See http://help.filemaker.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5464/

Returns a number between zero and one, including zero, but not including one.

FileMaker Pro 10.0v3 addressed an issue where the “Random” calculation function could generate non-random values on certain machines. The “Random” calculation will now generate values greater than or equal to 0 and less than 1. The value will never be 1.

In versions prior to FileMaker Pro 10.0v3, the “Random” function returns “a random number between zero and one” including “zero and one”.

patricia

That is a slightly different problem because you want to remove the number from the available set once it has been used. One way to do it would be to set up a list of number from 1-179 like this:

Set Variable [ $i, 1 ]
Loop
   Set Variable [ $choices, $choices & $i & ¶ ]
   Set Variable [ $i, $i + 1 ]
   Exit Loop If [ $i > Get(FoundCount) ]
End Loop

Then randomly select one and remove it from the list:

Set Variable [ $rand, RandomNumber(1, ValueCount($choices)) ]
Set Variable [ $one, GetValue($choices, $rand) ]
Set Variable [ $choices, LeftValues($choices, $rand - 1) & MiddleValues($choices, $rand + 1, ValueCount($choices))

Do this in a loop and you should get them randomly assigned.

This is all untested code.

Geoff

Can this custom function work with this or is that something out of the scope?

When we first wrote this, Jesse and I joked about setting up a machine to look for 1 from Random:

Loop
   Exit Loop If [Random = 1]
End Loop

I suspect it would still be running

But in our defense, I went straight to the horse’s mouth, so to speak. I happen to know who wrote the core calculation engine in FileMaker 7, so I asked him, and he kindly responded that Random can, indeed, return 1. I believe him.

Geoff

The irritating thing is, I’m going to be booking my FM 10 exam soon. I can imagine the scene now, me furious with righteous indignation that my answer to the question on the Random function is correct whilst the examiner patiently quotes from the gospel that is the FM 10 training manual.

Now THAT is exiting : )