I've got two problems with FileMaker's Send Mail script step.

First, when Entourage 10.1.1 is selected as my default mail application (Mac
10.2.8 preferences) the script fails to create a draft messages in Entourage
.... sometimes it doesn't even activate Entourage. If I set Apple's Mail as
my default mail application, the script successfully activates Mail and it
creates a draft document that's appropriately addressed, Carbon Copied, etc.
I've tried resetting the preference, but I still get the same result. I
don't know if this is an application or system issue. (By the way, in the
past I was able to Send Mail to Entourage.)

The second problem.

When sending CC (carbon copies) email to a set of found records, I get an
email list like this:

<person1 (AT) isp (DOT) com>, <person2 (AT) isp (DOT) com>, , <person3 (AT) isp (DOT) com>,
<person4 (AT) isp (DOT) com>

I'm wondering why I get the double comma delimiter:

", , "

Thanks, John

In article <BEBBC4CE.852D7%John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com>, John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com
says...
No idea there. I don't use that script step much.

Just a guess... Perhaps one of the records is missing an email address??

John B. said the following on 5/26/05 19:24:
I have had occasional machines that fail to work with the sendmail
script step. It requires a correctly configured mapi email client.
Perhaps the machine you are using does not have correct mapi
configuration for Entourage.

Kent

in article MPG.1d00224fdb49214b989b4a@shawnews, 42 at nospam (AT) nospam (DOT) com
wrote on 5/26/05 7:14 PM:

That was my first guess too.

I'm running a >0 Find request on the email field, and indeed the result
shows only records with email addresses ...

John

in article mLvle.1492132$6l.729462@pd7tw2no, KV at noone (AT) invalid (DOT) invalid
wrote on 5/26/05 7:39 PM:

Thanks Kent. Indeed it looks like MAPI is required under Windows. The
Filelmaker help file states:


To send mail, you must have an Internet connection and the following
configurations.

Windows:

A [Mail] section in the Win.ini file.

Microsoft Exchange or another email applications that
is MAPI compliant installed and configured properly.


Mac OS:

Mac OS X Mail or Microsoft Entourage installed to
send email with FileMaker Pro.

Internet system preferences configured for use with one
of the supported mail applications.

In article <BEBC0EF5.8536D%John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com>, John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com
says...
Is one of the addresses malformed? Is there an address missing?

In article <BEBC853D.8537C%John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com>, "John B."
<John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com> wrote:

I've not tried Entourage (or Mac OS X) with the Send Mail command, but
that is one VERY picky and flakey command ... unfortunately that's not
FileMaker's fault, but the "fault" of non-standard email appliactions.
As a result it works differently with almost every email application,
and probably even refuess to work with some.

In Microsoft Outlook Express under Mac OS 9, the Send Email command
DOES create a new email, but it leaves it in the Draft folder (or maybe
the Out Box) and won't automatically open it for the user to type the
message into. If Outlook Express is already running in the background I
don't think it even bothers to activate. This means telling users that
they have to manually switch to Outlook Express to edit and/or actually
send the email themselves.

The only real way around this would be to use a proper email plug-in to
send the emails directly from FileMaker itself, but they tend to be
expensive, especially if you using a network environment. Another
possibility might be to use AppleScript to transfer the data between
the applications, but I've never bothered to look at Applescript.



Helpful Harry
Hopefully helping harassed humans happily handle handiwork hardships ;o)

in article BEBBC4CE.852D7%John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com, John B. at
John (AT) SingingWood (DOT) com wrote on 5/26/05 6:24 PM:

Still haven't got anywhere with this.

John