LightBox Vision FAQ

Note:

If you are unable to find quick answers in this FAQ page, please see the rest of our knowledge center with documentation articles and utilize the search field at the top, or contact the Support team at support-dmp@lightboxre.com 

Access Questions

Q: How do I access LightBox Vision?

A: The login url is: https://login.digitalmapcentral.com 

LightBox Vision is web based and can be accessed from any location with internet access. If you need to know your account name (this is different from your username), please reach out to your LightBox Vision representative. If you are part of a company who has a LightBox Vision account and need access to a username, please contact your company’s admin with this request. If you or your company do not currently have a LightBox Vision account and wish to inquire about a demo and quote, please contact us on our website here.

Q: What do I do if I forget my password?

A: At the login page, click the green link “Forgot your password?” and it will ask for your username before you submit the request for a password reset. If you do not know your username, please contact your LightBox Vision representative.  

Q: What is my account name? 

A: When you are located on the login page that asks for your username and password, you will see your account name at the end of the URL after the = symbol

Q: What should I do if I don’t have a username and I want to add myself or others to the LightBox Vision account that my company uses?

A: You will want to contact your company’s account admin to get access

Q: Can I load multiple users at once (bulk upload) with my admin access?

A: Yes, if you are an admin you can load multiple new usernames at one time. Please see the section for “Batch Load New Users” in the documentation here for more details.

Q: How do I know what version of LightBox Vision I have so that I know which features to access and what webinars to join?

A: Here are the steps to check:

1. While on the map page, select any parcel to get the Location Information panel

2. Select “More” under the summary of details:

3. If the command called “MySites” is visible, then you have the Commercial version. If the command called “Target Sites” is visible, then you have the Builder version. If neither of those commands can be found, then you have the Enterprise version

Q: Is there a mobile app?

A: Yes, but this is called “LandVision” on the Apple app store. Please review documentation here for more details.

Q: Can I share data gathered using the mobile app?

A: No, the mobile app is designed for making notes visible for your username only.

Q: What happens to a user’s data if their username is deleted?

A: The user’s data is kept by LightBox indefinitely and securely in an archive. Any access back to the username that was deleted must be requested and granted permission by the admin of the account that held the user’s license.

Q: If a list or layer was shared by a username that got deleted from the LightBox Vision account, does that mean access to these are revoked?

A: Because the deleted user had shared the list or layer prior to being removed from the account, then this means that other users on the account with whom it was shared with will not lose their access and can continue interacting.  

Functionality Questions

Q: Why do I not see parcel lines/boundaries on the map?

A: In your Layers Menu, please make sure the layer called Parcels is turned on. If this layer is enabled and you still cannot see parcel lines, it may be caused by one of these reasons:

You could have a setting enabled on your Parcels layer:

1. Open the Layers Menu and find the Parcels layer 

2. Select the gear icon next to the Parcels layer name

3. Choose Layer Properties 

4. Make sure Minimum Zoom Level is set to 1 and Max Zoom Level is 21. Delete any coordinates if they are present in the boxes for longitude and latitude. 

5. Select OK

You could have a filter on your Parcels layer:

1. Open the Layers Menu and find the Parcels layer

2. Select the filter (funnel) icon next to the Parcels layer name

3. Choose to Remove filter

Q: Why is there a white overlay on my map view?

A: A white overlay will be present in areas that your LightBox Vision contract is not subscribed to. If you wish to add coverage please have your account administrator contact their LightBox Vision account representative to go over pricing. 

Q: Can I merge multiple results lists on to one list?

A: No, this is not a capability in LightBox Vision.

Q: If I delete a layer or a list by accident, who should I contact to restore this?

A: If you had a previously saved list or layer that you deleted, you can contact our Support team (support-dmp@lightboxre.com) and provide the following information:

• Your username and account name (or the name of your company if you are unsure)

• The name of your list or layer

• An estimate of the day and time you deleted it

Q: Can I do a search by specific APN for more than one at a time?

A: No, only one APN can be searched at a time in the locate bar.

Q: I am unable to locate by APN. What should I do?

A: You’ll want to first make sure that your position on the map is located over the city or county that the APN is known to reside in and then in the locate bar, make sure to type in APN: with the number and characters after this. If the APN is still not found, you’ll want to verify the existence of the APN number with the county assessor website to make sure there have been no changes to it (sometimes numbers can get retired or altered). If you’ve tried all of the above, please reach out to support-dmp@lightboxre.com so that they can investigate further.

Q: Can I share a layer or list with specific people or groups of people?

A: Yes, this is possible using our Advanced Share feature. Please see the steps in the article here.

Q: Can I show the measurement for a group of parcels?

A: The combined area of multiple parcels can be measured by utilizing our Quick Measure tool or the measure option within Draw.

Q: Can I extract parcel boundaries to a shapefile?

A: Yes, these can be extracted to a shapefile but will only include the shapes and not the attributes. Up to 500 boundaries can be extracted per layer. There are two ways to achieve this:

Grabbing Individual Boundaries

1. Create a new markup layer and save to Markup folder (see details in this article here)

2. Select your parcel of interest

3. Select “More” from the Location Information panel

4. Select “Copy Geometry”

5. At the next window, select “Browse”

6. In the folder called “Markup” find the layer name you created from Step 1 and click “OK” to copy this boundary in to that layer

7. Repeat steps 2-6 if a few more boundaries are needed

8. Open the Layer’s Menu (top toolbar)

9. Find the layer name you created and select the gear icon next to it

10. Choose “Extract” from the options and you’ll see the icon in the top right that can be selected to download the shapes in that layer to a shapefile

Grabbing Multiple Boundaries (Up to 500)

Note: The below steps are only for accounts tied to Commercial or Builder versions

1. Set up a search and/or draw an inclusion around the parcels that need to be grabbed in bulk

2. Select “Apply Filter”

3. In the top right next to “Add to List” under the search results, select the 3 horizontal lines and choose “Copy to Markup”

4. Open the Layers Menu from the top toolbar and you will select the gear icon next to the first layer at the top to choose “Extract” from the options

5. In the top right corner of the page, an icon will load that can be selected which begins the shapefile download

Map Questions

Q: Where does the base map imagery come from?

A: This is provided to LightBox Vision from Microsoft Bing Maps.

Q: How often does the base map imagery get updated?

A: The imagery update cycle is dependent upon Microsoft Bing Maps.

Q: Are there other kinds of aerial imagery I can view in LightBox Vision?

A: Yes. LightBox offers a paid add-on called Time View which is satellite imagery taken at more frequent intervals. For information on this feature, please contact your company’s account administrator.

Q: Can I rotate or tilt the map?

A: Not from the base map options but it is possible to open the parcel in Google Earth and rotate or tilt it from that program. View the documentation here to learn how to do this.  

Q: How can I reset my map view and layers menu?

A: To bring yourself back to default display settings on your map and layers, please see the documentation here for the section called “Restoring the Home (Default) Map View”

Q: Can I search by Owner Occupied properties?

A: Yes but this field has to get added to either your Property Search or Advanced Property Search filters. Here are the steps to take:

1. Select the Search icon from the top toolbar

2. In the dropdown of options at the top, select either the Property Search or Advanced Property Search filters as the filter to be edited

3. Select OK on the form and select the icon of 3 horizontal lines in the top left under the LightBox logo

4. Choose “Edit Filter”

5. Select “Edit Group” under any of the categories you’ll want this filter to be in (ex: Ownership)

6. Select the blue “Add Search Criteria” button

7. On the dropdown next to “By Field”, select “Owner Occupied”

8. Next to “Available Search Criteria”, select the dropdown to choose “Textbox Widget”

9. Select “Add” and “OK” (twice)

10. Your filter will refresh and the field will be present for you to enter either Y or N in the textbox next to Owner Occupied (Y=Yes owner occupied & No = No, not owner occupied)

Data Questions

Q: Is there any foreclosure data available?

A: No, LightBox does not have a provider for this dataset at the moment.

Q: Can I search for debt information?

A: Yes, this is possible by utilizing the debt filters. Please see the documentation here to learn how to use the filters.

Q: Can I search for MLS data?

A: No, MLS data is not present in LightBox Vision.

Q: If I notice that property data or parcel boundaries are incorrect, how do I report it for correction?

A: Please email support-dmp@lightboxre.com with the location details (city, state, parcel number and/or coordinates) so that the team can investigate with the provider.

Q: Can I load KML/KMZ files in to LightBox Vision?

A: No, this is not a file type that is supported. However shapefiles can be loaded so please review our guide here for details on the requirements and steps to load.

Q: Is there leasing data in LightBox Vision?

A: No, but there is some tenant information for businesses that can be found in our Points of Interest dataset. Please view the documentation here for more information.

Q: How do I identify all the parcels I’ve left notes on while using Shared Notes?

A: A list of notes can be viewed by taking the following steps:

1. Select the list icon from the top toolbar

2. Select “Browse Layers”

3. At the next window, choose the folder type: SHARE

4. From the list of options, select “Parcel Notes”

5. The result is a list of all the notes made on individual parcels by any user sharing the same account. Selecting the specific note will take you to the parcel the note resides on. The notes can be extracted from the list (2,000 character limit) by selecting “Export to CSV” from the list options. However the notes will not extract with the parcel assessor information so it is advisable to include an address or APN reference within the notes.

6. Tips: If you have several users tied to the same LightBox Vision account, make sure to also include the name of the notetaker so it is easy to know whose notes belong to each other. For more information on shared notes, see this article here.

Q: Who is your vendor/source for the data that is found in LightBox Vision?

A: We work with various third-party suppliers to provide our services, but we don't disclose specific vendor information. Our agreements with these suppliers are part of our proprietary business operations.

Q: Can I search for properties that are inherited?

A: No, this is not a search option but please see our documentation on the different search filters we provide here.

Q: Can I search for owners that are out of the country?

A: No, our search filters only provide the option to find owners in or not in certain U.S specifications (city, state, zip code) but not internationally

Q: Does the information on my saved results list get updated when new data comes in or does it just capture what was there at the time of saving?

A: The data on results list will update as new data comes in and overrides the older information.

Q: Can I export Shared Notes?

A: Yes but the Shared Note field has a character limitation of 2,000. To export these, take the following steps:

1. Select “List” from the top toolbar

2. Select “Browse Layers”

3. Choose the folder “Share” and open the file name of “Parcel Notes”

4. Now these will be visible as a list with the option to extract to CSV

Q: Can I extract the records in my results list to a shapefile?

A: This is possible but this feature is considered an add-on option to the existing contract. Please contact your account administrator so they can reach out to their LightBox representative to receive a quote on this enhancement.