Holy Crap! This program is terrible.
I had my main laptop sent in for servicing (need a new cooling fan). I was forced to buy a "new laptop" which I decided to get a refurbished laptop running Windows 7 instead of 8. Then, I had to download 28 since it was the newest version. First thing is first;
(1) Why, when they update the program, do they have to move all the tabs and options menus to different areas to make it look "sleek", or "cool"? This is a typical Microsoft type problem; they "update" the software that already worked to begin with, then you "the user" can't find anything or use the "simple" designs.
(2) Shouldn't a file be able to convert from 28 to 27.5? It is the same software and system, for the most part. You can incorporate an estimate from 27.5 to 28, but you cannot go back to 27.5 "the better version". Prime example, as I already stated, I have a "new" pc with 28 on it. I recevied a claim from my IA firm and when I received my "old" laptop back from being serviced, I tried to roll back to 27.5 to write the estimate. No Go! I have to use 28 to finish the file.
(3) It crashes all the time. My first night with 28, I worked on a file for 1.5 hours and had the autosave function set to save every 2 minutes. When the program crashed, the file was not saved. I spent another hour with a technician that showed me several ways to bring the file back (if it was saved), but since it wasn't, I lost another 1.5 hours completing everything a second time. Unbelievable!
(4) To piggyback on my last comment, 28 runs so slow that it took forever to actually write the estimate. Everytime you click on a tab or try to type something in, it has a 3-5 second delay before it registers what you are trying to do. Forget being a fast typer, or know the codes you want to enter into the Estimate. You will be delayed in every action you take. An hour long estimate can easily turn into 2 or 3, slowing you down and pissing you off in the process.
(5) DON'T TRY TO UPLOAD PHOTOS!! This is most time consuming thing that 28 has going. It literaly took me 10 seconds to open the photo screen so I can try to label my photos. I don't even have to explain how long it took to label a large restaurant and bar. I had at least 300 photos as this was a very large commercial property with extensive wind and water damage from a tornado. Once this claim is finalized and sent in, I intend to roll back to 27.5, on my old laptop just to work more efficiently.
I hope Symbility can gain more market share and have carriers use another software. We pay over $1,500 per year for this program, $20 per phone call if you need help and we constantly have to have "updates" performed, which don't even fix the problems they intend to fix. DO NOT UPGRADE TO 28, USE 27.5 FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE, OR FIND ANOTHER SOFTWARE THAT YOUR CARRIER WILL ACCEPT!