Thanks for the kind words, Mary! I hope you are finding v4.1+ to be better than that earlier v4.0 release. We should have another update out this week which will ad some things people have been asking for, plus some fixes. You'll start to see more regular product updates now that all the core versions are out... As always, the updates are free for registered users...
Kendall:
Of course, I am biased, and I try to stay away from doing "sales" type things on the forums. What I CAN say is that I believe Apex will not have the problem you are seeing on your Radeon/HDTV setup. Most of the sketchers work the same - tell it the Area name, draw & close, move on to the next Area. The keystrokes may be slightly different for selecting certain functions, but many of them are identical. This is natural and we don't get upset when others use "our" keystrokes. It makes sense to me to have some sort of "standard" even if it is loose.
Probably the biggest difference WS users see when moving to Apex is that by default, the dimension for each line is not "posted" automatically. So, you need to hit [Enter] to end the line and then [Enter] again to "post" the dimension. This takes, what, an extra 1/2 second? Still, there is (always has been) an option to post the dimension automatically if that is your preference. Over time, you may find WHY the dimension is not posted automatically by default. IF you find that to be of benefit through use, great, but if not, simply go to the Tools/Configuration tab and select the AutoPost dimensions check box.
Other than that, Apex uses [F4] to display the "what am I about to draw" dialog (we call it "Define Area.") I believe most WS users do not use an F-key or the menu item, but rather click on the little L-shaped button to "Define the Area"... In Apex, you can use the Draw/Define Area menu, the [F4] key or click on the BIG icon that says "Define Area"... Again, the same but different, LOL
Both programs are typically driven by distance + direction, [Enter] by "power users" but are essentially identical for mouse users. Define the Area, click the start point, click at the end, do the dimension (manual placement or automatic), move to the next point, etc. Both programs monitor your distance to close ("to POB in Apex), etc.
Rise & Run for Bay windows is pretty much the same except that you don't need to enter in a [A] to designate you are about to draw an angle. You just do (say), 3 up arrow, 3 right arrow, [Enter]...
Curves are done most simply with the scroll wheel on a mouse. If the curve is complicated, people hit [F7] (or select the big Curve icon) and a dialog pops up with the various elements of a curve. Enter what you have and the "Curve Solver" will calculate the exact degree of curvature that you can use or manually round yourself if you want. That is, if you enter the chord (distance between the beginning and end of the curve) and either the arc height (bulge) or the arc length you measured, it may come back with something like 88.7 degrees, so you may want to just say "Heck, that is a 90 degree curve" and select that pre-set button or use the exact degree, your choice. We all know the imprecise measurements taken at times...
Text and Symbols are mostly done by Drag and Drop these days, but you can also do it the "legacy" way... select them from a list w/preview, and use the mouse or keyboard to move them around, pressing [Enter] or left-click to "post them"... All 200 (?) Symbols are categorized by type and we have a "Favorites" folder which comes up by default so you don't have to scroll through a ton of Symbols. All Symbols are drawn to scale so they come out the correct size according to your current scale of drawing. Every Symbol can be rescaled if needed, either "on-the-fly" of changed to a permanent default size if desired. (The default saving was removed from v4.0 and is yet to re-appear, but it on the list for the next update - sort of "Back by popular demand" We removed it because we didn't think people used that feature, but we were wrong, so it is returning.)
Yes, there will be SOME learning curve, but for the essentials, it is more mental or in breaking old habits, but as other "converts" may say, not really hard. So, basically, for your basic needs, Apex will largely operate pretty much the same as WS. Where is goes beyond is in dealing with those really weird ones, in doing metes and bounds from legals, in its ability to trace a scanned image (floor plan or aerial shot) and a host of other extras. You should be able to read most (if not all) of your legacy WS files, as well. Some years back, we wrote a converter so people using WS could conveniently use Apex with old files. When we read the WS file, a dialog will pop up warning you to check your old calculations - we found several apparent calculation discrepancies - some in the sample files some forms programs were using! Pretty scary in today's litigious world.
Anyway, the best thing to do is simply download the trial version and install it. You can quickly tell if you are having any display issues. Beyond that, you can view the video tutorials and determine if upgrading to Apex is right for you. Of course, I think you should, but again I am biased...
Let me know if I can help. You may also get advice from your peers here or on other forums which may be more valuable to you. We think that having a large user base is a good thing because so many people are available for "How do I handle this?" type stuff...
Finally, where are you in the Denver area? I travel there several times a year (I am a member of a couple of Colorado appraisal groups) for training and CE classes. I just returned from a swing through Denver, Copper Mountain, Ft. Collins, Boulder doing a Mobile Technology gig. When we do these, we always offer some hands-on training, either formally or just impromptu. We love training because we like to meet with users and get their feedback on how they want us to improve things for their own use.
Hope this helps! If you have detailed questions, feel free to write me directly at the address spelled out below. feel free to send me a sample WS file and I'll convert it for you and send it back as a PDF (we have a built-in PDF thing) so you can look at the output.
-Randall Garrett- rgarrett [at] apexwin [dot] com
..Apex Software..
