Dramatically Reduce Measuring Time Spent On Site

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1 Dramatically Reduce Measuring Time Spent On Site Dual Dimension Mode and FloorWizard Measuring Suggestions Revision: Are measuring activities the only thing standing between you and a 3 o clock tee time? Maybe you re in a hurry to get out of the house before the customer asks you for that 3 rd refigure. Regardless of what you re going to do when you get out of there, one thing is for sure, everyone gets excited about spending less time on site. If you have ever measured a job with FloorWizard, you have probably wondered why FloorWizard system needs a measurement for each segment individually. This is especially apparent when the site has many doors that are the same width. Also, you must have wondered why FloorWizard doesn t know the wall you are looking at is the same length as the wall on the opposite side of the room. Many times, you can figure out how much material is needed by taking only 3 measurements in a room, while FloorWizard used to require 5 or 6. Well, just like you, we spend a lot of time fantasizing about how sweet life would be if you could just set the computer down and let FloorWizard measure the job for you. Unfortunately, we aren t there yet but we are working on that. In the mean time, we have added several functions to the system that are going to significantly reduce the amount of time you spend on site, and hopefully leave you even more fired up than we are about the evolution of this product. So, grab an extra pair of underpants, and check out FloorWizard s new & highly improved specification routine. 1.) Specification Begins Next to First Door Drawn in Room by Default Previously, when the user navigated to the Specify tab, the system would automatically select the wall in the top right corner of the room by default. So, the wall selected by default was rarely the first wall you want to specify. Now, the system will default to the next wall segment counter clockwise of the first door (or opening) drawn by default. In most cases, the segment you want to specify first will be selected by default, making the process faster and more efficient. Knowing that the system will default to the first segment counter clockwise of the door/opening, you should plan ahead and draw the door you will use to enter the room first. As you will see later on, you won t need to leave the doorway in some cases.

2 If the room is drawn using a template, FloorWizard considers the existing door on the template to be the first door. So, you should pick the template which has the door located where you want start measuring. Openings behave just like doors, so if an opening is drawn first, specification will begin by default at the first segment counter clockwise of the opening. See below for an example. Draw Tab Specify Tab 2 #1 (Point of Entry) Default Selection 2.) Specified Walls Will Appear Green Previously, it was difficult to figure out whether or not a wall had been measured until the entire side had been specified. You might have to click several walls to find out which ones still need to be specified. Now, you will be able to easily see which segments have already specified because they will turn green. With a quick glance at the tablet, you will instantly know which segments are unspecified. No more headaches from hunting for unspecified walls! See below for an example:

3 3.) System Indexes Over Measured Areas to Next Unspecified Segment While measuring, you may have noticed that once a measurement is sent to the computer from the laser, the system indexes to the next wall segment, even if it has already been specified. Now, the system will index to the next unspecified segment instead. This change will save at least one click in most cases and certainly eliminate a source of frustration for many users. Knowing this, you can go ahead and walk to the next unspecified segment, and you will not need to touch the tablet before you shoot the dimension! See below: You are here: System Indexes You to Here While it may seem as if FloorWizard has tapped directly into your brain and begun to read your mind at this point, we can assure you that is not the case. Your thoughts are only uploaded to our server during project Check In. 4.) Next or + Buttons Can Be Used Without Entering a Dimension Before these changes, the system would not allow the user to enter a dimension without first entering a measurement. To cycle forward to another wall, it was necessary to tap the wall with the pen, or cycle backwards with the Disto. Now, the Next button or the + on the Disto can be used to index in the clockwise direction without entering a measurement. With just a little bit of planning, you find that you now have so much more control over specification. Save time by using the + and buttons on the Disto to index around the room. This way, you will minimize the number of times you have to put down the laser and use your pen to select the correct wall.

4 5.) Specify Multiple Segments Simultaneously (Duplicate Dimension Mode) This must be enabled by an account administrator, and can be setup independently for each user. To do this: Account Setup > Personnel > Edit Parameters > Check Allow Duplicate Dimension Mode In Drawing Tool or, just contact FloorSoft and one of our representatives will enable this right away for you. This is a feature we are VERY excited about, and once you use this feature to measure a few jobs, you will quickly understand why! Like its name indicates, this tool permits the user to specify multiple areas of the room at the same time. In many cases, you ll be able to specify a room in about half the time it has taken in the past. Here is how it works: 1. Enable Duplicate Dimension Mode by clicking anywhere on the function s name located beneath the manual dimension entry pad. 2. Use the pen or mouse to select each of the segments that will have the same measurement. 3. Using the wireless laser, shoot any one of the dimensions corresponding to the segments that have been selected. You could also enter the dimension manually if you are using FloorWizard on your desktop PC. 4. Press the + button on the Disto, or click the Next button on the screen to simultaneously enter the measurements of each segment. 5. Once the dimensions have been entered, Dual Dimension Mode will be disabled, and FloorWizard will remember the segment you had originally selected. It will then index to the next unspecified wall clockwise from the last specified point, so you can pick up right where you left off! It makes no difference which order # s 2 & 3 are completed in. It is only important that you highlight all of the segments and shoot a measurement before pressing. If you need to de select the segments, simply click the Duplicate Dimension Mode button again. Don t guesstimate whenever possible; take a few seconds of that time you saved and make sure the common dimension is measured accurately. If not, you can see how the magnitude of an error can be greatly increased when the dimension is propagated to several wall segments at once. The most common use of this function will probably be to measure doors, since there are often only 2 or 3 different door widths in a typical residential building. See below for an example of this feature:

5 Multiple Doors Have been Selected for Specification What Used to Require 7 Shots of the Laser, Now Only Requires 1!!! Thinking about getting started with FloorWizard by manually measuring? Go right ahead! You ll find that producing a computerized estimate from a hand drawing is easier than ever. Once you complete the drawing in FloorWizard, the process will be fully computerized, making all the benefits of FloorWizard available you at a fraction of the total cost with hardware!

6 6.) FloorWizard Estimates Length of Remaining Segments (FloorWizard Measuring Suggestions) This must be enabled by an account administrator, and can be setup independently for each user. To do this: Account Setup > Personnel > Edit Parameters > Check Allow Measuring Suggestions In Drawing Tool While the previous functions are going to be huge time savers, this last enhancement is going to be the best of all. Using this function, FloorWizard will now calculate the length of remaining unspecified walls, and provide you with a suggestion to complete the room. Imagine you were going to measure the room shown below by hand. Most likely, you would only take 3 measurements Now, the same techniques can be used to measure more quickly in FloorWizard. The system will constantly monitor the lengths of all walls, and as soon as it has enough information to complete the unspecified segments, it will. This means that you will be able to fully specify a room like the one shown above without ever leaving the doorway. Let s see how it works: Using Duplicate Dimension Mode, FloorWizard makes a suggestion after 2 shots. Click the Use Measuring Suggestions button to complete the opposite wall

7 After shot # 3, the room is finished! Some additional Info If the room has angled walls, the math becomes significantly more complicated. The capability to balance angled rooms could be a planned future development. FloorWizard will always try to grow the opposite wall in an attempt to balance the polygon. In the event that the partially specified length of one side is already greater than the completely specified opposite side, FloorWizard will make no recommendation to balance the room. Once each wall has been specified, the system will use its normal routine of adding to each side until the room is legal. Rooms with internal walls/islands will also cause FloorWizard not to make a suggestion. The capability to balance angled rooms may be a planned future development. Similar to # 6, this function does require a small degree of caution. To protect against incorrect measurements, it is a good idea to measure the side of the room with the least number of segments first. Using a highly accurate laser measuring device like the Leica Disto, there is very little opportunity for error on shots of this kind. If you have any questions, or would like a demonstration of these powerful new capabilities, please contact us anytime. We look forward to hearing your feedback! Lewis Hardeman VP - Sales lewis@floorsoft.com O: (706) x 12 C: (931) F: (706)