Application not found

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When I load the Inspection Report I get a message saying that the application was not found.  Why? What should I do?

When you get the error or dialog box asking telling you that the application was not found, it is most likely that either your Windows file associations are not set correctly or the program required to run the program is not installed on the PC.  It is very common for programs to hi-jack file associations during installation.  Our reports do not change the Windows file associations.  Most of our reports use a Microsoft Excel interface.  You will either need to reset the Windows file associations or reinstall the program that is needed.  If you are using a report that requires Microsoft Excel, follow the directions below.  The procedures are the same for reports operating other platforms (for example OpenOffice.org) but you will need to substitute Microsoft Excel to the appropriate program in the steps below.  

You can reset the file associations so that Windows always recognizes an .XLS file by following these steps:
1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Find any file with the extension .XLS and single click on it with your left mouse button.
3. Single click on the file name with the right mouse button.
4. Select "Open with"
5. You will be presented with a list of programs.  Microsoft Excel may be listed as a recommended program. At the bottom of the list there is an option to "Choose program".  Select "Choose program".
6.a. Microsoft Excel should be listed as a recommended program. Select Microsoft Excel.  If Microsoft Excel is not one of the options, select "Choose Program" and locate Microsoft Excel in the list of available programs and select it by single clicking with the left mouse button.
6.b. If Microsoft Excel is not installed on the PC, you will need to install it.
6.c. Click on the box that says "always use the selected program to open this type of file".
7. Click on the "OK" button.

Your Windows file association .XLS files is now properly set.

Also see: File Associations

Compile Error in Hidden Module

When I attempt to run XL Pro I get an error message that refers to a "Compile Error".  What is the cause and how can the error be corrected?

Compile errors are caused by either by attempting to run XL Pro in a version of MS Office that is not supported, the installation of MS Office has been corrupted, or the installation of MS Office is incomplete. 

Check to make sure that you have the required versions of MS Windows and MS Office installed on your PC.  If you have the correct version of Office, reinstall Office using your original installation disks.

E-mailing Job Form

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How can I e-mail a Job Form?

Before you can e-mail a Job Form You must create a PDF version of the report.  It will be small and cannot easily be altered.  You should not e-mail the Excel file to the client.  It is not a spreadsheet file.  It is a program.  As such, it needs to reside in its installation directory.  Protecting it and e-mailing it may  render it unusable (depending on which report system you are using).  the recipient may be able to open the file but the contents may not be correct.  In most cases they will get a box that pops up and tells them that the program will not run and they will be presented with a list of possible reasons.

You can use the PDF print driver (PDF Creator) that came on your CD or you can use another one if you already have one.  The one that is on your CD may not be the current version.  It is a third party open source program.  You can download the latest version of PDF Creator from our Free Stuff section.  If you also have a PDF editor, you can enhance security of the PDF by password protecting it and by adding a digital signature.  Most people do not have a PDF editor and PDF's are not easy to alter so it is generally secure enough to suite most users without enhancing security.

License

End User License Agreement

EULA

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We have more than one inspector in our company.  Can we all use the same copy of the report software.

The license agreement that came with your software describes what is acceptable and what is not.  Most of our software allows installation on at east two PC's, one stationary and one portable. Additional licenses can be purchased at a discount.

Loads slowly

Takes a long time to start

Freezes on start-up

Locks up when starting

The Home Inspection Job Order Database takes a long time to start.  Why?  Is there anything that can be done to improve it?

The Home Inspection Job Order Database requires 256MB of available memory, Windows XP, and Office 2003.  You can see how much memory you have available by going to "All programs/Accessories/System Tools/System Information" from the Start menu.  The line "Available Physical Memory" tells you how much memory you have available to applications.  The line "Total physical memory" tell you how much memory you have installed.

If you have more than 512MB of memory installed but The Home Inspection Job Order Database loads slowly, we recommend running Windows Defender to temporarily disable applications running in the background (there may be more than you think!).  Many new PC's from major manufacturers (such as Dell, HP, Gateway, and Compaq) ship with many applications installed to run in the background without your knowledge.  Windows Defender will help you identify and, optionally, disable those programs.  Windows Defender is available free from the Microsoft web site.  If you need assistance or have questions, call us at 213-291-1717 (California), 407-401-9298 (Florida), 419-290-6244 (Ohio), or 416-628-1390 (Ontario, Canada).

Microsoft Office 2002 and earlier

When I attempt to run XL Pro I get an error message that refers to a "Compile Error".  What is the cause and how can the error be corrected?

Compile errors are caused by either by attempting to run XL Pro in a version of MS Office that is not supported, the installation of MS Office has been corrupted, or the installation of MS Office is incomplete.  XL Pro Titanium, Silver, Gold, and Platinum require Office 2003 or newer.

Check to make sure that you have the required versions of MS Windows and MS Office installed on your PC.  If you have the correct version of Office, reinstall Office using your original installation disks.

Microsoft Office 2003

Do I need to have Office 2003 to run XL Pro?

XL Pro Titanium, Silver, Gold, and Platinum require Office 2003 or newer.

Microsoft Office 2007

When I attempt to run XL Pro in Office 2007, even though I have attempted to enable Macros, it will not run.  Why?

There is a bug in Office 2007 that must be fixed in order to be able to run Macros.  Click on this link to install the Bug Fix.

Notes:
MS Internet Explorer - click on the link, select "Run" and confirm
Firefox and Netscape - click on the link, save the file to your Desktop, click on the file on your Desktop

Open Office

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What is Open Office (also known as OpenOffice.org, OOo)?

Answer

Open Office is an office suite similar to Microsoft Office.  It is an alternative to MS Office for someone on a very tight budget.  Some of our Legacy Series reports are available in an Open Office version.  Open Office does not support Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).  Most of our reports are written in VBA so they will not run under Open Office.  If you have Microsoft Office, we do not recommend that you install OpenOffice.

Instructions for Downloading and Installing OpenOffice.org 2.0

Keywords

Open Office
File Associations

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I've installed OpenOffice but it's taken over my files ?

Open Office

File Associations

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Why is it that when I double click on a file it now opens in OpenOffice instead of my old word processor ?

Please see the answer of the previous question.

Password

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When I try to open the report, I get a message asking for a password.  What is the password?

You do not need a password to open any of our reports.  When you get the error or dialog box asking for a password, it is most likely that either you are attempting to open the report with the wrong application or another program has set the Windows file associations to associate .XLS files with an application other than Microsoft Excel.  It is very common for programs to hi-jack file associations during installation.  Our reports do not change the Windows file associations.

You can reset the file associations so that Windows always recognizes an .XLS file by following these steps:
1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Find any file with the extension .XLS and single click on it with your left mouse button.
3. Single click on the file name with the right mouse button.
4. Select "Open with"
5. You will be presented with a list of programs.  Microsoft Excel may be listed as a recommended program. At the bottom of the list there is an option to "Choose program".  Select "Choose program".
6.a. Microsoft Excel should be listed as a recommended program. Select Microsoft Excel.  If Microsoft Excel is not one of the options, select "Choose Program" and locate Microsoft Excel in the list of available programs and select it by single clicking with the left mouse button.
6.b. If Microsoft Excel is not installed on the PC, you will need to install it.
6.c. Click on the box that says "always use the selected program to open this type of file".
7. Click on the "OK" button.

Your Windows file association .XLS files is now properly set.

PDFCreator

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Where can I get a PDF print driver?

PDFCreator is a popular open source PDF print driver available free from BestInspectors.Net. 

PDFCreator is provided as for the convenience of our customers.  PDF Creator is third party software.  We do not provide technical support for PDFCreator.

Download PDFCreator from our Free Stuff section

See also e-mailing reports.

Keywords

Print  Legacy Series, XL Basic, XL Std, XL Pro 5

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Answer

In order to combine all the pages into a single printed report, you will need to select all the pages to be included in the report.  Hold down the Control key and use your left mouse button to select the page tabs for the pages you want to include in your report.  Go to the Menu at the top of your screen and select "File/Print".  Select your printer or PDF print driver as the printer to which to print the file. 

See also PDFCreator and e-mailing reports.

Protected cell

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When I try to enter information in a field, I get a message that says the field is protected.  Why?

The answer to this question depends on which report you are using and which field you are trying to change.  If you are attempting to alter a field  that you were previously able to alter, it is likely that your Report file is corrupted and will need to be reinstalled.  If you have never been able to modify the contents of the field, it is probably a field that is not intended to be modified in your Report program.  The contents of almost every field in the Legacy 5 and 6 Reports, and all the XL Pro Series Reports can be altered.  The only fields that cannot be altered on Report pages in any of our reports are the "Company Name" field.  The company name must be entered on the registration page.

Protected file

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When I try to open my report I am getting a message that says the report is password protected or it is a protected file.  What is the password?

You do not need a password to open The Home Inspection Job Order Database.  When you get the error or dialog box asking for a password, it is most likely that either you are attempting to open the report with the wrong application or another program has set the Windows file associations to associate .MDE files with an application other than Microsoft Access.  It is very common for programs to hi-jack file associations during installation.  Our reports do not change the Windows file associations.

You can reset the file associations so that Windows always recognizes an .MDE file by following these steps:
1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Find any file with the extension .MDE and single click on it with your left mouse button.
3. Single click on the file name with the right mouse button.
4. Select "Open with"
5. You will be presented with a list of programs.  Microsoft Access may be listed as a recommended program. At the bottom of the list there is an option to "Choose program".  Select "Choose program".
6.a. Microsoft Access should be listed as a recommended program. Select Microsoft Excel.  If Microsoft Access is not one of the options, select "Choose Program" and locate Microsoft Excel in the list of available programs and select it by single clicking with the left mouse button.
6.b. If Microsoft Access is not installed on the PC, you will need to install it.
6.c. Click on the box that says "always use the selected program to open this type of file".
7. Click on the "OK" button.

Your Windows file association for .MDE files is now properly set. 

Keywords

Read-only

Read-only error

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When I try to install (or save) my report, I get a "Read-only" error.  Why and what should I do?

Insert your CD.  It should automatically start to run.  A menu will pop up with several choices.  Choose the menu item for the software you are installing.  When the Report opens, enter your registration code and your company name in the appropriate boxes.  Then save the Report file by selecting "File/Save As" and browsing to location on your PC such as "My Documents" or Desktop".  If you do not browse to a location such as "My Documents" or "Desktop", you will not be able to save the file.  If you attempt to save to the current location or you selected "File/Save" instead of "File/Save As", you will get an error saying that the file is "Read-only" and cannot be saved. This is because you are attempting to save to the CD.  You will not be able to save to the CD.

Keywords

Registration

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Is it necessary for me to register online in order to use the software?

No, it is not necessary to register online in order to use the software.  However, you must register your software in order to qualify for free technical support and updates.  We will not sell your personal information.  We use your information to notify you of updates, verify eligibility for updates and technical support, send news related to BestInspectors.Net and to notify you of special offers.

Your registration information must be correct in order to qualify for free technical support and updates.  Please read the registration form carefully when completing it.  Registrations with incomplete or incorrect information may be automatically removed from the database.

Keywords

Registration
25 Character Code

25 Character Activation Key

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When I try to install (or use) my report software, or other BestInspectors.Net software, I get a message asking for a 25 character activation key" or "product key".  What is it?

This request is NOT being generated by your BestInspectors.Net software.  None of our inspection reports or other software require a 25 character code,  25 character "activation key", or "product key".  The most likely reason you are getting the message is that either Microsoft Windows is not properly installed or Microsoft Office is not properly installed.  It may be that a trial version of Office was preinstalled on your PC and the trial time has expired or you have a new PC and Microsoft Windows has not yet been activated.

Sales Record

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What is my "Sales Record" and where can I find it?

Your Sales Record is a number that is assigned to your purchase.  The sales record number is on your packing slip.  It is usually somewhere on the right side side of the page and is either a four digit number, a five digit number followed by a decimal point and an additional two or three three digits, or and eight digit number.  You will need your record number to get special upgrade pricing when purchasing an upgrade and you may need your sales record number when requesting technical support.

Keywords

Save, Save-As

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When I try to install (or save) The Home Inspection Job Order Database, I get a "Read-only" error.  Why and what should I do? And, what is the difference between "Save and "Save As"?

"Save" saves the current file to the default location.  If you are installing the report from a CD, the default location is the CD.  You cannot write to the CD so you will need to use "Save As".  "Save As" allows you to browse to a location on your PC's fixed disk (hard drive) and (optionally) change the name of the file.

Insert your CD.  It should automatically start to run.  A menu will pop up with several choices.  Choose the menu item for the software you are installing.  When the Report opens, enter your registration code and your company name i the appropriate boxes.  Then save the Report file by selecting "File/Save As" and browsing to location on your PC such as "My Documents" or Desktop".  If you do not browse to a location such as "My Documents" or "Desktop", you will not be able to save the file.  If you attempt to save to the current location or you selected "File/Save" instead of "File/Save As", you will get an error saying that the file is "Read-only" and cannot be saved. this is because you are attempting to save to the CD.  You will not be able to save to the CD.

Technical support

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Does my purchase include e-mail support and telephone support?

Yes, we provide e-mail support and telephone support for at least six months for all our inspection report systems.  Some of our report systems include technical support for longer than six months.

Unfortunately, we are NOT able to support third party software such as Microsoft windows, Microsoft Office, OpenOffice, or PDF creators.  You should contact the publishers of these programs directly.

Our technical support phone numbers are 407-401-9298 in the United States and 416-628-1390 in Canada.

The Home Inspection Job Order Database Video Tutorials

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Question

Do you have video tutorials for The Home Inspection Job Order Database?

Answer

Yes, click here to go to the video tutorials.

Viewing video Tutorials

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How can I view the video tutorials?

The videos are in Windows WMV format which can be viewed live as a streaming video or can be saved to your PC for later viewing.  Click on a link to below to view a video live.  You will need Windows Media Player version 9.0 or later to view streaming videos.

You should choose videos from the column that most closely matches your internet connection speed.   If you use a dial-up internet connection, or the video is choppy, you will need to download the files and view them locally on your PC after they have completed downloading.  Right click on a video link and select "save target as" (MSIE) or "save link target as" (Netscape).

Register your software online