

You can now switch from tables to forms with a simple double-click and it's easier to search by date in the new version-a welcome addition for users who've turned Bento into a kind of to-do list manager. The new version also introduces a number of auto-creation tools, including one for adding media fields. You can now lock forms to avoid making inadvertent changes to fields or even the layout of your database. The effect, FileMaker says, is like having a miniature spreadsheet within your database.īento 4 introduces several other features aimed at making the database program easier to use.

Version 4 allows Simple lists to be more like spreadsheets, with the ability to insert numbers, data ranges, and calculations in fields. That addition let users create free-form tables in their databases.
#Bento 4 for mac update
And that figure should continue to grow with Bento 4, which introduces a streamlined option for uploading templates to the Bento Template Exchange.įileMaker is expanding the Simple List feature it introduced in the last major update to Bento.
#Bento 4 for mac free
FileMaker says the online exchange has grown to more than 800 free downloadable templates since its 2009 debut. Bento 4 users can export libraries populated with data and e-mail them to others-"It makes libraries as easy as sending a file," Rosenberg said.Īnother enhanced sharing capability involves the company's Bento Template Exchange, an online resource where users can swap pre-designed database forms. Multi-user sharing highlighted the changes in 2009's Bento 3 update, and this new release continues that trend of making it easier to share databases with others. The update adds a pair of printer-friendly themes that Rosenberg says will "make forms look the way you want." What's more, the new version expands form printing options, letting users print without field borders and field labels, among other tweaks. Users can also customize labels using fields and images stored in Bento.īesides the addition of label printing, Bento 4 also promises improved form printing. Users can build custom labels as well, making font and style adjustments right in the Print dialog. Scientists can use the label printing capabilities to print labels for samples, businesses can use the feature for inventory tracking, and event organizers can print out name tags from Bento.Īll told, Bento 4 offers more than 250 ready-to-use Avery and Dymo label formats. And that doesn't just mean creating address labels from contact records stored in Bento, according to Rosenberg. One of those top requested features was the ability to print labels from Bento.


Many of the changes in Bento 4 are what FileMaker vice president of marketing and services Ryan Rosenberg described as "customer-driven stuff." With the update to Bento, Rosenberg told Macworld, FileMaker has "gotten around to things that, in many ways, have been on the list since the first version." The mobile editions pick up some new capabilities of their own, including automatic location fields, an integrated voice memo feature, and support for iCal tasks syncing. New features in Bento 4 tackle everything from new ways to share data stored in the application to performance-boosting enhancements.
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On Wednesday, FileMaker overhauled its Bento lineup, rolling out version 4 of the personal database for the Mac while updating the iPhone and iPad versions as well. Flash forward to 2011, and Bento has not only become a mainstay program for individual users on the Mac, but it's also available in versions for all of Apple's iOS devices.
#Bento 4 for mac for mac
A little more than three years ago, FileMaker had only started to offer a personal database program for Mac users intimidated by the extensive features of FileMaker Pro.
