronic formats, you have several tasks to implement:

  1. Receiving invoice via email.

    You may use our CURL functions to regularly download emails from your IMAP postbox and use our EmailParser functions to get the attachments. That may include the ZUGFeRD PDF invoice file. Or a pure XML file with invoice data.

  2. Extract XML for invoice from PDF

    Use DynaPDF functions (Lite license or higher) to extract XML from a PDF file using functions for embedded files.

    We have sample projects for this included with the plugin download.

  3. Validate the XML to match the schema using the ZUGFeRD XSD files

    Make sure the XML is syntactically okay, doesn’t produce a parse error or a schema error.

    Below we show how to do this with MBS FileMaker Plugin in FileMaker.

  4. Validate whether the content of the invoice is validate for the business rules

    There is a file included with ZUGFeRD download with the rules (.sch file). For example this specifies that the VAT ID starts with the country code, which is not part of the schema in step 3. Implementing this in FileMaker can be a lot of work, but at least you can use our XML.Query function to help.

  5. Read values from XML.

    Several people coded the import and the script depends on your field schema in FileMaker. Check our example file and maybe use it as a start. Our XML functions can help and you may read a lot of files simply with a call to XML.GetPathValue.

(more)

MBS @ FMTraining.TV - 14.4 MonkeyBread FileMaker Plug-in Release

Check out the FMTraining.tv website. Richard Carlton and his team do a daily free live stream about FileMaker to watch.

A few days ago Christian Schmitz from Monkeybread Software joined a live episode to talk a bit about the MBS FileMaker Plugin. Watch it on YouTube.

We check what is new in 14.4 release: Announcements, new functions and Release Notes.

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Little tidbits from the FileMaker conference

Back from the conference in Liechtenstein, I wrote down a few of the tidbits we learnt.

Missing serial numbers

If you use serial numbers for new records in FileMaker, you may notice that sometimes the serial numbers have a gap. Why could this happen?

  • Someone deleted a record
  • Someone created a record, but never committed it.
  • FileMaker crashed or network got disconnected while a transaction runs, so it never completes.

You need to know that on record creation, the client will request a new serial number from the server. If the record doesn't get committed or gets reverted, the serial value is used, but no record saved. If you like to make sure the serial number doesn't get lost, please call Commit script step after creating the new record to make sure the empty record is definitely stored.

Please consider moving to UUID numbers instead, so people can't get the serial numbers and they are more random but unique.

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MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.5pr2

New in this prerelease of version 14.5 of the MBS FileMaker Plugin:
  • Added field comment to the tooltips for the export dialog.
  • Fixed an issue in Window.PositionNextDialog function for Windows.
  • Updated DynaPDF to version 4.0.94.265.
  • Added DynaPDF.GetAnnotColor and DynaPDF.GetTextBBox functions.
  • Fixed an edge case with swiss keyboard layout for RemoteControl.PressKey function and the virtual key lookup.
  • Added sample script into extras to launch two FileMaker on macOS, one with HTTP tunneling on and one with it being off.
  • Optimized XML functions to better handle thread locking.
  • Improved error handling for XML.ApplyStylesheet.
  • Added some auto complete for custom functions for parameters and function names:
    • Table occurrences
    • Field names after ::
    • Operator names
    • Function names from function list
    • Parameter names
    • Get/Hole/Obtenir functions
    Invoke with fn-F5 in the dialog or we auto invoke it for you.
Download at monkeybreadsoftware.com/filemaker/files/Prerelease/

You can subscribe to our FileMaker mailing list to get notified for new pre-release and release versions.


Table comments in FileMaker

Recently someone asked about comments for a table and whether we could do something there. In the FileMaker community you find a couple of ideas around this topic, so we through why not. Let us add a comment text for the table definition section of the manage database dialog.

But we run into a couple of questions like where to store comments. Should the plugin store them somewhere or should FileMaker store them. Would we have some kind of user interface to enter the comment?

We can't just store comments in a local preferences file since others would open the database file and miss the comments. We can't store them in a new separate table as that would not survive clone and migration process. We decided to leverage the existing field comments in FileMaker to define a new field _TableComment to store it. Just define a field (can be global) and add a comment there. FileMaker stores the comment and provides the user interface to enter it.

(more)

MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.5pr1

New in this prerelease of version 14.5 of the MBS FileMaker Plugin:
  • Updated DynaPDF to version 4.0.93.262.
  • Updated CURL to version 8.10.1.
  • Fixed crash with running Python on Windows.
  • Added DynaPDF.GetAnnotTextAlign function.
  • Added DynaPDF.ClearLicense function.
  • Added JSON.InsertRecords function to insert array of records in JSON.
  • Updated to libxml2 version 2.13.4.
  • Updated to libxslt version 1.1.42.
  • Updated LibXL to version 4.4.0.
  • Updated OpenSSL to version 3.3.2.
  • Note: SSLv3 is disabled now.
  • Updated libarchive to version 3.7.6.
  • Changed Archive.Content to skip GID, UID, Permissions, RDev, FileType and HardLink fields, if not set.
  • Updated zxing library to newer branch.
  • Improved Barcode.Detect by using newer zxing library.
  • Added Barcode.DetectAsJSON function.
  • Updated to Xcode 16.0.
  • Updated jpeg library to version 9.6.
  • Fixed CURL Multi functions, broken in 14.4.
  • Added a field to database design dialog for tables to show comments. To add a comment, define a field _TableComment and put comment text there.
  • Fixed an issue with GMImage.WriteToPDFContainer and Twain.Acquire on Windows.
  • Added Text.FilterSwissQRCode function.
  • Added DynaPDF.GetGlyphIndex and DynaPDF.GetGlyphOutline functions.
  • Updated discount library to version 2.2.7d.
  • Added Audit.BuildCaches function.
  • Updated unicode tables for removing accents for Text.RemoveAccents function.
Download at monkeybreadsoftware.com/filemaker/files/Prerelease/

You can subscribe to our FileMaker mailing list to get notified for new pre-release and release versions.


New in MBS FileMaker Plugin 14.4

In this article we want to introduce you the new functions from the MBS FileMaker Plugin in version 14.4.

JSON

We have added a couple of JSON functions for you that you can use to create, update or delete records in your database. With the JSON.InsertOrUpdateRecord function, you even have the option of changing a data record if it already exists or creating a new one if it does not exist yet. With JSON.UpdateRecords and JSON.DeleteRecords, not only one record can be changed or deleted, but several records can be modified or removed at the same time. If you only want to create, change or delete one data record, you can use the JSON.InsertRecord, JSON.UpdateRecord or JSON.DeleteRecord functions. So that we know which data record we are addressing with JSON.UpdateRecord, for example, we first specify the file name in the parameters of the functions, as we get it from the FM function Get(FileName). This is followed by the table name and the primary key of the data record. For updating, we then also specify the value that we want to update.

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Add the Saxon processor to MBS Plugins?

For years we had XLST 1.0 and XQuery in the plugins using open source libraries. We could add the Saxon processor library for XLST, XQuery and XML Schema functionality. But that library has a cost as a commercial library, so making a plugin would only work if we have enough people taking it. We are collecting a list of developers interested in this to know whether it is feasible to do this.

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ZUGFeRD mit DynaPDF und MBS

Zu keinem anderen Thema haben aus dem deutschsprachigen Raum so viele Fragen in den letzten Wochen und Monaten bekommen als zu dem Thema E-Rechnung. Ab 2025 müssen die meisten Unternehmen E-Rechnungen zumindest empfangen und lesen können. Im Verlauf der nächsten Jahre müssen sogar kleine Unternehmen E-Rechnungen ausstellen können. Dass die Nachfrage groß ist ist verständlich und so haben wir unsere, bereits seit Jahren existierenden Beispiele, noch einmal überarbeitet und auf den momentanen Stand gebracht.

Das überarbeite Beispiel ZUGFeRD Rechnung erstellen.fmp12 zeigt Ihnen wie Sie mit Hilfe von MBS und einer DynaPDF Professional Lizenz mit PDF/A Erweiterung eine ZUGFeRD Rechnung nach EN 16931 erstellen können. Wir haben dabei die notwendigen, wie auch vereinzelt für uns zusätzlich nützlich erscheinende Informationen, in die Rechnung übernommen. Das Beispiel ist ZUGFeRD in Version 2.2.

Mit der ZUGFeRD Rechnung auslesen.fmp12 Datei stellen wir Ihnen eine Datei zur Verfügung die alle Informationen aus Rechnungen nach EN 16931 ausliest und Ihnen diese darstellt. Das ermöglicht Ihnen ein Script zu schreiben in dem Sie die Feldwerte aus unserem Beispiel in die Felder Ihres bereits bestehenden Rechnungsprogrammes überführen.

(more)

Older blog entries:

2024-09-20 Extract invoice for ZUGFeRD and Facture-X
2024-09-18 Adding ChatGPT to the ScriptWorkspace context menu
2024-09-17 MBS Plugin 14.4 for Claris FileMaker
2024-09-17 Neues MBS Plugin 14.4 für Claris FileMaker
2024-09-16 Unlocking the Power of PDFs in FileMaker with DynaPDF and the MBS FileMaker Plugin
2024-09-14 Ideas wanted for future FMTraining MBS Livestreams
2024-09-13 Claris Engage 2025 - Registration is open
2024-09-12 FileMaker Konferenz 2024 in Malbun - Noch 3 Wochen
2024-09-11 Product Manager Job at Claris available
2024-09-11 MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.4pr6
2024-09-10 Deprecation of TLS 1.0 and 1.1
2024-09-09 18 years since MBS FileMaker Plugin version 1.0
2024-09-07 Things learnt about FileMaker
2024-09-06 MBS FileMaker Plugin - Brisbane 2024
2024-09-05 MBS @ FMTraining.TV - MonkeyBread Plug-in Q&A with Christian Schmitz
2024-09-05 Reconnect.fm in Brisbane Australia
2024-09-02 Unlocking the Power of Database Analysis with MBS FileMaker Plugin Functions
2024-08-29 MBS @ FMTraining.TV - The FileMaker MonkeyBread Plug-in - 14.3 Update with Christian Schmitz
2024-08-29 MBS FileMaker Plugin, version 14.4pr5
2024-08-28 Insert or update with JSON

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