Review: FileMaker Pro 11

[Simon]

Last year, when FileMaker Pro moved up to version 10, it acquired some fundamental improvements, such as script triggers and the ability to save search criteria. In version 11, the main emphasis is on getting things done and making life easier for the user.

Foremost in this is the introduction of charts. Previously, you'd need to buy third-party plugins or export your data to a spreadsheet or specialist graphing program. Now, it's all built in. You get a choice of bar, line, area or pie charts, plus a few optional variations such as 3D and line smoothing. That won't be enough for more demanding scientific and financial users, but it should cover the majority of typical business needs.

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/software/356881/filemaker-pro-11

[Rik]

Thanks, Simon.

[Simon]

I have no idea what it does!   

[Rik]

Last time I used it it was a database.

[esh]

As a "science guy" (shhh!) if you are looking for something a bit more on Windows I suggest using a programming language such as Python with numerical/matrix implementations (NumPy) and a graphical gtkAgg backend (matplotlib), it also features optimisation statistics routine (via SciPy).

Fortunately for everyone involved, there is an "all in one" distribution you can get here, complete with GUI: http://www.pythonxy.com/
This project and its add-ons are all entirely open source. This means you are free to download the source code and do what you want with it, as well as it being free to acquire. It's the best free implementation of something like Matlab I've seen, and can do everything from simple plots upwards, though I'd wager it's a little complex unless you're willing to learn. It's also a 400MB download, for the unwary.