Posted by John Behle on May 24, 2001 at 18:50:49:
In Reply to: Calling Into Board of Realtors MLS Computer posted by Darlene Almeida on May 22, 2001 at 14:37:03:
At the time I wrote that article, it was a matter of calling in with software like "Procomm" over a 300-1200 baud modem.
Now with the internet, each board is different. Search functions are different. At that time I was able to download their entire database and then search within the text file through Word Perfect.
Now you just have to play around and see what information you can get, can search for or if there is a way to download the whole database. There was no function that allowed that when I first discovered it, so I had to find ways to "trick" their system. I could widen the search to all areas, prices between 1000 and 1,000,000 dollars and no other criteria.
Using macros in a word processing program then let me create any kind of database I wanted and search for any item.
Again, each system is different and there is no standard system or way to use it. It is just a matter or experimentation.