But are you a power user? What really defines a power user, anyway? That question came up in an editorial meeting, and we decided to put the question to our technical editors. Thanks to Susan Prosser, Anton Anderson, Brian Dunning, and Stuart Gripman, we now have some insight into what skills are important for power users. You might be pleasantly surprised to find out you're well on your way to power user status, and you might learn about a few areas that would be good for you to study up on and put into practice. If you're at all interested in building your professional FileMaker Pro development skills, you'll pick up some great advice from some of the best in the business!

First up: Susan Prosser

On the strictly prosaic side, you should have a broad AND deep understanding of the program to be called a power user. For example, you should know what a field index is, and how to control it. You ought to be able to create complex calculations that do more than add up a line of invoice items. You should be able to write scripts that use variables, can branch using logical tests, and are modular enough to be re-used by other scripts. You should be able to set up and administer FileMaker Server. Give yourself extra points if you know the formula for setting server cache (computer's physical RAM - 128 * .25). You ought to know at least one way to use FileMaker Pro to power a dynamic Web site and understand how FileMaker Pro can share data with other programs, too.

There are hundreds of little things you need to know, but FileMaker, Inc. makes it pretty easy to figure out if you're a real power user. They've created a certification test that's updated with each new version of FileMaker Pro. If you pass the test, which is objective and comprehensive, then nobody's going to dispute your claim to be a power user. In fact, you get the right to display the official certification logo and show the world just how powerful you are.

But there's another side to being a power user that's more subjective, and yet maybe as important as encyclopedic knowledge of FileMaker Pro. Some of the more artistic criteria are:

• Creating simple, elegant layouts that aren't so crowded with data, graphics, and buttons that users can't figure out how to use the database.
• Knowing what users need their database to do so you create a database in your business's image, or failing that,
• Knowing how to ask the right people what they need, and then apply what you've learned
• Designing a database that other developers can understand, by naming elements consistently and commenting your work
• Knowing and using data modeling to make sure all your data's in the right places
• Not falling in love with complicated solutions when there are simple solutions that get the job done