FileMaker Pro 8.5 Advanced with Arabic support

Most of us who have been around the Mac orbit for a while are aware that FileMaker, which is arguably to personal computer database programs on the Mac OS (and presumably on the Windows) platform what Microsoft Word is to word processors - the undisputed king of the hill (well, on the PC side, Microsoft Access fans might dispute the point) - is made by a wholly owned subsidiary of Apple Computer - spun out of the old Claris software division back in the mid 90s.

People who use their computers for business, in educational institutions, scientific research, software development, or any other endeavour where efficient organisation, storage, and retrieval of large volumes of data are required, FileMaker can be one of the most indispensable programmes in your suite of production tools.

FileMaker 8.5 comes in a Pro version (primarily for database users) and a Pro Advanced version (previously Pro Developer version, targeted to developers), which has all the features of FileMaker Pro 8.5 plus it includes a suite of advanced development and customisation tools, so you can design and develop more powerful, more customized database solutions.

But most important of all, FileMaker Pro in its two flavours comes with full Arabic support, thanks to the agreement between FileMaker and Winsoft. This version is called Extended English for Middle Eastern languages and supports the Unicode character set, which means that an Arabic database created with the Windows version of the programme can be opened without any problems on the Mac and vice versa.

And needless to say that whatever can be done in Latin with FileMaker Pro can also be done in Arabic, thanks the Winsoft’s long experience in localising well known software.

Winsoft has opened a site dedicated to FileMaker Pro with Arabic support at the address: http://www.filemakerarabic.com/