Interspect Voice (moving discussion to new thread)

[bruce816]

Please do expand on the Interspect Voice dictation for report writing and how you integrate that with the camera. You've aroused my curiosity.

Maybe start another thread. . . .?

Randy, I use Interspect Voice. Steve McNeese is the creator and he is here Texas (Plano area I think).

The software has several nice features. The voice feature (which is an add-on now) is one of the reasons I bought it. I wear a wireless Plantronics headset and walk around the house dictating my report to my laptop, which is usually sitting on the kitchen counter.

I have created several "Quick Texts" which are pre-typed sentences or paragraphs that I use for common items that I see quite a bit. I really have a lot of QT and usually only feel the need to dictate or type the few unusual issues that I run across. Each QT has a voice tag that will initiate it. I carry around a piece of paper listing my quick texts. Steve added a nice feature for me that lets Interspect Voice (IV) print off my quick texts. I've kept it to a legal-sized sheet that is folded up in my pocket. If I add/change the quick texts, I just print out a new cheat sheet.

Here is how it works:

Bruce: "Add water pressure too high"

Interspect (talking in my ear): "Added quick text"

Then I take a photograph of the pressure gauge to substantiate.

Bruce: "Add issue photo"

Interspect: "Issue photo added"

This is why I need to synchronize my camera to the computer. Interspect adds a little tag with a time stamp on it. At the end of the inspection, I insert my SD card and upload the photos. With one click, all of the photos go into the appropriate places on the report. I really like doing this which is why the camera needs to sync with the computer.

When I load the photos into that inspection's library, IV automatically sizes them. It will even add some edge beveling or soften the edges. This makes the photos a little more 3D and they stand out on the page better. If I want to circle something in the photo, add an arrow or some text, I can do that as well.

As with all software, each person has his/her own preferences. I've been using this one for about 3 yrs now - having tried 2 others. Like other software, there is a learning curve.

Here is the link for it: http://www.interspectsoftware.com/default.aspx?

He has a 30 day free trial. I'm not one his salesmen but he does have a referral program.

Bruce

[bruce816]

Is there something I have to do to make the @ sign appear by the "share" button? I'd like to subscribe to this thread. I see that many threads do not have the @ sign.

[kurt]

I'm not sure why about the @ sign.....I'll look into it.

Sounds like interesting software.

[bruce816]

Kurt, any news about the @ sign? I would like to subscribe to some of these forums; however, many, if not most, of them do not have the subscription button. At least that is true for the forums I'm interested in.

[CheckItOut]

Title says this was moved to a new thread. Where is the new thread?

[Bill Kibbel]

I'm guessing this is the "new thread". It started at another discussion.

[bruce816]

I'm guessing this is the "new thread". It started at another discussion.

Yes, I would've answered but I didn't have an @ sign to subscribe. This began at another thread.

[JPLomeo]

Bruce,

Are there any things you don't like about Interspect ? How is their tech support and are they available 24/7 if you have an issue? Any problems with the range of the head phones away from the lap top? and how about wind noise outside? Does the accuracy of the program to "learn" how you speak realy improve as they claim?

It almost sounds too good to be true, and after 20 years of doing this, I am tired of spending my evenings at the computer, so am seriously thinking about it. Thanks, JP

[bruce816]

Bruce,

Are there any things you don't like about Interspect ? How is their tech support and are they available 24/7 if you have an issue? Any problems with the range of the head phones away from the lap top? and how about wind noise outside? Does the accuracy of the program to "learn" how you speak realy improve as they claim?

It almost sounds too good to be true, and after 20 years of doing this, I am tired of spending my evenings at the computer, so am seriously thinking about it. Thanks, JP

What sort of software do you use now?

There are a few things I wish it did differently. It would be hard to describe on here and I don't know if other HI softwares are any better. I would say that the tech support up until this year has been wonderful. Steve is still around and I when I email him he does respond. I wonder if since home inspection has been down around the country, he's feeling it too. I think he may be working on some other software right now that is supporting his family. But...I feel fairly confident that if you purchased the software he'd be there to help you as much as you need. I'm available to ask questions as well.

The headset is a Plantronics device. I believe it has about a 300ft range. I don't know how big the houses are that you normally inspect, but this one is good for me 99% of the time. It is affected by wind noise. Make sure you get the little foam cover for it. On really windy days, I keep it on mute and when I speak, I do so inside a towel that I carry.

The voice recognition software is Microsoft. yes is does learn as you go. You need to train it several times before you start inspecting. You can add vocabulary words into a page on Interspect (those really weird words that only you make sound funny). I'd say for the most part, there are just a handful of words that I can't seem to make work. Everything is else is good.

Like all software, none are perfect. Remember that you will have a learning curve to go through.

[JPLomeo]

Hi Bruce,

Thanks for the reply. I've been using Inspect-Vue for about 5 years now, AHit's "Inspect-it" for the macintosh prior to that.

It sounds like a very interesting system to me and I will look into it, but I've been doing reports on a desk top unit and will have to go out and get a lap-top first. Which one do you use or suggest for the field?

BTW, can you still talk to the system from an attic, or a crawl space under the home?

Yes, I know about the learning curve-I tried to get into 3-D awhile back when things were still very busy and had to give up on it -as I did not have the time.

Thank you again for your offer to answer any questions if I do go that route. My only real worry with such a system is that I can envision going up the lap top after a 4 hour-real pig of a crappy house to find that some electronic glitch has wiped out all my voice notes, and I having nothing to show for the all work I did, and am too tired and have no time left to do it all over again

JP

[bruce816]

Hi Bruce,

Thanks for the reply. I've been using Inspect-Vue for about 5 years now, AHit's "Inspect-it" for the macintosh prior to that.

It sounds like a very interesting system to me and I will look into it, but I've been doing reports on a desk top unit and will have to go out and get a lap-top first. Which one do you use or suggest for the field?

BTW, can you still talk to the system from an attic, or a crawl space under the home?

Yes, I know about the learning curve-I tried to get into 3-D awhile back when things were still very busy and had to give up on it -as I did not have the time.

Thank you again for your offer to answer any questions if I do go that route. My only real worry with such a system is that I can envision going up the lap top after a 4 hour-real pig of a crappy house to find that some electronic glitch has wiped out all my voice notes, and I having nothing to show for the all work I did, and am too tired and have no time left to do it all over again

JP

I used AHIT's Inspect It for a few months. Interspect Voice has a much simpler way to add new comments (pre-typed or canned comments). Steve calls them "Quick Texts". Each quick text can have a "voice tag". If I see something that is common, i.e. roof nail heads that need sealing, I just say "roof caulk" and that pre-typed comment goes into the report. Of course you can call it anything, I just chose "roof caulk".

I am on my second Dell unit. I like Dell but there is some preloaded software or proprietary stuff that messes up other software I have (including Interspect). I called Steve before I bought this Dell I'm currently using and he said either Dell or Toshiba. You might ask him before you buy. I know he's not set up for Apple. At least I don't think he is.

You can definitely use the headset/software while in the attic or crawl space. Around here a crawl space is literally a crawl in the dirt, so I don't take my headset down there...just my camera (Pentax W90) and a flashlight. I always wear the headset in the attic.

I've never had time where everything was wiped out. Steve always recommends a back up of your system which includes quick texts and voice tags. I also use Carbonite and have selected those particular items to go up to the "cloud". I've been using this software since May 2007. The only issue I had was that I forgot to back up something once when I was upgrading to Windows 7. Steve was able to help me get almost everything back. I think I lost one report (that'll be the one that comes back on me someday . But it was my fault for not backing up before I upgraded.

Any questions, call me.

[smcneese]

Bruce has done a great job describing how the software works. If you have any other questions, please let me know or call and we can setup a one on one demo.

Like every industry, the inspection industry (especially in Texas) took a big hit. We lost a lot of inspectors and new inspectors looking for software has declined almost 75% over the past couple of years. We are still here and supporting our existing and new customers. For now we no longer participate in the tradeshows and rely on word of mouth sales.

We are still working on new features and have revived the iPhone/iPad handheld companion application for Interspect. We hope to have this completed and released 3rd or 4th quarter this year.

Steve

[Marc]

Is there a mode that can be switched into during the actual inspection in which the speech recognition software simply types what you say instead of triggering some boilerplate?

Marc

[bruce816]

Is there a mode that can be switched into during the actual inspection in which the speech recognition software simply types what you say instead of triggering some boilerplate?

Marc

Yes, the software is merely listening for commands. When I want to add some boilerplate or pre-typed comments, I say, "add _______". When I want to dictate, I say, "begin issue" and start talking. If you train the software enough, it will recognize most of what you say. You will still need to proof read.

[Marc]

In regard to the sample report at your website...can the software be set to omit the check boxes?

Marc

[bruce816]

In regard to the sample report at your website...can the software be set to omit the check boxes?

Marc

Egad! Please send me the link if/where you saw a sample report on my site?!? I thought I had deleted my sample.

Are you looking at my site or something on Interspect voice?

[Marc]

In regard to the sample report at your website...can the software be set to omit the check boxes?

Marc

Egad! Please send me the link if/where you saw a sample report on my site?!? I thought I had deleted my sample.

Are you looking at my site or something on Interspect voice?

Interspect Voice.

Marc

[smcneese]

Marc,

You cannot remove the checkboxes but you can rename them if you create a customer report type. The checkboxes drive key features related to validation in our software. The first checkbox, regardless of what it is called provides indication that the item existed and was inspected. Prior to delivering your report, there is a function you run called Report Validation. The system reviews your report and identifies any inspection items you missed. Likewise, the last checkbox is used to indicate there was a problem with the item inspected. Again, in the report validation, it check to see that if you checked this box, your report includes a narrative that describes what the problem is or if you included a problem about an item you inspected, then you checked this box.

The checkboxes carried over from the TREC requirements for Texas inspectors. I know a lot of states don't have the strict requirements enforced in Texas, but these features have benefited numerous inspetors outside Texas in in other countries. The output produces by Interspect is very clean and easy to read for your customers.

Other key features:

• True Room by Room inspection mode - This feature allows you to inspect all of the items within a single room even though they cross system boundaries without having to bounce around in the report looking for the correct section to document your findings. You create rooms by name of certain types - like Kitchen, Bathroom, Garage, etc. Based on the room type, Interspect knows the inspection items that are typically found in that kind of room based on the Report Type being used. Of course you can add Additional items on the fly if necessary. The great thing about this feature is you can switch between System Mode or Room by Room mode within the same inspection. When you generate your report, the information collected at the room level is output in the correct System area of the report with a heading for the Room name. This eliminates the need to specify what room the issue was found in your narrative because Interspect already knows what room you are in. Since we released this feature, other products have attempted a Room mode, but they force you to create a definition of the rooms in your inspection templates. If you don't have a 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath template you create a new one. Ours is completely dynamic from your existing inspection tempaltes. Rooms are created and named on the fly as needed.
• Unlimited Photos, Photo Editing and Annotation - Everything you need to work with photos is built into the software. Photos taken are loaded into the inspection library are stored with that inspection even if they are not included in the report. You can edit the photo (crop, adjust color, brightness, rotate, etc) and annotate the photes within the software. Annotations include the ability to add circles, rectangles, lines, arrows, text, highlighters, etc.) on your photos without changing the original photo. This means that annotations can be added, deleted or changed at any time. Adding photos is extrememly easy with Interspect's Auto Layout feature. Although you can add a photo and move it anywhere within a narrative or size it to any size you want, those are extra steps that take time. The Auto Layout features takes care of that for you. Just set some preferences on the default size, alignment and number of photos to place across the page and Interspect does the work for you. Simple drag a photo from the library to a location in your narrative and it is automatically sized and aligned. Have more than one photo for the same narrative? No problem, just drag a second photo and drop it on the first photo and Interspect will handled the alignment and stacking of photos in nice evenly distributed columns and rows.

Photo Auto Insert - Another huge feature around photos is our Auto Insert capability. This was created primarily for hands free voice inspections but we added it for tablet users also. When you document a problem for an item you are inspecting and follow that up with a picture you want to include in the report, simply say "Add Issue Photo" or click the "Add Photo" button. This inserts a placeholder in the narrative where the photo goes. Now when you load the photos into the inspection library, Interspect will place an indicator on each photo it knows belongs in the report. To insert, you click the Auto Insert button and Interspect with iterate through the report and automatically insert each photo into the location you indicated when the photo was taken. Although manually dragging and dropping photos is extremely easy, it can be tedious and take 20-30 minutes to locate and drag 50 photos through the report. With Auto Insert these same 50 photos can be inserted in 15 seconds!

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Steve