2014 Spring Newsletter

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Let’s talkabout the tools. Weknew thepiecesweneeded: hardware (tablets, desktopPCs etc.), soft- ware (a sketchingapplication, aworkmanagement system, abridge toourCAMAetc.). In the interest of space, Iwon’t go into the technical nitty-grittyof everything…you’ll get boredand I’ll get panned, but Iwant touseour sketchingapplicationdecision to trumpethow important the “learning thedata” mantra iswhen it comes todecisionmaking. Therearenumerous sketchingapplicationson themarket thatwe couldhavepurchasedorwe could havewrittenoneourselves. After lookingat anumberofCOTS sketching toolswedecidednot to rein- vent thewheel. Whenwe compared sketchingapplications,most functionalitywas similar, the costs were similar. Thewildcardwas that our field supervisorwas anexpert user of oneof thepackages. Wedidn’thave tobrave the learning curve to fulfill the “learn thedata” edict. We selectedPatriot’s SketchPro. I’ll leaveout thedetailsof transforming sketchvectordata (aggravationalert)…but it’s something thatwehad todoandyouwill too (unless youwriteyourownapplication for thedatayou have– see “reinventing thewheel”). Portingour existing “homegrown”CAMA to the tabletwasn’t toobigof adeal (giveyour technical staff some credit, they’re smart andhardworkingand if youdon’thave tech staff, I’mguessingyouown vendor softwareand it’ll goona tablet too). Two things left. Weneededaworkmanagement tool and weneededanewprocessand tool to replace fieldvisits. Nobigdeal. Technology is a reallygreat thingbut it is important to “hiregoodpeopleandget out of theway” as Ken likes to say. Soheregoes: “Hear ye, hear ye! Staff, please createanapplication that takesour ae- rial photography, ourGISdataandourCAMAdata, present it onadesktopANDa tablet such that I don’thave togoout andphysicallyvisit thispropertyunless I’m required to”. “Andwhileyouareat it, weneedawork scheduling system toworkwith it andmost of theotherofficeprocesses so thatwe knowwho’sdoingwhat,where,whenandwhy”. Here’s some followupadvice: whatever youdo, don’t tell themyouwant it “ASAP”. Onceyouput the request out thereyou canexpect staffwill say theydon’thaveamagicwandoroneof themwill in- variablywigglehernose Bewitched styleor crossher arms andnodherhead IDreamofGenie style. Laughalongwith themandbeprepared tobe reasonableand realistic. Then, don’thound, hassle,mi- cromanageor otherwise interveneor aggravate themunless asked. When theyneed something there is ageneral “RequirementsGathering” sessionandwedoQ&Auntil theyare satisfiedor I tire them out and theygoback towork. Remember, theyare smart andhardworkingbut need tobe fed. Try donuts. You’dbeamazedatwhat technical staffwill do fordonuts. I canhear it now. “Jim, Idon’thave staff todo that and I don’t haveanymoney”. Morepeskydetails. Tell yourCAMAvendor that you’repoor and strugglingandask them to showyou somemercy. If that doesn’twork, haveyour vendor contactmypurchasingguy. Our current computer equipment sales person isonhis fourth company sincehe started selling tous andhe still sells tous even thoughwe’ve cost himhis jobonmore thanoneorder. True story. Or callKenandmaybehe’ll rent out his staff. In caseyouarewondering, thedonuts arenon-negotiable. Nodonuts, noproject. Nowyouneed tobuy tablets too. Weoriginally startedwith theMotionL1600…yes,with theafore- mentioned salesperson. The tablet du jour is theMicrosoft SurfacePro. Awordabout desktops: if youdon’thavePCs currently installed for all of your staff, stop readingnow. I cannothelpyou.

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Spring2014Newsletterof theFCIAAO