Dick wrote:
I do home inspections (here on Cape Cod) & with the snow I can lo
longer use my measuring wheel to measure the size of the homes I'm
inspecting. Is there such a thing as an optical, sonic or laser
device that would enable me to measure exterior walls without having
to trudge through the snow to do this?
Even better (since I have to photograph the homes anyway) does anyone
know of a camera based tool that would take digital pictures plus
display (or make possible for me to figure out) wall dimensions?

Get yourself one of those sticks you see in all archeological pictures, or
make your own: Three foot long, alternating black and white bands each foot.
Take pictures with the stick in view - perhaps multiple shots down each
side, from as far away as is convenient (to minimize distortion).

Print pictures. Measure.

You can test this process on a house of known size - see how close you get
and whether the difference is tolerable.