To: All WinTOTAL Aurora (version 5) users
From: Adam Calvery, VP Appraisal Products, a la mode, inc.
Re: Aurora update, Bird's Eye imagery and FHA loans

This month's WinTOTAL Aurora update is now available on our servers. To download it, click the "Get Updates" button on the toolbar in your Appraisal Desktop. You can read the complete release notes here, or visit the Aurora Status website.  To visit it now, click here.

With this update, the Virtual Earth maps in WinTOTAL Aurora now include Bird's Eye imagery.  This is one of the reasons we switched to the VE map system.  As you’ll recall from previous update e-mails, Bird's Eye images are high resolution photos taken at 45 degree angles from airplane fly-overs, and can be rotated 360 degrees around your subject.  Not only are they incredibly cool, but because of their clarity, clients are able to easily see what’s around the property and the land use (i.e. they can actually see the sewage treatment "pond" right behind the house).  And while metro areas have Bird's Eye imagery available, many rural areas have it as well. To give it a try, click the new Bird's Eye icon at the top of your screen the next time you download a map in Aurora.   

Also, you may be interested to know HUD recently reported that over the last three months, the volume of FHA mortgage originations has doubled, going up to 181,900 applications.  Since these FHA loans are so popular, being able to accept these orders could be a good way for you to offset a slowdown in traditional lender work.  And HUD recently changed their FHA approved appraiser guidelines, so you’ll want to read up on it.  To find out more about the requirements and to submit your application, click here.

To go along with this, we're adding content to your XSellerate marketing system to help you let clients know about your FHA approved status, as well as a pre-written web page to add to your Appraiser XSite.  Stay on the lookout for those.

That's it for today.  As always, thanks for your business, and feel free to e-mail me with any questions. 

Adam Calvery
VP, Appraisal Products
a la mode, inc
adam@alamode.com

WinTOTAL Aurora (v5) – May 15, 2008 Update
This update addresses issues throughout WinTOTAL, and introduces the Bird's eye oblique imagery as an available style of map. 

Virtual Earth Mapping: 

• "Bird's Eye Map" is now available in the pre-populated location map page titles. 
• In certain scenarios, Data Execution Prevention settings could cause issues completing the map wizard.  This has been corrected. 
• The zoom level will no longer move when downloading a location map on step 2.
• Editing a balloon and finishing the map wizard without first leaving the balloon, now correctly saves edited text.
• Ampersands in addresses now work correctly with the map wizard.
• Rentals will no longer get added to the map when going backwards through the map wizard, then completing it and Rentals are unchecked for placement in map options. 
• Choosing an icon, then quickly choosing another icon from a different type now places the correct type of icon.
• Distances under .01 miles now display and transfer "Less than 0.01 miles" instead of "Less than 1 mile".
• Editing a balloon on a flood map, editing the text and clicking Finish without clicking out of the balloon now places the correct text in the balloon.
• Getting a location map only while set to Legacy mapping no longer downloads a Virtual Earth map.
• Getting a map, then going back to step 1 of the map wizard and changing the GPS coordinates manually now updates the property correctly.
• Launching the map wizard with two reports open no longer shifts focus to the other report.
• Rotating a balloon via the right click menu no longer offsets the balloon tail from the balloon end point.
• When entering a starting location for driving directions, tabbing from the ZIP field will now auto populate the latitude and longitude fields.
• The "Report Transfer Options" now transfers blank data into the form if there is no information available in the map wizard.
• The checkboxes in step 3 of the map wizard now toggle correctly with the "Adjust for best performance" Performance Options set or when set to Windows Classic theme.
• Addresses in a report that are not selected for placement on the map will no longer appear on step 1 or 2 of the map wizard.
• On some maps, cardinal directions to subject could display an incorrect direction.  This has been corrected.
• In some cases, the map wizard would encounter an error and need to close after finishing the wizard.  This has been corrected.

Appraisal Desktop: 

• Working in a report while that same report is expanded in the Files PowerView could cause a “SetExpandedRowState failed" message to occur.  This has been resolved. 
• The Appraisal Desktop window no longer flickers when trying to resize it to smaller than 800 x 600 pixels.

Comps PowerView: 

• Importing comps from the current WinTOTAL report will now save the geocoding confidence level to the database.
• Comparables with saved latitudes and longitudes, but no geocoding confidence, will now be marked as having high confidence by the Comps Database GeoCode Utility in the a la mode Assistant.
• Moving comps in the Comps PowerView now retains manually entered latitude and longitude.

General: 

• Double-clicking PowerView icons while on the order form no longer gives a message that the report could not be inserted into the reports database. 
• Multi-field QuickLists now work correctly when multiple checkbox fields are included. 
• Delivering a report with the Cooperative [Form 2090][03/05] major form will now send the Cooperative Project Information section correctly.

• Images added to an appraisal that contain double spaces in the filename are now correctly retained in the report when reopened outside of WinTOTAL's Files PowerView. 

Orders PowerView: 

• Ad hoc contacts will no longer be matched to deleted contacts.  Instead, new contacts will be created.
• Corrected all remaining scenarios where an "Unable to associate order" message was displayed in the Orders PowerView when saving. 

Sketch PowerView:

• Selecting a Sketch [Manual] page in the Forms PowerView, then immediately jumping to the Sketch PowerView now works correctly. 

AppraisalPort Delivery: 

• Additional Listings forms now convert when delivering to AppraisalPort. 

Delivery Plugins:

• A new plugin is available for PCV Murcor.

Review Scripts:

• GP Consumer [Signature][10/2007][Ltr] (35146)
• GP Consumer [No Signature][10/2007][Ltr] (35146)
• GP Consumer Short Form [Signature][10/2007][Ltr] (35146)
• GP Consumer Short Form [No Signature][10/2007][Ltr] (35146)

Updated Forms:

• GP Consumer Certifications Addendum [10/2007][Ltr]
• GP Consumer Short Form Certifications Addendum [10/2007][Ltr]