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Pros
Specifically, i love the ability to build and archive conditions or assemblies for repetitive use. The more you use this software the better it becomes for you.
The Customer Tech help is absolutely outstanding. I am so pleased with every interaction I have had with your company.
I like that my changes are saved without any intervention from me. I love the Master Style Library and ease of use.
I have tried other Takeoff software, but this is the best for me. I like this product because it is user friendly and has several built in tools that others may not have.
Cons
The software had lots of menus and was sometimes confusing and difficult to navigate. I have found a better take off software to utilize for my business now.
The only thing I get frustrated with is the lag with some of the functions.
Inability to interact with drawings and a terrible UI.
So basically they expect me to purchase the software all over again and that is not going to happen. There is better software out there for less money and no ridiculous "Sunset.
Most Recent Video User Review for On-Screen Takeoff
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Jeffrey E.
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Showing 25 of 159 reviews
"SR at Homeco"
Overall: Plans colored for field operations for easier understanding
Pros: Multiple colors, and listing features.
Cons: No cut feature. The back-out feature is not as helpful as a scissors type feature
"Used to be the bomb!"
Overall: I used it regularly for more than 2 years and the company considered me a 'power user. Unfortunately, when I changed companies, I could not justify the pricing for the result it produced compared to other programs available now.
Pros: I't fairly easy to learn and integrate. It's visual and it's fairly robust. If you also pay for QuickBids, it integrates well with that. The tech help service is outstanding.
Cons: It's limited on what it can do. It must convert a PDF file, with it's rich underset of information, to a TIF file, which is just an overlay. The reports are basic at best and there is no help with modifying those at all.
"Outdated"
Pros: OnScreen Takeoff Typical Groups works well - I don't know any other software that has this function. Very helpful for apartment takeoffs.
Cons: Software has become outdated. OnCenter is very slow to respond to problems with their software. Several problems discussed with their technical department are known, but they state that in their opinion these issues, some of which can actually result in incorrect bids, are not critical enough to warrant repair. I suggest being extremely careful when using OnScreen and QuickBid interactively. Note that Windows 10 has more issues that older versions of Windows - Oncenter is not keeping up. DON'T GET A NEW COMUTER! OnCenter is not keeping up with innovation that other software companies. Adding notes is cumbersome - in OnScreen they get in the way of doing takeoffs. In QuickBid they easily become buried in the bid and get missed. Adding drawing numbers and names function in OnScreen Takeoff does not work well. Revising drawings to TIFF is outdated. Programs do not work well interactively and also bog down on large bids.
"The best estimating software in the industry"
Overall: I use on-screen takeoff daily as an estimator. Overall, it is feature heavy and a great step forward from classic estimating.
Pros: The scaling feature allows you to easily get a proper scale with just one measurement on the prints.
Cons: Sometimes the databases can crash, losing hours of work. Another feature I wish it had was preconstructed conditions so you wouldn't have to build them.
"On Screen Takeoff"
Overall: It is a good software for simple takeoffs. Counting widgets, or measuring lines, and areas. Other than that, not much use.
Pros: Easy to do simple measurements and counts. The various levels and labels are nice, also being able to change colors makes it easy to differentiate between items.
Cons: It adds an extra stem to the takeoff process. You have to upload pdf's into the program, and then organize them before you can work on them. In lieu of just opening a pdf, and measuring items instantly.
"Great estimating tool"
Overall: Easy to record and keep takeoff and pass to other colleagues, if needed.
Pros: Ease of use and the ability to record and track every takeoff.
Cons: The software is a little pricy compared to competitors such as Bluebeam, but worth the extra.
"A standard in the Construction industry"
Overall: Overall good experience. Construction companies typically have to use different pieces of software that do similar things when working with joint ventures and contractors, but OST is one of the most used pieces of estimating software. From an administrative side, the licensing system is a little clunky if you are hosting your own license server. This is not uncommon though.
Pros: Many useful features, Quick and accurate general estimating tools, Good support.
Cons: It takes some "use time" to get a hang of all the features and functions OST comes with.
"LOVE IT!"
Pros: I use this product everyday, it is the simply the best when doing take off's on something that does not have a scale. The custom scale aspect is the best part and time saver! It saves time from me having to walk jobs, I simply put it in On-Screen and do that take off. It gives me the correct square footage and cost of what the job will. Very user friendly!
Cons: None, once you learn it, it is probably the easiest tool to use in your arsenal!
"Onscreen Takeoff for estimating"
Overall: We have used Onscreen in the past for doing Heavy Civil construction takeoffs, linear footages, areas, and counts. Its easy to organize various groups. Changing line styles and colors makes the organization process easier as well. Overall it is a great tool to use for estimating. Many functions are 1 push button to start and change, which saves time throughout the process.
Pros: The best part of this software is the user friendly features for what it is designed for. Doing various takeoffs.
Cons: The process for importing and exporting files can be a bit tedious in comparison to other takeoff programs.
"On-screen takeoff is fairly simple to use and allows you to create a takeoff quickly."
Overall: Fairly simple takeoffs and easy to present the data.
Pros: Simple to set a scale and create a takeoff. The ease of use make the learning curve easy to overcome. The printable reports make presenting the data simple and professional.
Cons: On-screen, while simple, can sometimes be limited in capability. The tools are there to educate yourself in the software but it still takes time to learn all of the capabilities.
"The best takeoff I have ever used."
Overall: I have been using On-Screen Takeoff for about 16 years and I have always been impressed with the ease of use, support and the upgrades that have been made through the years. I can do a takeoff of a large commercial building in a fraction of the time it would take me to do it with a ruler or takeoff wheel and it is extremely more accurate. I am able to bid a lot more work with the On-Screen Takeoff program. Another benefit is you end up with a color-coded plan that you or someone else such as a project manger can look at and see what you did.
Pros: Its easy to learn to use and if you get stuck on something the support staff are there to help and they have never laughed at my dumb questions.
Cons: I don’t know if there is anything I don’t like about it, but I wish you could copy text or images from a plan sheet and past them into a word document.
"Been using QB since 03 started using OST in 14, CAN NOT imagine going back to ole manual method!"
Pros: In OST it is possible to become very creative in how you make conditions, it allows you to build your take-offs in a manner that makes sense to you, and you are able to constantly refine and make adjustments to the way you do things, which allows for faster take-offs. And the progression just continues. Also the tech team that comes with the subscription cannot be beat, those people are the best software fix my stuff in a heartbeat group...period paragraph no more conversation about it!!!
Cons: Sometimes the General Exceptions box pops up and when it closes it resets some of my preferences, however its very simple to readjust and be moving again.
"Accurate and easy to use"
Overall: The ability to quickly and accurately develop complete estimates for our clients.
Pros: The accuracy and ease of use to get started has been great and then once you get into it you realize that there is so much more to the program and that you are only scratching the surface of what the software can do.
Cons: The feeling that if I only had more time to commit to explore the software I would be able to do so much more with it.
"Great Estimating Program!"
Overall: Keep up the good work On Screen! I would like to see more added features and additional updates more than just once or twice a year.
Pros: This program is also... easy to learn, easy to use, easy to train on! All that you need to complete accurate takeoffs for bidding is available in one software package! Purchase this product, you will not be disappointed! Intelligent paste function is awesome and great to use for repetitive items.
Cons: I would more colors to differentiate areas when I am doing take offs and more overlays should be possible. There are always so many plans and revisions and only allowing one overlay makes it difficult at times to provide an accurate takeoff without doing the work twice.
"On Screen Take Off "
Overall: I would recommend this software to any estimator in the construction industry regardless of division of work. It cuts estimating time and costs by over half and the accuracy of take offs pay for the software in its self.
Pros: the program is user friendly and has a quick learning curve. Start up for the software is great and includes two days of training to meet your company needs. Uses vibrant colors and shapes to make take off easy and quick.
Cons: I don't really have many cons for this program as the company actively updates its software to facilitate the users needs. If I had to pick a con it would be that you are forced to buy support annually if you would like to get any sort of help with the software once your subscription is up.
"Best Take-off program ever"
Overall: My overall experience with OST has been great. Everything from the time of sales, to the implantation of the software, to the daily use and continuing customer support. Very friendly staff and extremely knowledgeable.
Pros: I love the overall ease of use. It is very intuitive and user friendly. Specifically, i love the ability to build and archive conditions or assemblies for repetitive use. The more you use this software the better it becomes for you.
Cons: There is a learning curve. At first, the rich and abundant features can be cumbersome to learn; especially if you don't use all of the features. I do have to say that the training for the software is great and the customer support is second to none.
"Great takeoff software, cost vs. quality"
Pros: I love the simplicity of the features, the range of details and customization you can do with the software. Definitely like the export to Excel feature, where we can customize the look and functionality of the end product.
Cons: Cost is a major challenge for a lot of business software, especially as a startup company. I'm still looking for the functionality of On Screen but with a one-time purchase and something a bit more affordable to a brand new company with unstable revenue.
"you need this .."
Overall: Good Multiple colors are incredible
Pros: layer and conditions features are very useful
Cons: can take a while to upload large set of drawings and it should automatically name the sheets by a pre determined title or number - but not a major woop
"Best takeoff option available"
Overall: Very good, I've been using it at various companies since 2007 and have no interest in any other option so long as it works so well.
Pros: Very easy to learn and use, K.I.S.S. Quick to use Doesn't require too much computer power
Cons: Printing to PDF using conventional bluebeam and/or adobe drivers doesn't work very well and we needed to buy an after market print driver to circumvent this issue.
"Very powerful estimating tool"
Pros: Easy to use, easy to copy conditions from one project to another, very user friendly. The software features a lot of different options mark up and bubble changes, type in comments, and, of course, color code take offs.
Cons: Creating overlays can be difficult, it would be great to have more color options and an easier way to scale and align two plans.
"Easiest for take-offs!"
Pros: I liked the ability to organize and derive quantities in different ways. One line item can yield several quantities in different units of measurement. You can also organize information by level, segment... You can also store your custom line items in a library for future use.
Cons: The program works best pulling from files saved on your C drive, but I would prefer to team to work from a centralized location, not from each individual's C drive on their computer.
"On Screen take off"
Overall: We used it for several years until we upgraded to Oasis. Works pretty well.
Pros: I liked it, but really like the upgraded oasis version. Faster than doing take off by hand, easy to organize.
Cons: Can't have two or more people working on the same takeoff (building the same data file) at the same time.
"On Center's On-Screen Takeoff software has equipped our PM team with the appropriate tools needed."
Pros: On Center's On-Screen take off is built to be easily set up in a team environment. Giving the tools to effectively execute a take off to qualify a bid, they also provide learning resources online.
Cons: On Center's On-Screen take off is capable of a lot, however the one set back we have seen in our office is that when exchanging keys (which are needed to be able to save changes and can only be used by one device at a time) we realized that On-Screen disables any use when remotely accessing your device. This makes it very difficult as an IT Professional when trying to remotely correct software/user issues.
"Can't work with out it."
Overall: seeing is believing.
Pros: Simple and intuitive. quick and accurate pricing in QB.
Cons: Need the be able to order material through quick (send PO) and track inventory. Quick books integration for job costing. Hot link within a hotlink. scale function in 2nd window.
"Great Takeoff Software"
Overall: I have used it off and on for 14 years and still recommend it
Pros: Speed, accuracy, adaptability, and real time integration with Quick Bid
Cons: Somewhat dated user interface. Oasis does not integrate with Quick Bid in real time