Photos, texts and handwriting
Handwritten lists, photos and text messages into quotes
The list on the back of a job sheet, the photo from a truck, the screenshot of a text thread. Goodshed reads it, follows the customer's changes, and matches what they meant to your catalog.
The messiest requests are often the most urgent.
A photo of a handwritten list usually means someone is waiting on the material. It's also the hardest thing to key in: abbreviations, crossed-out lines, "make that 12", and trade shorthand like "1G rings ½" or "ss conn".
What arrives
- Photos of handwritten lists and job sheets
- Screenshots of text-message and chat threads
- Lists written in trade shorthand
- Follow-up messages that change the first one
- Pictures of a label or an old packing slip to match
How Goodshed reads them
- 01
Read the whole thread
In a conversation, Goodshed takes every item the customer asked for across their messages, including follow-ups like "and 3 of the 3/4 ss connectors", and ignores the distributor's own replies.
- 02
Apply the changes
When a later message changes a line, the line comes out as changed, once, with the change noted. Crossed-out lines are left off.
- 03
Decode the shorthand
"ss" is set-screw, "1G" is one gang, "½" is 1/2 inch, "recepts" are receptacles. Goodshed reads trade shorthand the way your counter does.
- 04
Flag what's unclear
When handwriting is hard to read, the line says what was uncertain and goes to Review.
What it looks like on a draft
| Customer wrote | Goodshed read | On the draft | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 — 1G rings ½" | 4-in square, 1-device ring, 1/2 in raised · qty 10 | RACO 772 | Resolved |
| 12 qo120 (text: "make the QO120s 12") | Square D QO 20A 1-pole · qty changed from 10 to 12 | QO120 | Resolved |
| 3 of the 3/4 ss connectors | 3/4 in EMT set-screw connector · qty 3 | Die-cast, per the house rule | Resolved |
What stays with your team
Your rep glances at anything flagged as hard to read, prices the draft and approves it. The original photo stays attached to the request.
Questions
Can Goodshed read handwriting?
What about a screenshot with several text messages?
Does it understand trade shorthand?

The last quote your team retypes by hand.
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