Author: Justin Hesser

The use of database solutions is growing across the business landscape. With more systems going digital, the amount of information that can be gathered and analyzed is increasing exponentially. With all this raw data now available, companies need to find a way to harness it and that means proper databasing and analytic solutions have become more important.

A recent article from Database Trends and Applications makes the case that in the current digital landscape, data has become king. The marketplace is heating up and the number of solution providers is increasing in size and public awareness, resulting in the IT community quickly realizing the opportunity specific business systems like NoSQL, Hadoop and FileMaker.

According to a Wikibon forecast cited in the piece, this database marketplace topped $540 million in 2012 and in the next five years that will increase to nearly $3.5 billion. That is a compound annual growth rate of 45 percent.

"Database solutions today must be able to support extremely diverse application use cases that cross all major verticals for core business and mission applications," the article reads. "Data is king, and the demand to find new ways for storing, processing, analyzing, and mining data continues to provide green fields of opportunity for traditional relational database vendors."

For many organizations, custom database development can be the best way to take on the need for a database solution. While any organization can buy a system off the shelf, to truly optimize it, companies should tailor the solution to what they actually need.

There are many instances where creating a database can be have wide sweeping benefits for the industry it is in. Health care, for instance, is filled with different ways that a database can make operations and improve patient care.

According to an article from the Associated Press, New York is in the process of quietly building one of the nation's largest computer databases of medical records. Once it is completed, patients and doctors alike will have access to the complete medical histories in one location and could save millions in the long run by avoiding redundant tests and unneeded admissions.

Dr. Rainu Kaushal, chairwoman of Weill Cornell Medical College's Department of Healthcare Policy and Research, said there is a tremendous value to society in avoiding unnecessary health care. Once enrolled in the program, a patient who visits the emergency room, for example, will be less likely to repeat radiological scans. This happens by creating a centralized location where doctors can look up evaluations they have had at other hospitals, including labs, EKGs and radiologic testing.

All of this is part of a larger movement across the health care industry to move away from paper records and start going digital. In New York, this system has been growing slowly since 2007, when it was first introduced. It currently has 71 percent of New York's hospitals and more than 20 percent of its 67,000 doctors are linked to the information exchange.

Creating a new database solution can be complicated. With the help of a FileMaker developer, any business can effectively create its own system.

The latest upgrade to FileMaker has helped cement the solution as a powerful database tool for the enterprise marketplace. Over the last few months, we have touched on several of the features that make the system as a whole a popular software tool.

A recent article from ProgrammableWeb put the system through the ringer for full review. Article author Stuart Iler, along with his team, created desktop, Web and mobile layouts with FileMaker Pro without any programming. While a database novice may face a learning curve, the intuitive interface and extensive documentation will make it much easier for anyone that is handling this process.

“One of the key selling points for FileMaker 13 is that it lets users design and create a single database back end, with an easily configured and deployed solution wherever you want to consume it. In the process of conducting this review, the advantages of that approach were apparent,” the article reads. “In all, we recommend FileMaker 13 as a powerful tool for building customizable database solutions without the need for a lot of technical know-how.”

It is unsurprising that the piece gives a positive review to FileMaker 13. It is a powerful database tool that can help any organization find a more efficient way of doing business. However, it can be difficult for companies that are unfamiliar with this kind of software solution to effectively deploy it. This is where a FileMaker developer can become a valuable resource for creating and deploying a new database.

Every business considering a partnership with a FileMaker developer is going to have questions. In this series we will address the frequently asked questions that our customers have about our services.

Answer: In this digital day and age, you would be hard pressed to run a business without the aid of a website. With consumers connected to the "information superhighway" through computers and the mobile devices in their pockets, a company can become invisible without an online presence.

However the system is more complicated than just putting together a cheap site quickly so there is something in that space. A poor website can be just as, if not more damaging than having no site at all as it can make a company look unprofessional.

Once a quality website is created, the content then becomes king. There are many ways that this can be addressed and incorporating some software solutions into the website is one way to accomplish that.

It is not surprising that a company that has built a large database on the FileMaker platform would want to improve its business practices by linking it to the website. Depending on what the database was created for, having access through the company website can become a fantastic tool.

By partnering with Kyo Logic, we can help pair these two entities. For large volume sites we have built sophisticated synchronization tools that allow the site to use MySQL and other high volume databases. We can also link FileMaker via remote database protocols that syncs to a FileMaker server.

There are many examples of how the latest software solutions have changed the way traditional sectors operate. Health care, for example, has experienced a number of different booms when various systems have risen to prominence. Currently, the use of electronic healthcare records (EHR) has been the main topic of conversation.

Hospitals and medical facilities are converting their paper records into a digital format. They can then be accessed through a computer and mobile devices, making it much simpler to keep files organized and updated in real-time. It also becomes easier for accurate versions of records to be sent to other facilities if needed.

While these platforms are spreading across the healthcare landscape, it does not work for every medical professional. A recent article from InformationWeek featured an interview with Dr. Lloyd Hey. The founder of the Hey Clinic for for Scoliosis and Spine Surgery, he used and was dissatisfied with EHR systems. However, instead of just complaining about it, he actually replaced it with his own version that brings process and quality control to healthcare.

Using FileMaker, his goal was to maximize care, minimize errors and continually improve processes and avoid the bottlenecks that current systems are creating.

"The problem was that [the EHR] system wasn't really built for a surgeon. It was built more for a primary care physician," Dr. Hey said. "And the [vendor's] programmers weren't really willing to improve it, and it didn't interface well with my practice management system. We had these silos of information that didn't talk to each other well."

Current EHR systems are broken into different modules for different tasks. This means it can be time consuming for a practice that performs hundreds of surgeries a month to fill out the different modules like schedule, clinic and appointment.

According to Dr. Hey, despite the number of systems that are on the market, none of them were able to streamline these modules and work specifically for his kind of practice. EHR systems do not take care of the whole workflow like consent forms and operating room bookings. Since he has a background in programming, he decided to tweak and have all those modules work together in a single solution.

With the help of a FileMaker developer, he started gathering input from everyone who used the software from the head of billing to nurses. This meant the entire office was part of the creative process and tweaking could happen on a daily or weekly basis.

"We have to have an adaptable system because, not only are we learning new things we have to change, but new things are being forced on us. You're always going to have to deal with change, so we need systems that can rapidly evolve and change with us," Dr. Hey said.

Now, patient information only needs to be entered once and any doctor can pull up and review the data, add critical information and view images on his computer in the office or his iPhone while in the operating room.

This shows what is possible when a company or individual with an idea decides to create a custom FileMaker solution.

Mobile devices are having a large impact on how business operate. All across the landscape, companies are using smartphones and tablets with different software combinations to improve operations and streamline tasks.

Recently, FileMaker conducted a survey of mobile strategies used by businesses. It is compiled of respondents from 499 customers who have deployed FileMaker solutions.

The study found that 59 percent of FileMaker iPad and iPhone users connect to on-premise servers via their LANs, 35 percent through the internet and 21 percent through a VPN. On top of that, 51 percent said they are replacing paper-based processes with a custom iOS database solution.

This approach is affecting departments across the entire business. Operations is on top of the list with 31 percent of companies saying that their department is using this approach to increase productivity. Rounding out the top five departments are information systems (28 percent), sales (23 percent), customer service (21 percent) and finance/accounting (17 percent).

"The next wave of business mobility, fueled by iPads and iPhone-equipped 'productivity warriors,' is delivering real ROI by automating processes in the building and on the company campus," Ryan Rosenberg, the vice president of marketing and services for FileMaker, said in the report.

The study also found the top 10 mobile tasks that companies are using. They include:

• Contact and customer management
• Inventory
• Invoicing/quotes/orders/estimates
• Field data collection
• Project management
• General data tracking and logging
• Timesheets
• Reports and analysis
• Work tickets and scheduling
• Medical records

In a recent guest column for Macworld, Willem Meyer, the Regional Manager of APAC at FileMaker, covered the survey and spoke about how the need to create custom business solutions is becoming more important. Early adopters to tablet applications have already achieved tremendous boosts in productivity including streamlined processes, cost savings, reduction in paper and improved customer service.

"With the push to get tablet applications to market as quickly and cost-effectively as possible, many smaller businesses and entrepreneurs are opting for a DIY route, as are workgroups within larger businesses," Meyer wrote. "They're taking advantage of low-cost or no-cost software and DIY application development tools that help them build professional-quality, highly customized business solutions for tablets and have their solutions ready to go in a matter of weeks, not months."

He added that with what has been learned from the survey there are several things that companies need to keep in mind during the development process. These include:

• The goal is data – Tablet solutions are predominantly used to mobilize data. Companies need to make sure that solutions picked help push this idea further and should avoid having a dedicated database administration to manage your application once it's up and running.
• Think good design – Applications that do not work well fundamentally will be rejected by employees. right out of the gate. Organizations need to make sure that strong design is always taken into account.
• Security – Mobile security is an ongoing challenge and it must remain a top priority at every turn.
• Don't stop building – Good mobile applications are never completely finished. Upgrades and troubleshooting should always be part of the process.
• Know what other businesses have done – It is never a bad idea to know what the competition is doing as there is a lot that can be learned from this.

FileMaker and FileMaker Go have become main systems to help push mobile businesses to the next level. A custom database software developer can help any organization embrace this solution.

Becoming certified in a particular software system adds validity to any professional's resume and the company they work for. At Kyo Logic, we are proud to announce that Tim Neudecker is now a Certified FileMaker 13 developer. This makes us a Certified FileMaker 13 company.

Neudecker is the Owner and CTO of Kyo Logic and has been with the company for 11 years and had over 20 years of experience as a professional FileMaker developer. He spent over 10 years as an in-house developer for companies like Macy's/Bloomingdale's and AGA. Aside from helping form Kyo Logic in 2003, he has also presented numerous times at the FileMaker Developer Conference on topics including security, system performance and developer tools.

This new certification is important to Tim and Kyo Logic as a whole because it shows our clients, both current and potential, that the company adheres to the highest standards and is a leader in the developer community. It shows we are committed to excellence.

"Um I am glad the test it over," Tim joked after completing the test. "I think this latest test is really important as the current version of FileMaker Pro really stretches the platform's capabilities and I think it is more important now that even before that our clients know that Kyo Logic is a leader in understanding the intricacies of using the platform to its fullest."

He added that he has taken and passed every FileMaker Certification exam including the "FileMaker Proficiency Exam" back from the Pre-Seven days.

Every business considering a partnership with a FileMaker developer is going to have questions. In this series we will address the frequently asked questions that our customers have about our services.

Answer: One of the most important parts of any business software solution is the licensing. This is a legal instrument and contract law that governs the use or redistribution of a particular piece of software. As part of United States copyright law, software is copyright protected and a license is needed to install and run it on a computer.

Typically, a piece of software comes with a single license that grants the end-user permission to access one or multiple copies. This prevents a single piece of software being purchased or downloaded illegally and installed on multiple systems. It prevents users from committing copyright infringement.

Licenses are also used as a way to create provisions that allocate liability and responsibility between the developer and the end-user. This means if there is an issue with the software and it has a warranty, the integrity of that is upheld when the end-user looks to get the problem fixed.

Every piece of software has a license and FileMaker is no different. By partnering with Kyo Logic, we can ensure that the copies you are using have the right license. There are two ways this can be done.

The first is an outright purchase. This keeps software updated but does have recommended annual maintenance after the first year. The second is annual leasing, which comes with an annual fee but requires maintenance. This does have possible discounting. There can also be not-for-profit pricing available for both models.

The Connecticut FileMaker Developer’s Group will be hosting the next meeting on May 21st at 10:00 AM in the Student Center at the Central Connecticut State University. Tim Neudecker from Kyo Logic will demonstrate the synchronization tool Mirror Sync 2.0 from 360works.com We will also start our special project. Rich Austin will present his needs requirements to the group for an inventory tracking system for fire trucks. The group will discuss the possible ways FileMaker can fit into the work flow, and direct Rich in the building of the solution. ——————– Connecticut FileMaker Developer’s Group Meeting Wednesday, May 21st, 2014 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM Student Center Central Connecticut State University New Britain, CT 06053 View the e-mail meeting notice. Subscribe to the mailing list.