BUYERS MUST OFTEN USE THEIR 6TH SENSE...but should never forget about the other 5 senses! Of those 5 senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste) you can really only use one effectively while searching for a home on the computer.
In today's world of internet dependence, websites and, let's be honest, data overload; we often find ourselves having to sift through alot of information for the best, most accurate data available. Statistics, like Comparables, are often "cherry-picked" to validate a pre-determined conclusion. When viewing a home on the internet, keep in mind, the pictures have been "cherry-picked" by the Listing Agent to give you the best possible impression, in the hope that showings will follow! Some buyers view this as unethical.
Agents have pushed the lines for years in my opinion. Stating a home has 4 bedrooms in the MLS, with a comment indicating the 4th bedroom lacks a window, closet, or heating vent; or some combination of these. Square footage measurements are often inaccurate. Geo-mapping can be entertaining or frustrating, depending on how tight your schedule!
The June 2010 issue of REALTOR included a story titled "Virtual Staging: Stay True by Disclosing". The message is you can electronically alter the property, by "painting" rooms, adding furniture, adding a beachfront view; and then disclose that you virtually staged the property, and the information may not be completely accurate.... 
Somehow this seems an ethical and legal stretch. I gave up smoking years ago, but I don't remember a message on the cigarette pack that said they would make me taller. The tobacco companies paid $Billions because they showed people in ads sailing and riding horses while enjoying a smoke; merely suggesting they would make your life better.
Buyers should be educated early on to use their eyes, ears, and noses to examine homes, and not rely on the data from the computer and/or printed brochures from the Listing Agent. This education usually starts with a discussion about Agency and Representation.
Even today there is no substitute for the physical viewing of property, and until they invent "smell-a-vision", the computer will only help in establishing and updating the A-List of properties in a time efficient manner. Buyers need to hear the furnace run, and the floors creak and the neighborhood sing its song; they need to touch the plaster and walk on the carpet & hardwoods; they need to smell the basement and backyard; and they need to taste the water.
In the end the Buyer may rely equally on a 6th sense. Call it a sense of belonging, or tranquility, but we all have it to some degree. I can drop back and watch as a Buyer walks quietly through the home, looking for the positive feel. The sense of comfort and identity. It helps us make the big decisions in life, after we've used our other 5 senses!
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