Chapter 1. about databases and FileMaker Pro

If you're new to databases or just new to FileMaker Pro, you'll need some background information before you're ready to create the database (Investment Minder) that's the subject of this book. This chapter will help bring you up to speed on databases in general and FileMaker Pro in particular.

A computer database is an organized collection of information on a specific topic. Databases can be created for home (recipe collections, greeting card lists, bowling league records), school (contacts and assignments), and business (software registrations, inventory tracking, invoices, petty cash disbursements). A complete set of data for one employee, recipe, team member, or invoice is called a record; the data elements within a record are called fields. Every field collects a single, discrete piece of information, such as a person's last name, the quantity of a recipe item, or an employee's Social Security number.

In this database, every record contains the data you've entered for one medical incident. Fields store a date of service, service type, description, charge, and so on.