Customer stories


InfoCenter Foundation

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, FileMaker Pro powers a clearinghouse of missing persons information for victims of natural disaster

When Hurricane Katrina tore through the Gulf Coast in the summer of 2005, Louisiana-based FileMaker Pro developer Charles Durrwachter found himself, quite literally, right in the path of the storm. He and his family survived – so Durrwachter immediately turned his attention to helping those displaced by the disaster, with a quickly-developed FileMaker Pro database solution designed to store and distribute information about missing persons information. Users downloaded free copies of that software in the weeks that followed the storm, helping media outlets and public-safety organizations keep vital information flowing between authorites and the public. The success of the project inspired Durrwachter and several colleagues around the world to create the InfoCenter Foundation – a non profit organization planning to develop and deploy an upgraded version of the application, for use wherever disaster strikes.


Business Challenge

When lives hang in the balance, it's no time to be flipping through software manuals or waiting on the phone for technical support. In times of natural disaster, effective and efficient communication saves lives. If missing persons are to be reunited with their families, it's essential that there be a fast, reliable system for getting out the word. The Internet provides a valuable medium for transmitting that information, but organizing and storing the raw data requires a database solution that can be developed quickly and used easily by anyone needing to contribute or access the latest information.

For Charles Durrwachter, FileMaker Pro was the only choice. He's been a FileMaker enthusiast since the 1980s, and sees each new refinement of the software as an opportunity to add to his own development skills. "I choose FileMaker Pro because of its ease of development and its simplicity for the end user," he declares, "and I like to remain focused on one product."

That focus proved essential amidst the chaos surrounding Hurricane Katrina in the late summer of 2005. Information and requests for information on storm victims and their families swamped radio and television stations, emergency management offices, and law enforcement agencies, and this disorganization inspired Charles to create his own system for storing and distributing that data. At radio station Kajun 107.1 FM, staff members found his database a godsend. ""Our phones were ringing nonstop with people calling in with questions concerning what to do, and Parish and local officials with important announcements. Of course, we were all writing down information on tablets, scratch paper, napkins, anything we could get our hands on," recalls announcer Johnny Chauvin. "Chuck walked right in the middle of the chaos with his Apple laptop and said he might be able to help." Working on the fly, Charles developed a simple yet powerful FileMaker Pro database that allowed the broadcasters to efficiently store and readily access the data as it came in. Listeners received timely updates and were able to put that information to use in their own situations. Knowing the system could be of use throughout the Katrina disaster area, Charles made copies available for free download over the web, and over a hundred and fifty individuals, media outlets, and agencies took advantage of the system to organize their own missing-persons data.Charles proved with his post-Katrina missing persons database that FileMaker Pro could meet the challenge of providing a reliable foundation for an emergency communications system. And, when Charles began working in FileMaker Pro 8, he recognized that the enhanced capabilities of the new version would make a vital contribution to the worldwide information network he and his associates wanted to build.


Successful Solution

The InfoCenter Foundation's main mission is to provide the necessary hardware, software, and instruction to bring up a complete missing persons database on the spur of the moment, wherever a natural disaster makes one necessary, and to provide such services on an ongoing basis to emergency management, public safety, government agencies and media outlets. Individuals will also be able to access – or enter – basic information via a simple and intuitive web interface. That information includes a full range of descriptive information on missing subjects – name, address, and physical description, along with a field for any additional facts that might help in locating the person. Additional screens cover special medical needs, provide full details for contacting family or friends, and any specific information required by FEMA officials.

The database itself can be configured to provide specific information based on each user's location. "So, if you're looking for information in Southern California, for example," Charles explains, "data can be allocated to you strictly on a relational basis, based on your location and other specific factors built into the system. That's something I really like in  FileMaker Pro 8, which allows us to isolate things like NIC codes on individual computers and similar security structures to help make that work."
 
As envisioned, the InfoCenter Foundation will operate a single primary database containing thousands of individual records. Unlike the original post-Katrina database, information stored in the system will be perpetually archived for future reference. "We didn't see a necessity for archiving then," Charles notes, "but with the big system we'll be storing everything in an exported file because we know people will be interested in statistics on the information."

A round-the-world team of FileMaker Pro specialists works with Charles in building and maintaining the new database. In Mexico, Ibrahim Bittar oversees the developmental aspects of the project, and from Australia, Glenn Singleton is in charge of Internet operations. Charles himself serves as President and overall business manager for the project, with Aileen Silver in charge of public relations, and Yvonne van de Vegte responsible for translating the project into a range of languages. Together, the members of this team are making Charles's dream a reality.


Customer Benefits

A project of global scope undertaken by a group of five people could only work if built on a powerful, accessible foundation – and FileMaker Pro 8 lives up to those expectations, allowing development of a complex database structure with less work than ever before. "Migrating from FileMaker Pro 7 to FileMaker Pro 8 was easy," Charles affirms, "because the underlying structure doesn't change much. Our biggest benefit is the speed of the development of the software – by comparison with other products we might have done this with, or even with 'classic' versions of FileMaker Pro, it's about a three to one reduction in the time spent developing. In other words, with FileMaker Pro 8 we can do the work in about a third of the time it might otherwise take."

Enhanced relational tools are a particular advantage in the new version, especially in the creation of dense, complex relationships. "I'd developed a technique years ago for working with dynamic value lists where the secondary and tertiary fields are not only conditional but relational," Charles relates, "and I've taken this as far as six tiers. In 'classic' FileMaker, this was very complicated – but with the Relationship Graph, you can make these relationships much more simply."

The second main advantage of FileMaker Pro 8 makes the experience of actually using the system easier than ever. "The advent of Tool Tips really does allow us to eliminate tons of information we'd otherwise have to spill into a tutorial that users would have to grind and grope and go through," explains Charles. "But now, if someone needs to know 'what's this button do,' there's a Tool Tip right there to tell them! We tell them up front, if your cursor turns to a hand, there's a Tool Tip right there. Wait for it and it'll tell you what to do. So it becomes very simple and self explanatory."

Charles Durrwachter learned valuable lessons in the weeks after Hurricane Katrina. And he's hoping, through development of the powerful new InfoCenter Foundation database system, to help people around the world learn those lessons as well.


"Our biggest benefit is the speed of the development of the software – by comparison with other products we might have done this with, or even with 'classic' versions of FileMaker Pro, it's about a three to one reduction in the time spent developing. In other words, with FileMaker Pro 8 we can do the work in about a third of the time it might otherwise take."

Charles Durrwachter, President, InfoCenter Foundation



Contact information

Contact Info for Customer:

Charles Durrwachter
President
InfoCenter Foundation
infocenter@durrwachter.com
infocenter@durrwachter.com


Filemaker Contact:

Kevin Mallon
Public Relations Manager
FileMaker Inc.
408-987-7227
kevin_mallon@filemaker.com
http://www.filemaker.com


Overview
  • FileMaker Pro 8 expands an original post-Katrina missing persons database into a worldwide web-based clearinghouse for information on victims of natural disaster.
  • Based in Ponchatoula, LA
  • 5 employees
Industry
  • Non-Profit
Solutions
  • FileMaker Pro 8 database system allows worldwide web access to contributed information on missing persons, for deployment following natural disasters. Basic information will be made available to the general public, with additional data available to media, emergency management, and public safety personnel.
Benefits
  • Ease of development thanks to FileMaker Pro 8's enhanced relational capabilities ensures speedy deployment of necessary database structure when disasters strike.
  • Tool Tips functionality provides built-in answers to questions most likely to be asked by new users.
  • Easy operation by end users means vital information is available without learning-curve delays.