Live Vs Synced
Can GoMaps be used "live" instead of synced?
Overview.
GoMaps ships wired to sync with your hosted FileMaker file and in fact we utilize the sync routine to pre-build some of the mapping data so that GoMaps is faster for your mobile users. The question is, can one skip this and wire GoMaps directly to your hosted FileMaker solution so there is no sync but mobile users need to have a connection to your FileMaker files to use GoMaps.
How do I mod GoMaps to run live??
GoMaps can run live as is, if you want to use existing data tables as your data source some changes will need to be made. In GoMaps we chose to build a map object and store that data in a field for each property record. This allows for greater speed in rendering the map. The downside is when any data is changed in the Property table that map object needs to be updated. There is a script in GoMaps that does just that called "Compile Map Data". This is the script we use to update the map data field (called "gm_MapData") any time a property record gets edited. We also use the script "Compile All Map Data" when we want to update the map data for all property records. You could create a button that runs this script to refresh the map data on demand or make this automatic using script triggers on your properties layout.
Please keep in mind that properties will not show on the map unless they have a geo location code. Please make sure that if you are running live that you are running a routine to generate those geo location codes.
If GoMaps is Live should it live on the mobile device or be hosted?
GoMaps will be fastest if it is local to the device. Either method will work but keeping the file local and referencing data tables on the server will provide the best results (if you don't want to sync).
Why we prefer GoMaps Synced
First, the map is *much* faster running locally than it is over wifi or, heaven help us, 4G. This is one of the reasons we sync mobile apps in the first place: it's not just so you can work offline, it's so your FMGo apps can be as responsive as their native counterparts.
You'll see this yourself if you open a copy of GoMaps on your desktop, share it, and the open that shared copy on your iPad: it's much slower than the copy actually *on* your iPad... and that's when you're on the same LAN.
The second reason is that mobile work means opening your iPad and getting to work, without having to worry if you've got a solid connection and without having to log back in to your hosted solution.
All of our custom deployments of GoMaps run synced. We wouldn't do it any other way.
We will, however, be offering ProMaps for use in live solutions in FileMaker Pro. Running in Pro the map will benefit from the faster desktop and laptop computers running the map, and it will be designed for solutions running on the Local Area Network (LAN) instead of out in the field (WAN) for which GoMaps is designed.
