FileMaker Pro Database and Automation
Task
Developed an image database and an AppleScript capable of automating the transfer of various file types, including Illustrator files, PowerPoint presentations, images, and videos, from users' Mac computers to a Linux storage server. The script also facilitated automatic entries into the image database with relevant information. Additionally, the script was designed to reject any unsupported files, ensuring a seamless and error-free transfer process.
Resulting Script
Technical Notes
While developing the script, several challenges surfaced that required troubleshooting. The most significant of which was cross platform compatibility and FileMaker Pro image limitation.
Due to the user's initial file selection during script initiation, the resulting HFS+ path posed compatibility issues with both PowerPoint, Filemaker Pro, and the Linux server. To ensure seamless integration, a conversion to a POSIX path was used in addition to the HFS+. This adjustment allowed for smooth file accessibility and transfer, ensuring compatibility across different platforms and applications.
FileMaker Pro was the database software used to create the image database. It was important that researchers can quickly scan through the available images to quickly grab the file they needed. Due to limitations on the supported image formats, the database only accepted specific file types. As a result, all Illustrator files and PowerPoint presentations needed to undergo conversion into an acceptable format compatible with FileMaker Pro. This essential step ensured that images of the file were included in the image database, eliminating the need for manual file opening.
Because different figures and presentations were related to each other in different aspects, a relational database was set up in FileMaker Pro to help researcher do queries on the records to pull a set of figures that they may need.