FileMaker Pro handles most of the basic tasks you'd want from a desktop database program, and most users will be perfectly happy with that edition. FileMaker Pro Advanced adds several developer-oriented capabilities that DBAs, developers, and the office technologist will like: custom menus, a script debugger, a database design report, and multiple-table import. In addition, FileMaker Pro Advanced can create single-user stand-alone runtime databases and kiosk-mode applications.

FileMaker Pro and Advanced allow up to nine simultaneous clients to share a database over a network, and up to five simultaneous Web clients to share an Instant Web Publishing site. Instant Web Publishing attempts to make the database look about the same on the Web as it does locally; it's easy, and it works fairly well, but it's not very flexible.

FileMaker Server allows for 250 simultaneous client connections; FileMaker Server Advanced allows for 999. Both Server versions can publish databases to the Web using PHP or XSL, and they provide a PHP Site Assistant to make this relatively simple. FileMaker Server Advanced also has Instant Web Publishing for 100 simultaneous Web clients and can act as a SQL database through ODBC and JDBC.

Should you upgrade?

for our sister publication Macworld from the point of view of a Mac user. William did a good job of discussing the differences between FileMaker 9 and 10, and he concluded that "saved finds, dynamic summary reports, and script triggers make FileMaker Pro 10 a very desirable upgrade for current users." I concur; those three improvements are all huge wins. William worried about experienced users learning the new interface; as mentioned before, this has not been an issue.