Test driving DaVinci in the real world

Woody Fincham, Research Fellow

DaVinci is nearly ready. Finally a field data gathering tool I can use (Pocket TOTAL just wasn't for me as I have stated repeatedly). As such, I've decided to write a review of DaVinci after giving the latest build a real world test drive. To say this program is a big deal to a la mode is an understatement. They've spent a lot of time and money to get this program off the launch pad and in to orbit. Of course my only objective with this review, as is always the case with my articles, is to give my honest opinion. I am an appraiser after all, and giving my opinion comes naturally.

I have to mention up front that was kind enough to give me a Motion LE1600 to use during my time with the labs. I love it in nearly every way. I couldn't help but think, after seeing the UMPC's that were issued to some of the other guys, that I was either really fortunate or given special treatment. I am sure I was just the guy that got lucky, and I've shared the pros and cons in a separate review. The answers to questions that many of you have been asking about hardware platforms can be found in the Hardware Reviews section here.

As always, bear in mind that the prototype build I based this article on is just that: still a prototype. Some things are not up to snuff yet. Many items will be tweaked, and full integration with Aurora will be 100%. With all that being said, here we go...

The biggest reason "going mobile" became such a big deal for the industry in the first place was to assist appraisers in improving service to their clients. I can remember during the boom I thought mobile technology would be great. So at the time I sank right at a thousand dollars into Pocket Total and a PPC, and both disappointed me. Some days I would have two of my own reports to do, then meet and assist another trainee or two, only to get back in the office to have to re-enter and re-sketch the properties. So the biggest improvement to anyone using DaVinci will be removing redundant tasks. Business has cooled so much since then, now I need to do my work and still devote time to managing my business and marketing to new clients. So this platform working well, is something I'm highly interested in seeing work well and will spend money on.

Using it in the field I have found it to do most of things we hoped it would. It does and will require most of us to adjust how we do things. It's most certainly not a clipboard, which will make some appraisers angry and turn them off immediately. The interface, being the best I have seen when compared to any other field data gathering tool is great. It's very intuitive and easy to figure out. When starting a new file, just give it a name you're taken right to the order information screen, which is similar to Aurora. The handwriting recognition is great, and the rest you can fill out with the stock drop-down entries. The benefit of this system is that it allows you to quickly input typical data, and edit it on the fly. And if you're like me and work in several different cities and counties, like drop-downs in WinTOTAL, you simply enter anything you need and it's available in every file thereafter. This includes most fields throughout the program.

The main section I want to point out is the Data PowerView. In it you'll find mini-checklists for the neighborhood, site, exterior, improvements, and two unique tabs: room analysis and critical items. The way the data screens are broken up is the best part of data gathering. Each person who uses this can be as anal as they want to be by customizing their sections to include even the minutest details. On the Critical items tab, you can make a basic checklist that replaces our paper lists now. It's very flexible and can fit most anyone's tastes.

The room-by-room analysis is one of my favorite features because I take a lot of notes. Plus, it works with the sketch labels. When you label a room in the sketch, you can then double click the label and it will bring you to a checklist and data screen for that specific room. Here again you can customize what you take down, and using the check boxes you can fly through a fifty thousand dollar custom bathroom in no time . I like this feature and use it, especially for amenity rich rooms like bathrooms and kitchens. You can even load pictures to show the room.

With all of the data input sections, the ability to change what you want on the fly makes it very notable. Anyone willing to spend a small amount of time, and buy a tablet PC (this works on UMPC's as well) will be able to increase their productivity and stop many of the redundant tasks we all go through now. Logging in with an air card and uploading it back and forth with my assistant will be a dream come true.

The last item to look at is the sketcher itself. Personally, sketching is something I am very good at, and very specific in the way I do it. Having a construction background as a 203(k) consultant, I have drawn plans, read plans, consulted architects and have used some form of CAD since I was a freshman in high school. I had a trainee tell me once that my true calling was to be an architect. I always draw interior walls, and even make normal plan symbols for sinks, ranges and such. Overkill for most, I know, but I am picky when it comes to my sketches. The reason is because so many of the reviews I have done have had such poor sketches, mainly due to the appraisers lack of good measuring skills and ability to understand that a home is a sum of 4 sides, and can never exceed normal geometrical facts.

I am so used to Apex that I can fly through sketches. But DaVinci's sketching program is not a second rate sketcher. The keyboard input is very similar and the transition was painless. In Apex, I do not use a mouse to draw, just my number pad and some arrows. In the field with DaVinci, I have to sketch by hand which took a couple of reports to get used to, but I've found that overall I saved time. Especially since the sketch transfers back into my WinTOTAL report.

I'm not a fan of the "stamp mode" for labeling, but I know others like it. Interior sketching can be a little hairy when dealing with tight spaces. The Undo button will work backwards from your last input all the way back to the first. You can literally undo an entire sketch if you decide to keep tapping it. I miss the ability to hit Ctrl and an arrow to jump from point to point in the interior wall mode, but I've been assured that is in the works. Editing will allow you to change the colors of the lines both interior and exterior, a useful tool when dealing with hypothetical options on a sketch, or to draw attention to a room. Placing symbols is a frustrating experience in its present form, as rotating and placing a fireplace or stairs can require you to have some pretty steady hands. When you figure you are using a stylus, I am sure it will be a bit shaky.

Using it in WinTOTAL with a keyboard and mouse still needs some work. You can sketch with it, but there are some keyboard inputs and other details that don't make it as fluid as I'd like. The crew at a la mode is working on it daily however, and I'm sure by the time it goes to beta and final release these things will be addresses.

Whether you inspect from the outside in or inside out, you can adjust DaVinci to work with you and not against you. This concern came up from a few people we polled recently. Because everything is customizable, you can literally arrange this program any way you want. If you want to strip down the lists and build them to accommodate inside to outside data gathering and sketching you can.

Speaking of arranging the check lists to your own tastes, another item in the works is the ability to create "templates" for different types of properties. If you're doing a 1025, it would be nice to have a multi-family checklist made up just for that form type, and so on for each of the major and general purpose forms. Additionally, we'll be able to make our own templates and share them online. The details are still being worked out. I know many appraisers are unwilling to share anything, but I know many are. I've personally made checklists and spreadsheets to help colleagues get more organized.

For those of us who are willing to embrace the technology and actually spend some time learning how to properly use it, we'll see benefits that make us better at our jobs. At first it may take you a little longer than normal on an inspection, and yes, you will look a bit funny the first couple of times you use DaVinci. I would recommend you do what I did: use it on some vacant units, your own house, maybe redrawing a few old files or talk a neighbor into letting you measure their house for free. After several reports, you should be proficient and graceful (at least as graceful as an appraiser will ever be). To expect the first few times you use it to be fast and seamless doesn't seem realistic, no matter what new software you're using.

In my opinion and my opinion only, DaVinci can and does destroy Pocket TOTAL. That's an opinion many will bemoan, and some will deny to their death beds. Few of us like change in how we do things, which is why I am sure Henry Harrison still sells rub on transfers for maps. For many, Pocket TOTAL was good for its time, just like dot matrix printers were good in theirs. Having the screen size of a tablet does enables appraisers to have enough room and space to do their job as thoroughly as they want. It also provides enough power to let us get the job done.

Overall, I would have to say it is a good program, the best available even. On a scale of 1-10 with 10 the highest, I give the version I have now a solid 8. I'll give it more once some of the bugs and keyboard entries are straightened out. I know that in what I have seen of the development team, and what they are doing presently, the program will be top notch by release. That means I get to update this review in few short weeks. The concept is right on point. a la mode just has to smooth the wrinkles out. Even if it hit shelves today it would do something my clipboard can't do, and something nothing else on the market can do as well: save me a significant amount of time. Now if I could just get the guys at a la mode to make something to talk to the people who call and fuss about value...

Let me know what you folks think, as always it's a pleasure.