Having a custom solution built from scratch can be a daunting prospect for those not familiar with the process. Here are answers to some of the most common questions that we receive.
If you do have any questions we urge you to get in touch with us, it doesn’t cost anything to have a chat about what you want to achieve with the FileMaker platform.
How long is a piece of string? Developing a customised solution can be more expensive than buying an ‘off-the-shelf’ package, but often it’s well worth the investment. The cost is often less than you might expect. Data Creations Australia offers discounts to education clients. We are very conscious of keeping costs to a minimum.
Most businesses buy customised solutions because the commercial ones simply don’t cater for their needs. No two businesses, even in the same industry, work exactly the same way. We build solutions that work the way you do.
In almost all cases, the client owns the database. If you pay us to build something specifically for you, then you own it. In some cases, we may suggest entering into a commercial arrangement if we feel the solution is marketable. In this case, the profits from the sale of the solution are shared. It is important to remember that all databases are built using products developed by FileMaker Inc. and certain parts are, and always will be, owned by them.
That depends on the type and complexity of the solution. We will discuss a timeframe with you.
No, we don’t. We build true bespoke database solutions (see below). We can build a database solution specifically tailored to include just what you need, in less time than it takes to connect a set of bloated templates to your solution.
The term ‘bespoke’ generally refers to the clothing industry, but applies equally well to database development. Wikipedia’s definition of bespoke is: “…a term for tailored clothing made at a customer’s behest, and exactly to the customer’s specification. Bespoke clothing is created without use of a pre-existing pattern, differentiating it from made to measure, which alters a standard-sized pattern to fit the customer.”
Data Creations Australia builds true bespoke database solutions for our clients. We start by listening to your needs, then we create a new database file. Some minor utility type elements, eg password creation scripts, may be copied from existing solutions, but the main database is built from scratch. We are the only developers (that we can find) who do this. While some developers may claim to build bespoke solutions, they generally use a standard set of files, believing that most solutions start with a common theme. Apart from contradicting the definition of ‘bespoke’, these standard files or templates have to be fairly generic and are often filled with unnecessary fields, layouts and scripts which you will never need and which often bog down the database. Data Creations Australia’s database solutions are built from the ground up to only include those things which you do need. No bloatware, no programming for the sake of programming or to show how clever we think we are and definitely no telling you how to run your business. That’s what we mean by true bespoke solutions.
When building a new solution, we always use the current version of FileMaker products. If you have an existing solution, we will use that. If you are currently using an old version of FileMaker and we feel there are benefits to you upgrading, we will recommend that.
There are certainly financial advantages to keeping up to date. Upgrading from old versions can have some disadvantages, especially upgrading from versions that are no longer supported. We urge you to contact us before upgrading from previous versions. We are happy to discuss the pros and cons with you.
We are also happy to discuss the licensing options that best suit your organisation. Annual Volume Licensing can be a cost effective way of upgrading and staying up to date.
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