Rob Bodkin
Junior Member
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2002
- Professional Status
- Certified Residential Appraiser
- State
- Washington
Kobi,
Good luck. I found that after the brief, but steep, learning curve with total that it really does work quite well. I learned it when it was a DOS program that we used because our other appraisal software only supported the URAR. I also think it is a great idea to get used to it before adding another technology hurdle.
One bit of unsolicited feedback. Be careful of learning the tricks of the trade before really knowing the trade. Specifically what I mean is in the beginning It might be better to use a clip board, graph paper and pen when doing the inspections. Then you can concentrate on the home and not on getting the data in the PDA. One of the things that the PDA, and pre-made "checklists" tend to do is steer our brains towards recording the data that the PDA/Checklist/Form ask for. In my opinion it can lead us to be less observant overall. A good thing to remember is that the form serves the purpose of translating our observations and collected data in a manageable manner, but it is a summary of what we see and do. Take it all in and then whittle it down to the important points and necessary info.
That being said, I just bought a new PDA to use in the field. I debated about a tablet or laptop, but that was not the best choice for me, yet.
I bought the HP IPAQ H2215. So far I'm quite happy with it. There is another HP unit that I looked at that had WiFi built-in (my has only blue tooth) and a small thumb keyboard. It was maybe another $100. On another appraiser chat site the owner of APEX spoke highly of the one I bought and it received universally great reviews. I'll keep you posted on it's utility in the field. I liked the Sony you have, but Total works with Pocket PC.
Welcome and good luck.
Good luck. I found that after the brief, but steep, learning curve with total that it really does work quite well. I learned it when it was a DOS program that we used because our other appraisal software only supported the URAR. I also think it is a great idea to get used to it before adding another technology hurdle.
One bit of unsolicited feedback. Be careful of learning the tricks of the trade before really knowing the trade. Specifically what I mean is in the beginning It might be better to use a clip board, graph paper and pen when doing the inspections. Then you can concentrate on the home and not on getting the data in the PDA. One of the things that the PDA, and pre-made "checklists" tend to do is steer our brains towards recording the data that the PDA/Checklist/Form ask for. In my opinion it can lead us to be less observant overall. A good thing to remember is that the form serves the purpose of translating our observations and collected data in a manageable manner, but it is a summary of what we see and do. Take it all in and then whittle it down to the important points and necessary info.
That being said, I just bought a new PDA to use in the field. I debated about a tablet or laptop, but that was not the best choice for me, yet.
I bought the HP IPAQ H2215. So far I'm quite happy with it. There is another HP unit that I looked at that had WiFi built-in (my has only blue tooth) and a small thumb keyboard. It was maybe another $100. On another appraiser chat site the owner of APEX spoke highly of the one I bought and it received universally great reviews. I'll keep you posted on it's utility in the field. I liked the Sony you have, but Total works with Pocket PC.
Welcome and good luck.