That is what I have done.
so true - I have seen surveyors retire and sell their company with all their records willynilly and they probably could have gotten more money if they organized!
I can't take credit for the idea,
Unless there is something going on here I don't know about (always possible), I think you may be able to do what Jon has done with software you 1) already have or 2) can get for free.
Everyone who uses any of the Carlson products (except the ones using the ACAD OEM engine) can get ArcGIS for free. I have been tinkering around with it and think what Jon has done is not all that big a deal, once you have the database stuff set up properly.
Deral can shed more light on this as I am just starting to dip my toe on those waters.
Larry P