How big are your files?

[Kate]

My win total files are up to 10.0MB

My ACI files are averaging 1.50MB

I called Win total about this and was not satisfied by the answer of that is just how it is.

So, I am curious if anyone else has this issue.

I may have to eat my hat and admit that although ACI is still an inferior product it may not kill my computer like Wintotal is apparently doing. Click forms is still running at 2.0 average and has not had any issues. I was really hoping to stay with Win total but I can't afford the huge files.

Is it just me?

 

[Bearslide]

Your question intriqued me, so I went and checked a file that should have been huge. I had 9 comparables, 5 pages of interior/additional photos of subject, 3 pages of interior photos of the comps plus 3 exterior comp photo pages, map pages, 3 pages of aerial photos, 6 pages of information scanned from the subject web site and 4 pages of narrative, all added to the condo form. File size was 2.4 MB.

I'm not a techie, so I can't answer the why - but it would seem your files are overly large. Are you optimizing your photos? That has helped me to reduce file size, as I include a lot of photos in reports.

Might be helpful to call again and speak with a different tech - "that's just the way it is" doesn't sound like much of an answer. Most of the techs are very good - occassionally one can't help and won't say so.

 

[TC]

I may have to eat my hat and admit that although ACI is still an inferior product it may not kill my computer like Wintotal is apparently doing.

luv ya

TC

 

[Couch Potato]

Photo resolution

My win total files are up to 10.0MB

My ACI files are averaging 1.50MB

I called Win total about this and was not satisfied by the answer of that is just how it is.

So, I am curious if anyone else has this issue.

I may have to eat my hat and admit that although ACI is still an inferior product it may not kill my computer like Wintotal is apparently doing. Click forms is still running at 2.0 average and has not had any issues. I was really hoping to stay with Win total but I can't afford the huge files.

Is it just me?

I bet you had AC shrinking your photo resolutions and WinTOTAL is not doing it. If you manually use the photo optimization, the file sizes will go way down. (I would think the command to shrink them automatically would be fixed by now. Have you set the preference to do so?)

 

[BRCJR]

9000 kb to 16000 kb (United Systems)

 

[PropertyEconomics]

I would also check how you are scanning maps, if you are, and how you are saving them. Maps and other similar graphics can eat A LOT of space if your not careful regarding resolutions, etc.. Just another thought.
Our appraisals these days are typically less than a meg including all subject interior photos and photos of the comparable sales and we use ACI.

 

[Richard Johnston]

The problem may be in your pics...In Wintotal one can optimize photos..select small photo and medium image detail. You have to perform this task for each photo...It usually takes about 5-10 seconds per photo...Also...check your camera setting...make sure that it is not set on high..My Wintotal files are usually less than one meg and I put approx. 12 photos in each report...

 

[David Beasley]

I agree with the assertion that it is likely your photos causing the issue. I use a Nikon D100 SLR to shoot my photos, and the images come off pretty large (even though it is the smallest the camera can do - the large setting produces images that are EACH 10 MB in size) but I use the optimizer to downsize them to medium (leaves lots of crisp details for even the pickiest of underwriters). Even when I submit 6 comps, which is becoming too often of late, my completed files very seldom are larger than 1 MB.

You may also need to optimize any scanned images or maps too. If you add a lot of maps (plat, flood, tax card images, etc) shrink them down too. I use either letter or legal size (both are options in the optimizer) since scanned images in decent detail come out larger than life size more times than not. It is better to scan them at higher resolution and then shrink them in WinTotal, because if you start out with low resolution scans and then shrink that, the results are often blurry to the end user.

 

[sunnycal]

My win total files are up to 10.0MB

My ACI files are averaging 1.50MB

I called Win total about this and was not satisfied by the answer of that is just how it is.

So, I am curious if anyone else has this issue.

I may have to eat my hat and admit that although ACI is still an inferior product it may not kill my computer like Wintotal is apparently doing. Click forms is still running at 2.0 average and has not had any issues. I was really hoping to stay with Win total but I can't afford the huge files.

Is it just me?

It is most likely your photos because most of the forms in a report are basically word processing documents. When you upload photos to your report you should use the Optimizer to reduce the size of your photos and usually are prompted by Wintotal as you upload them.

 

[Lloyd Bonafide]

For most appraisals I see that are over 2 megs, the culprit is usually scanned images.

Mine are usually .9 to 1.5 megs, depending on how many photos I have in the report.

I almost never scan a page into a report - they take up too much room. For plat maps, property profiles, Apex sketches, etc., I print the pages to PDFs, and insert them into the report before I send it. The quality is much better than scanned images, also.