[273] in sw-release-announce
FileMaker Pro 6 Release Effort Underway
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Peggy Conant)
Thu Feb 20 15:13:04 2003
Message-Id: <5.0.2.1.2.20030220151000.028cc9f8@hesiod>
Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2003 15:12:22 -0500
To: "Members@mit.edu of the MIT Community":
From: Peggy Conant <pconant@MIT.EDU>
Cc: itag@MIT.EDU, infosys@MIT.EDU
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Include the header below in the body of the announcement where to and cc
are above: <br>
To: Members of the MIT Community: itpartners, winpartners, macpartners,
sw-release-announce <br>
Cc: itag, infosys <br>
Date: Feb xx, 2003 <br>
From: Peggy Conant, FileMaker Product Release Coordinator
(pconant@mit.edu) <br>
Re: FileMaker Pro 6 Release Effort Underway<br>
<br>
<b>----------------------------------------------------------<br>
<br>
FileMaker 6.0-Release Effort <br>
<br>
</b>I would like to announce a release effort now underway for FileMaker
6.0, a product that has been available commercially since July
2002. The FileMaker Release Team anticipates an April 1, 2003
release date for 6.0 at MIT. <br>
<br>
<br>
<b>Supported vs. Recommended Upgrade<br>
</b>The release team sees no compelling reason to urge current 5.0 or 5.5
users to upgrade to 6.0 at this time. However, because IS will
discontinue support of FileMaker 4.X versions on 6/30/03 and because of
the significant product improvements in the 5.X family, it is strongly
recommended that users of FileMaker 4.X or earlier upgrade to either 5.5
or 6.0 well before that date. If you need to upgrade from a 4.X
version, consult
<a href=3D"http://web.mit.edu/is/help/filemaker/issues.html" eudora=3D"autou=
rl">http://web.mit.edu/is/help/filemaker/issues.html</a>
for more information. <br>
<br>
<br>
<b>Testing Effort<br>
</b>Formal testing efforts will be limited to testing FileMaker 6.0 and=
FileMaker 6.0 Unlimited as single user applications on the various=
supported operating systems. We will report any known issues=
regarding use of 6.0 in a multi-user environment and we will be inviting=
some early adopters to "test" the product for us in this=
manner. MIT Information Systems will continue to provide support for=
FileMaker Pro Server 5.5 on Macintosh and Windows systems. Since the Server=
product has not been upgraded, that product will not be reevaluated in this=
release effort. NOTE: Although FileMaker Server 5.5 can also run on=
RedHat Linux machines, IS does not currently support that=
configuration. FileMaker Developer and FileMaker Mobile are not=
supported by IS. For more information about FileMaker's full line of=
products, go to: <a href=3D"http://www.filemaker.com/products/index.html"=
eudora=3D"autourl">http://www.filemaker.com/products/index.</a><a=
href=3D"http://www.filemaker.com/products/index.html"=
eudora=3D"autourl">html<br>
<br>
<br>
</a><b>MIT Support for FileMaker 6.0 will include:</b>
<ul>
<li> Updated online documentation regarding upgrade considerations,=
licensing and system requirements=20
<li>Help Desk support of all currently supported features=20
<li>Updated Stock Answers pages.=20
</ul>Training at MIT will continue to be done on version 5.5 for the=
foreseeable future. The FileMaker Release Team intends to investigate ways=
in which IS might, in the future, support higher-end FM features such as=
XML, custom web publishing and batch uploading of images and files. =
To find out more about FileMaker 6.0 features currently not supported at=
MIT go to: <a href=3D"http://www.filemaker.com/products/index.html"=
eudora=3D"autourl">http://www.filemaker.com/products/index.html</a><br>
<br>
<br>
<b>Compatibility Issues<br>
</b>FileMaker 6.0 is compatible with the 5.X family, allowing some users in=
an area to upgrade while other do not. Developers who wish to take=
advantage of features new to 6.0, such as dynamic dialog boxes, should be=
aware that these features will not work when files are accessed with=
earlier versions. <br>
<br>
<b>Distribution of Volume License Copies of 6.0 at MIT<br>
</b>MIT FileMaker Pro and FileMaker Unlimited license holders who wish to=
upgrade to 6.0 will be able to obtain media after April 1, 2003 by using an=
online request form for upgrades. Media will not be distributed=
without a proactive request from license holders. For licensing=
information at MIT see: <a=
href=3D"http://web.mit.edu/is/products/vsls/mitfmpro/index.html"=
eudora=3D"autourl"><u>http://web.</a>mit.edu/is/products/vsls/mitfmpro<a=
href=3D"http://web.mit.edu/is/products/vsls/mitfmpro/index.html"=
eudora=3D"autourl">/index.html</a><br>
<br>
</u>FileMaker Pro, FileMaker Server and FileMaker 5.5 Unlimited are=
currently available for use by MIT faculty and staff free of charge under=
the terms of an IS-brokered volume license agreement with FileMaker Inc.=
(Developer and Mobile are not included.) Students -- and anyone seeking=
FileMaker for non-Institute use -- are not covered by this agreement and=
will need to obtain the software through other means. See Obtaining the=
Software below.<br>
<br>
Please contact filemaker-release@mit.edu with questions or comments.<br>
<br>
Peggy Conant<br>
Acting FileMaker Release=
Coordinator<x-tab> </x-tab><br>
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