Replacing FileMaker with Free Software?

jhealy1024 asks: "I'm looking for a way to replace our FileMaker DB solution with an open-source RDBMS. Problem is, FileMaker's GUI and report design tools are pretty darn good, and I can't find a suitable replacement. Anybody out there have a solution that doesn't require me to take a year off to hand-code a replacement solution?" "I'm the netadmin for a small private school. Since we're Mac-based, we've grown up storing all our data in FileMaker, including student information, grades, class assignments, gifts, inventory tracking, and just about anything else you can think of.

FileMaker is coming out with version 7, which is going to require us to tear all our databases to pieces and build them up again from scratch. While the new FileMaker is an improvement, it's still a toy as far as "real" databases go. (The latest update just introduced relational tables, for example). Also, data lock-in is becoming a problem; I'd like to have access to all our data from non-FileMaker interfaces (to populate our LDAP directory, for example). While we can work an export from FileMaker, it would be much better if the data were available in an open, standard database instead.

I figure, so long as we're rebuilding everything from scratch for version 7, why not use a "real" RDBMS (no flames about which, please). Problem is, FileMaker does two things very well:

1. Rapid development of front-end data entry screens (using a GUI for layout)
2. Ability to create printable layouts for reporting (mail merges, report cards, etc)

I can program data entry screens myself if I had to (either on the web or on the clients directly), but the printable layouts would kill me. Does anybody know of any package that will allow me to replicate FileMaker's easy interface for use with a RDBMS package such as PostgreSQL or MySQL?

Thus far, the only solution I've found is to use some kind of SQL access plug-in for FileMaker. This way, I get to keep the FileMaker interface but ditch its lousy relational model. Unfortunately, I'd still have to pay for FileMaker, and the SQL plug-in requires tons of extra coding to pass the data from FileMaker to SQL and back again.

I know other people have had to move from small, proprietary systems (FileMaker, Access, etc) before; what have you done to keep the simple user interface alive?"

Comments

There's an old saying...

[AKAImBatman]

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If FileMaker has been good for your school, don't worry about replacing it with a "real" database. Many people don't need all the features of a "real" database, and all they'd get is more complexity and possibility of failure.

Re:There's an old saying...

[rjstanford]

Absolutely. At some point you have to decide whether you're in the education business, or in the software design and support business. I would stick with the solution that everybody already knows - even going through an upgrade, you'll be so much further ahead faster than you would be by throwing it all out and starting over. You know FileMaker's quirks, after all - and believe me, everything has 'em, so knowing one set well is a good place to be.

Re:DIY

[BrynM]

I think you'd be best off writing your own stuff. MySQL + PHP

This answer irks me. You know, people always mention this, but have you ever attempted to do it? Just "sit down and code a web based version in a weekend" type stuff is horribly unrealistic. First, coding a secure and bug free PHP version of some app your coworkers have used forever is a bitch. Everyone wants their ideas implemented, people refuse to work because you haven't "trained" them yet, managers are (rightly) aftraid of you building it and then being hit by a truck tomorrow... This is not just some hodge-podge personal website to be coded on your own terms. Finally, this guy is probably not a PHP programmer and it's silly for you to assume he is.

People usually ask these kinds of "ask slashdot" questions because they can't just sit down and roll their own. They are looking for genuine alternatives. Answers like this are akin to "You don't like your Ford? Just get a welding torch and some grease and make your own car..." A better answer would have been to point him to some coding resources directly related to what he's trying to do if you really wanted to provide an answer like "If you use such and such implemented in PHP, you'll be able to consider coding your own solution." Any moron can just say "make your own" without knowing what that really involves.

Re:Recode for Filemaker 7

[NatasRevol]

Ditto the parent.

I've created some horribly complicated db's in FileMaker. The kind that become huge systems as end users ask for lots of little parts to be added over the years.

FM7 converted all of those with only minor issues. Usually just GUI issues.

Gaping hole in the Open Source Software

[apropos]

This is one of those big, gaping holes in open source software. I swear most open source programmers don't even understand the question. Let me try:

Alice is an expert in some area of business. She can even wrap her head around simple databases. How can she write database apps without having to call Bob, the resident Unix hacker who doesn't want to waste his time coding simple data entry screens.

What tools can Alice use? Open Office is workable now, and although pretty clumsy, compares to the VB .net "way". Alice has to learn quite a lot to get there, though.

There's http://pythoncard.sourceforge.net/samples/custdb.h tmlPythonCard, which is looking very nice: Python is a very newbie friendly language. If you use this, then ReportLab (http://www.reportlab.org/) might be a good choice for reporting tools.

There's Rekall, I've not used it at all, although it looks pretty good.

And then there is GNU Enterprise http://gnue.org/. It is eventually supposed to be an ERP system, but currently the project team is working on what appears to be a very sweet set of db app development tools. Rumor is that it's at a usable point, but I've never been able to crawl through the install process (even on Debian).

There are more, but I haven't found any really good ones.

Re:Gaping hole in the Open Source Software

[Anonymous Coward]

For God's sake chain Alice down! Force her to go to Bob! Here's the problem, for you lurking management types:

The biggest clean-up, hurry-up, clear-the-decks projects I've had to do are "office" databases written by some schmoe who showed it to an executive and now has to scale it up to the whole enterprise. The poor guy never planned for it to be multi-user, and he has to go hand-clean his data every couple of days because he didn't put constraints on the input, and there's no way he can support ten people much less ten thousand.

Get IT pros involved in the beginning -- sure we'll ask nasty questions like "do you really want to store the name all in one field" and we'll make the project take 5 times as long. Of course we'll raise questions about whether it's legal to keep this information and who the intended users are. But that's why they keep us around -- we're paid to think of the hard questions in advance, when you haven't committed anything to the project yet.

When you have to scale it up from 1 to 10,000 users and all we do is edit a couple of files and say "ok, done!" you'll thank us.

This is not about justifying my salary. This is about limiting the unplanned demands on IT and keeping you from propping your business unit up on a shakey foundation.