07/26/2010 - When the Apple iPhone was released to the world in 2007, we FileMaker developers immediately saw an ideal platform for FileMaker Pro. A third-party solution was released that allowed users to put their databases on the iPhone, but the solution wasn't simple for use, and had limitations that discouraged me from recommending it to my clients or implementing in any solutions.



07/25/2010 - My son Steven and I just returned from a wonderful trip to Europe. We were in London for 5 days, during which we took a day trip down to see Stonehenge, Glastonbury (where legends say that King Arthur lived), and Avebury. From London we took the high-speed train under the English Channel to Paris, where we stayed another 5 days, during which we took a day trip to Normandy to see the D-Day landing beaches and surrounding area. All in all, it was a great trip and a wonderful experience for my son and me.

This was also my first extended trip with my Apple iPad; I’ve taken some short business trips, but nothing this long or challenging fo Internet connections. I learned some valuable lessons about international travel with the iPad and iPhone, which I will share here.



07/03/2010 - Recently I had occasion to look for an air-conditioning installer, and was faced with the challenge of finding the perfect combination of price, reliability, reputation, and speed.

I've been using the same company for about 6 years; they have lots of trucks, a squad of repairmen and installers, but I know that I pay a large premium for the availability. I consider their expertise, my experiences with them to this point, and I now question whether the extra money I've paid has actually been worth it.

I've been giving some thought lately to what clients really want from consultants. As an extension to this line of thought, I've also come up with a list of what experience has taught me to be the most important qualifications to a successful developer.



04/24/2010 - I recently tried out Tony White's excellent ScriptBuildingBlocks tool for FileMaker, and was immediately hooked on the new abilities it offers to FileMaker developers who work on the Mac platform.

ScriptBuildingBlocks is a tool that allows its users to instantly insert sets of script steps into the script editor. The utility comes with 14 prebuilt templates, but I quickly learned how to add my own and edit the existing templates. Included in the SBB set are shortcuts for creating script steps for common structures like IF-ELSE IF-ELSE-END IF, LOOP-END LOOP, LOOP PORTAL-END LOOP, set variable to get(scriptParameter), and many more. There are also some shortcuts for adding comments, a date-stamped comment, and others.



04/15/2010 - Friends and clients know that for the past 6 months I’ve been frantically building a database solution for a new museum attraction in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The second of their museums, Titanic Pigeon Forge is a wonderful tourist destination for families; as a longtime fan of Titanic lore, I found it intriguing and captivating.

Terms and Conditions

NEW HOSTING
All new hosting clients may choose to cancel hosting within the first 30 days and receive a full refund of their hosting fees.

HOSTING FEES ARE NON-REFUNDABLE
After the first month, any hosting fees paid to Longterm Solutions LLC, whether for a month or for a longer period, are non-refundable.

PROGRAMMING AND WEB DESIGN
All programming done by Longterm Solutions LLC is warranteed for a full year from completion of the project. Any bugs, errors, or omissions remaining in the database solution, web application, or website will be fixed at no cost to the client, provided the issues are part of the project and not requests for programming or design which were not part of the original project specifications. After the one-year period, any issues found in a solution will be fixed, and charges levied as deemed appropriate by Longterm Solutions LLC.

PROGRAMMING RATE
Longterm Solutions LLC reserves the right to change its hourly programming fees at any time without notice. Clients who need additions or modifications to existing solutions will be billed at the current hourly rate at time of the work request.

DATABASE AND WEBSITE BACKUPS
Longterm Solutions LLC backs up databases hourly, and archives at least twice weekly to DVD-R (at time of this writing, every 2 days). Websites are backed up nightly to a separate storage system, and archived approximately every 60 days.

Clients are strongly advised to keep their own archives of websites and databases. Longterm Solutions will be glad to provide a means for all clients to download backup copies of their databases.

Longterm Solutions LLC is not responsible for any data loss incurred while solutions are hosted on our servers. We take extraordinary precautions against loss of data and have never lost any databases or websites  since the company was founded more than 12 years ago, but we strongly encourage our clients to keep their own backups as an extra measure of security in the event of an unforeseen catastrophe or event.

EXTRAORDINARY BACKUP PROCEDURES
Unlike any other FileMaker hosting company of which we are aware, Longterm Solutions archives and stores database backups for at least 2 years. Our clients can take comfort in knowing that we can restore a copy of their database from any hour in the past 24 hours, then for any day in the last 2 years. To our knowledge, no other FileMaker hosting company provides this free service.