Claris has released a new version of FileMaker Pro. Here is a quick highlight of the new features:
Apple Silicon Support
FileMaker Pro is now a Universal macOS app, which takes advantage of the advanced capabilities of Mac computers with Apple silicon and also runs on Intel-based Mac computers. If you use FileMaker plug-ins or ODBC client drivers on a Mac with Apple silicon, contact the developer to get versions that are designed to run on this type of Mac. See FileMaker Pro Installation Guide.
• Get(ApplicationArchitecture) returns arm64 on Mac computers with Apple silicon.
Microsoft Edge Support for Web Content
FileMaker Pro now uses the Microsoft Edge (Chromium) engine instead of the Internet Explorer engine to render web content in custom apps in Windows. If your Windows computer hasn’t been updated with the necessary Microsoft Edge components, the FileMaker Pro installer or updater will add them.
• Web viewers provide better support for web standards, which may enable you to simplify the JavaScript and CSS you use in web viewers.
• In interactive container fields, PDF files are displayed using the Microsoft Edge engine. You no longer need to install a web browser plug-in to display PDF files.
Enhanced QuickStart Preview
This release includes further enhancements to the preview of the FileMaker Pro quick start experience for creating custom apps. The preview is available in macOS only.
Enhanced JSON Functions
Get(InstalledFMPluginsAs JSON) — returns information about the system that plug-ins run on. Scripts can use this information to install the plug-in that’s appropriate for the operating system and hardware architecture.
GetAddOnInfo — Returns whether an add-on adds objects to a layout and whether it creates a relationship.
Get(SystemPlatform) — Returns the new value 8 for Ubuntu Linux; the existing value 5 is returned for CentOS Linux.
Known Issues (Bugs)
- Interactive Container Fields in Windows
Dragging a file to an interactive container field displays the file in the field but doesn’t add the file to the database. To work around this issue with adding a file to the field, select the field and choose a command in the Insert menu.
SUMMARY: Probably the best change is the switch to using the Edge browser now for Web Direct and PDF display. This finally gets FileMaker to using a modern Windows browser tool.