Appraisal Scoop

Geek's Corner - Hand-e-holderTM Products launches new iPadTM/tablet holding device

Looking for a way to take your "handheld" mobile device into the field? Look no further!

An ergonomic holding solution was launched with the debut of Hand-e-holderTM, the innovative product of Hand-e-holder Products, Inc. (HPI)

The Hand-e-holder’s design gives users the natural relaxed feel of an Apple® iPadTM /tablet resting ergonomically in the palm of their hand. This provides a secure hold that lets users carry the iPad /tablet with confidence.

When viewing the iPad /tablet, Hand-e-holder’s 360-degree rotation lets users determine the most comfortable position unique to them. The adjustable strap fits all hand sizes, small to large. Depending on the environment, the Hand-e-holder may be used with an antibacterial strap that can be substituted for the standard strap.

When not holding the iPad /tablet with the Hand-e-holder, the patented hand plate allows the iPad /tablet to be used with a variety of accessories while still maintaining the 360-degree rotation capability.

The Hand-e-holderTM slides into the patented Adaptor Plate. This is the key component between the Hand-e-holder and any of its accessories. The Adaptor Plate comes with two pre-drilled holes to allow mounting to Hand-e-holder accessories or other OEM solutions. The Adaptor Plate comes in a clear acrylic or a black ABS matte finish. All accessories using the Adaptor Plate come with a retention pin. The pin slides through the top of the Adaptor Plate to retain the Hand-e-holder and attached iPad/tablet device in the event the Adaptor Plate is rotated beyond 90 degrees.

Accessories also include display stands. Stands vary from a clear stand with a black polished teardrop-shaped base, to a rectangular base either in a polished black or clear acrylic with a wireless keyboard grove for resting a keyboard. A mini tri-pod, that is collapsible, portable and has non-skid footings, can be used on a multitude of surfaces. C-clamps, in 1.5 and 2.5 inch models, can be used to attach a tablet to the edge of a counter, under the kitchen cabinets, or to trade show and store displays. The C-clamp has a curved channel allowing for it to be attached to irregular shaped objects, for instance pipes. Heavy duty spring clamp accessories also allow attachment to work environments where there are no horizontal surfaces; such as engine compartments or workshops.

To learn more about the Hand-e-holder, visit http://www.handeholder.com  or call (734) 665-7052.

Draw Plats from Legal Descriptions on Your iPad

 From James' Real Estate Business Blog:

"A new app I just downloaded for my iPad is called Metes and Bounds. I decided to test it the minute it opened with a current deal and entered 25 calls from the legal description to draw the plat. And, to my great surprise, the lines didn't close at the Point of Beginning, a problem. There was a gap."

"It wasn't a problem with the app, and I looked pretty good when I informed the title company of the typo in the legal description."

Read about Metes & Bounds and what it does in this profile.

a la mode Releases DaVinci for iPad

I just wanted to give everyone a heads-up that DaVinci for iPad is now available in the App Store.  You can download it from this link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/davinci-for-ipad/id372048588?mt=8. 

Like the first iPhone version, this is a Labs release.  There are some areas we know are still a bit rough around the edges, and in particular the photos handling we're going to revamp quite a bit.  But, you'll definitely get a feel for where we're going with this.

First is the sketcher.  Not only do you have more room to work with your sketch, we've been able to implement a toolbar that makes switching between drawing modes, adding symbols and labels, and defining areas more intuitive.  A new keyboard layout simplifies entering dimensions and drawing lines.  We've added directional arrows to the keyboard that can be used instead of swiping if that feels more comfortable.  And we've also introduced the ability to draw 45 degree walls by either swiping in a diagonal direction or using the corresponding arrow keys, which is a huge time-saver.

 

Data gathering also got a huge boost from the extra screen space in that we're able to show the data entry form, navigation between forms, and the active QuickList on the screen at the same time.  Tapping a QuickList item automatically takes you to the next field and loads the next QuickList.  You'll be amazed how fast you can rip though the data gathering phase.  Even the FieldPad benefitted with all the extra screen space for drawing with your finger.

 

One of the key features of the iPad is that there's no correct or incorrect way to hold it.  DaVinci adopts this philosophy by rotating all screens automatically no matter how you hold it.  So whatever orientation feels most comfortable to use is just fine.

 

Also, just like the iPhone version, you can configure DaVinci for iPad to sync reports, form layouts and QuickLists from WinTOTAL, TOTAL 2010 or DaVinci Mobile Pro.

Give it a try and let us know what you think.  We'd love to know.

Thanks,
Adam Calvery
a la mode, inc.

Download the Realtor.com iPhone Real Estate App

Not only can you instantly access over 4 million homes for sale with the touch of a button, whether you are
driving or walking through a neighborhood, you can also see:

• Homes for sale nearby your current location with your GPS enabled iPhone
• Open house times, dates and locations
• Homes for sale on a map, even the neighborhood you're standing in, instantly
• Multiple photos, property details and pricing on nearly any home for sale
• More homes for sale than any other real estate site in America
• Information you can trust - because it's the official listing site of the National Association of REALTORS®

Plus, REALTOR.com® is the only site that regularly updates home sales data throughout the day. So if a home comes on the market today or if a price is reduced, you'll see it before anyone else.

Geek's Corner - Pogoplug™ Office Gateway - Easy Syncing and Sharing of Files

Late last year Cloud Engines, Inc. unveiled its second generation of the award winning Pogoplug multimedia sharing device. The new Pogoplug hardware sports a new design boasting multiple USB ports supporting up to 4 external drives for expanded data capacity. The new Pogoplug also gives users improved sharing capabilities, an easy drag-and-drop interface to create engaging multi-media slide shows, seamless media playback, and enhanced sharing with friends on Facebook, Twitter and MySpace.

Pogoplug acts like a gateway from your home or office through the Internet. It allows you to access, share and even stream your personal digital media directly to anybody, anywhere in the world. Your content always remains physically in your home or office, making it secure, convenient and available on your terms. Pogoplug is perfect for those individuals with increasingly mobile lifestyles and small businesses in need of simple, inexpensive mobile data access solutions.

NEW HARDWARE The new Pogoplug design retains the simplicity and ease of use of the original while listening to consumer feedback and adding the ability to directly connect up to 4 external hard drives at once. The resulting product boasts an improved design with greatly improved functionality for users with multiple drives and an increasing need for easy synching and sharing of their digital libraries.

NEW FEATURES Automatically Synchronize Photos, Videos, Music and Other Selected Content.  Users can synchronize their Pogoplug with their PC or Mac to automatically import new content from popular applications such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, and iPhoto. This feature allows Pogoplug owners to “set it and forget it” and always have access to new photos, videos and music from anywhere on the Internet.

 Drag-and-Drop Music and Photo Slideshows Users can easily create and share fun and engaging slideshows using their stored photos, videos and music. Creating a slideshow with Pogoplug is as simple as drag and drop, and sharing these slideshows is just as easy as ever. Once a user’s link is shared and viewed, their slideshow will immediately begin with the photos, videos and music they selected, playing seamlessly in the viewer’s browser.

Easier Sharing with Pogoplug Address Book Pogoplug Address Book greatly improves the speed and ease of use of sharing with a user’s friends and family. Pogoplug automatically remembers all email addresses entered in a user’s previous shares - even if that share no longer exists – and makes them available in an easy to use address book to make sharing truly one click away.

Global Search Across Multiple Drives and Pogoplugs With support for multiple drives on a single Pogoplug (and multiple Pogoplugs on the same account) Pogoplug has added "global" search support across all of a user’s Pogoplugs and drives. Search filters are now a distinct feature, allowing users to view all of their photos, videos and music in a single organized view, or to search for a specific file across all Pogoplugs and drives.

Organize Your Music, Photos and Videos Pogoplug automatically displays music by Album, Artist and Genre, and shows cover art for quick access to a user’s favorite music. Photos are now displayed by photo timeline and videos are only a click away, including the ability to watch a preview in the thumbnail itself.

Play movies directly from my.pogoplug.com, or even to the iPhone Pogoplug now supports the playback of videos directly from a Pogoplug, with support for the most popular cameras, video cameras and mobile phones. Movies can be shared and viewed directly from the Pogoplug website – or even from an iPhone!

Pricing and Availability Orders for Pogoplug at http://www.pogoplug.com  -  The Pogoplug has a suggested retail price of $129, with no additional service fees. 

USEFUL LINKS

Pogoplug web site: www.pogoplug.com  ·

Product photos: www.flickr.com/photos/pogoplug  ·

Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/pogoplug  ·

Pogoplug online community: www.pogoplugged.com

ABOUT CLOUD ENGINES, INC. Founded in 2007 by experienced entrepreneurs from the digital media and security industries, Cloud Engines is located in San Francisco, California. The company was formed with a mission to change the way personal content is stored and distributed over the Internet. The Cloud Engines philosophy is that by making a product simple, open and affordable, the community will participate in making it better. For more information, please visit our Web site, www.cloudengines.com. 

Video Sneak Peek: a la mode's DaVinci for iPhone coming soon to the Apple App Store

DaVinci for iPhone has been submitted to Apple by a la mode, inc., and they're waiting to hear when it will become available for download on the iTunes App Store (probably week or two).

To promote the pending release of DaVinci for iPhone, a la mode created a really slick commercial that was debuted at the Valuation 2009 trade show earlier this week.

They first announced they were working on DaVinci for iPhone this past Spring.  Since then, it's received a ton of positive response from appraisers, primarily through its page on the a la mode labs

I've been testing the beta version of DaVinci for iPhone for several weeks and I think they've going to have a real winner on their hands.  Watch their YouTube video to see what I mean.

Fannie Mae Announcement 09-14 Requires Submission of Electronic Appraisal Reports in MISMO XML Standard

In Announcement 09-14, New Data Delivery Requirements, Fannie Mae announced changes to the loan delivery file and the Uniform Residential Loan Application (Form 1003) to accommodate new data elements required by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

Download Fannie Mae Announcement 09-14-Electronic Appraisal Reports

These changes are intended to result in enhanced identification and accountability of key parties in the mortgage transaction and are another step in Fannie Mae’s ongoing efforts to improve loan quality.

In the coming months, Fannie Mae will announce a series of other policies intended to improve loan quality, including the implementation of a robust collateral valuation analysis process, enhanced credit policy guidance, improvements to Fannie Mae’s quality control processes, and additional guidance on lender quality control activities.

In support of the loan quality initiative, this Announcement includes information about the following:

• Submission of Electronic Appraisal Reports
• Enhancements to the Loan Delivery File Format
• Mortgage Fraud Reporting

 

Sarah Vetault of Tucson, AZ - www.ComplineGroup.com asked on the WinTOTAL Users Group:

"I just got this announcement from Fannie Mae requiring submission of electronic appraisal reports in MISMO XML format by 2010.  I wonder what this means from our end.  Is the good old industry standard emailed PDF going bye-bye, forcing us to use slice/dice/rip-the-data portals for mortgage work?  Or will the lenders rip the data themselves out of our pdf files for submission to FNMA?  We are definitely living in interesting times. "

What are YOUR thoughts?

Review: eTrac Webforms - Is free really free?

Working RE Magazine recently featured an announcement that eTrac, an online web based appraisal management system, is offering appraisers an opportunity to sign up in the eTrac network for free.

FREE is always nice, right? So I signed up and began exploring some of eTrac’s offerings. The website states:

"The eTrac Network is designed to provide mortgage brokers, lenders, BPO management companies and consumers with access to qualified real estate professionals. The network can be accessed directly from our website at no cost or from within our management products. eTrac Enterprise Edition or OASIS for lender users have direct access to the entire network of real estate professionals. The system allows users to efficiently find, assign and receive services from thousands of qualified real estate professionals nationwide."

I am not sure, but it would appear that if you don’t have an eTrac website (pricing starting at $199/year) – how would you complete and send reports to the client ordering through the eTrac network?

My next stop was checking out the eTrac “Webforms” module. Another quote from the eTrac website:

"eTrac Web Forms is the newest way to produce your appraisal reports- entirely online, allowing appraisers to be completely mobile and autonomous. This unique approach to delivering software as a service will give appraisers what they really want- a simple solution that will work on their Windows PC, their IMAC, their iPhone, or any Internet browser based. No installs, no PDF drivers, no hassles. "

I found that eTrac offers the Webforms “lite” version for free. You can create new files and send them right from the web. The only limitations they claim for the free suite, is you can only access the last 20 files you create. You must upgrade to store more than 20 files. You can see it at http://www.appraiseanywhere.com.

See eTrac's Response to this review: Click Here

Click here to continue reading. . . .

Free Webinar Wednesday May 7th - Motion F5 Mobile Field Tool - Motion Toughens Up with Semi-Rugged Slate Tablet PC for Appraisers

Appraisal Scoop author John Hill, from Allegiance Technology, and Motion Computing are sponsoring a webinar tomorrow for people that want to learn about the Motion F5 Field Tablet PC.

The Motion F5 Mobile Field Tool is the first semi-rugged slate PC designed specifically for the mobile appraiser that combines durability, mobility and integrated functionality with the benefits and convenience of tablet input. See our Motion F5 Brochure.

The nice part is that if you are thinking about one of these tablets, there is an opportunity for webinar attendees to purchase one for $1,000 off the list price.

Sign Up HERE! - F5 Webinar hosted by Allegiance Technology

The F5 is IP54 rated to meet the demands of the job from dusty construction sites to the occasional drop from a vehicle or exposure to a rainstorm. In fact, the F5 is designed to protect from the top three causes of notebook damage, which continue to be drops, liquid spills and objects being dropped on to notebooks.

Additional F5 capabilities include:

• Thin and light with high performance capabilities (approximately 3 lbs.)
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth®, and optional integrated mobile broadband
• Shock, drop, vibration and temperature resistance
• Vehicular docking capabilities
• Intuitive buttons and triggers
• Integrated barcode scanner (optional)
• Integrated RFID reader offering quick and simple inventory tracking and management
• 2.0 megapixel camera
• Integrated fingerprint reader to simplify password management while increasing data security
• Natural handwriting interface for convenient data capture while standing or walking
• Speak Anywhere® audio technology for convenient access to voice notes and advanced communication

Webinar 4/18/2008 - Mobile Appraisers Answer Your Tablet PC Questions!

WEBINAR UPDATE:   The webinar on Friday went well and John was able to recorded it for anyone who didn't get to attend.  Many thanks to Greg Davenport for bringing his unique perspective and for the attendees who asked such relevant, thoughtful questions. 

You can see stream it here and download it here.

To help show some of the differences between operating systems and tablets, John Hill of of Tablet PC News at TabletPCBuzz, is going to host a webinar tomorrow (April 18th), at 2pm EASTERN STANDARD TIME.  It will absolutely NOT be any kind of sales pitch.  It is intended to be a forum where people can ask questions and get answers from other appraisers.

If you are an appraiser and Tablet PC owner who would like to be answering questions, please email John at [email protected].  This will allow him to identify you and unmute your call so you can share your expertise.

If this goes according to plan, John won't even talk except to repeat questions to the appraiser experts.  His only shameless plug will be to tell you about their Tablet PC demo program which you can read about on his website - Click here.

Here is the meeting information - please add it to your calendar:

Topic: Appraiser's Tablet Questions
Date: Friday, April 18, 2008
Time: 2:00 pm, Eastern Daylight Time
Meeting Number: 559 076 182
Meeting Password: tablet

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To join the online meeting
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1. Go to https://alltp.webex.com/alltp/j.php?ED=96320107&UID=0
2. Enter your name and email address.
3. Enter the meeting password: tablet
4. Click "Join".

Call-in toll number (US/Canada):          1-650-429-3300      

To add this meeting to your calendar program (for example Microsoft Outlook), click this link:
https://alltp.webex.com/alltp/j.php?ED=96320107&UID=0&ICS=MI&LD=1&RD=2&ST=1&SHA2=5IWVHl7NYT-AfVAHj1SVwC0YFvBv7ZMsezPeAJ2mk/Q=


John will attempt to record this meeting (sometimes it works and sometimes not) for later viewing/listening.

Author: John Hill - Enjoy the best source for Tablet PC News at TabletPCBuzz    Visit our Tablet PC Store .  If you have any questions, email me at [email protected]

ALLTP Website

ALLTP Tablet PC Store

My blog: John Hill Talks Tablets