Not too long ago, I was at dinner with a few real estate professionals. During the conversation, Jott came up. If I remember correctly, I thought Jott still referred to "writing something down on a piece of paper." Silly me! Someone at the table explained that Jott is a time-saving tool that she uses and really likes.
What is Jott?
I recently gave it a try. Jott is a useful, transcription service. Let's say that you are mid-commute when suddenly you get a great idea for the next sales meeting. All you have to do is speed dial Jott, and leave a voice message. Jott then sends an email or a text message to the group or individual of your choice. Hands-free! You don’t need to have a computer within reach, and you don’t need to type into your wireless device. You can even message a reminder to yourself or send an entry to your calendar.
Set-up was easy. There’s nothing to download. All you have to do is call an automated activation system, where your email and phone will be confirmed. Then an automated voice at the other end will ask you to make your first Jott, which, unless you have already added contacts through the web interface, will be to yourself. I just spoke into my phone, sent myself a message. And it worked. The email message came across perfectly and it included a voicemail file just in case I wanted to hear the actual message. (This is especially handy if something is not transcribed accurately, which may happen from time to time.)
Jott also has a web interface where you can add up to five contacts at a time, create groups, add RSS feeds, or add other Jott links.
What else do you need to know about Jott?
- Up until a few weeks ago, Jott was free. Jott Basic is still free but it does not convert your phone messages to text or email. This service is now part of the services offered by Jott for a monthly rate. Jott charges $3.95/month for Jott and $12.95/month for Jott Pro.
For Jott's phone message to text or email service:
-Before sending a Jott, the intended recipient must be in your contact list.
-If you want to text someone, keep in mind that you’re using up their text messaging minutes. (If you don't want to text, don't enter a phone number for the contact.)
-Under Settings, you can add your picture! This is a nice feature, and Jott takes the typical formats...jpg, gif, png, bmp, or tiff files. Your picture will automatically be scaled to 50x50 pixels.
-Settings also allows you to add an html signature to your messages, if, for example, you want to include a link to your web page.
-You can add multiple phone numbers to your account in case you want to Jott from your cell phone and/or your office phone.
-More FAQ.
The bottom line is this: if you decide to give Jott a try, you're likely to find that it's super user-friendly.
Here are some other interesting tools for you or your office:
Audacity
Audacity is an audio editor. It's free, and downloads of the program are available for Windows and Linux. I've used Audacity to cut and splice one huge audio file into separate tracks. Having multiple tracks made the audio more manageable—they were smaller in size and easier to post on a web site.
I had to play around with Audacity before I figured out how to splice and cut. If you've used other audio editors, this may be a breeze for you. And there is one feature that needs improvement: the program has no fast-forward feature. Maybe the next release will include it.
This was my first time using an audio editor, but I know I'll certainly use Audacity again.
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program)
GIMP is an image-editing program comparable to Adobe Photoshop but without the cost. GIMP is a free download for Windows and Linux. I've used it to crop & resize images, change the file extensions from jpg to gif or png, and to change existing logos so that they have a transparent background.
How easy-to-use is GIMP? Everyone learns at their own pace. For me, I found that the program takes some getting used to, but after using GIMP a few times, it's easy to remember what to do next.
What other useful tools are out there?
You may already be using some of the best technology products available. To find out, check out PCWorld's “100 Best Products of 2008” and "20 Tech Habits to Improve Your Life".
Audacity made it onto the list at #98.
And, lastly, you can always count on finding information about different technology tools through the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.
-REALTOR® Magazine: Buyer's Guide
-REALTOR® Confidential
-Center for REALTOR® Technology Blog
Ana M. Schmitz
aschmitz@realtors.org |
