USER MANUAL
BASIC REQUIREMENTS:
EXCEL 2007 installed on your computer is required to use our calculators.However, if you want to view our calculators and have a previous version of EXCEL installed on your computer, you can use "EXCEL VIEWER" from MICROSOFT WEBSITE (it's free to download)
STEP BY STEP DOWNLOADING PROCEDURE:
1) Click on the Calculator Name, ID No., or "TRY IT NOW" on our web page or the link provided to you in an email.
2) When prompted to Run or Save file, choose Save and choose the location where you want to save it.
3) When prompted to enter Activation Code, click the link “Get Activation Code on-line”
4) The link will take you to a page on our website. Enter your name and e-mail address and click “Get Activation Key”
5) Your activation key will appear at the top of the page. Copy it and paste it in the “Enter Activation Key” form and click “OK”.
6) You'll get a message of successful activation and you'll be able to proceed.
7) Follow directions provided in the following item "General Instructions".
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
Calculators are downloaded in the form of locked protected 2007 EXCEL. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO UNPROTECT SPREADSHEETS. This will lead to serious calculation errors. Do not try to save the file as Excel Workbook or any other type of files other than PDF or XPS documents, otherwise you may lose the original file.
We recommend proceeding as follows:
1) Download calculator files as mentioned above to a folder on your computer and immediately make a backup copy of the folder in a different location on the same computer.
2) When you want to use a calulator for a project, make a copy of the calculator in the project folder, rename it the way you like and run your calculations.
3) Print your calculations and/or save it as a PDF or XPS document.
CALCULATORS STRUCTURE:
The majority of our calculators are divided into three main sections; "Data Input", "Summary of Results" and "Calculations". "Data Input" section comes at tho top of the spreadsheet and is discussed in detail below. "Summary of Results" follows to enable the user to review the results and maybe change some input and check back the results without having to scroll down to the end of "Calculations" section.
DATA INPUT:
As mentioned above, all spreadsheets are protected, user will be able to select only the cells required for data entry. User can select such cells using the mouse or using the tab key to toggle between data entry cells. It's recommended to use the tab key and carefully examine each entry. Serious mistakes can happen if an earlier entry from an earlier use of spreadsheet is overlooked and left uncorrected.
All data entry cells are highlighted in yellow or blue. Yellow highlighted cells require typing an entry while blue highlighted cells require choosing an entry from a drop list.
For yellow highlighted cells that include units (lb, in, ft, psi, etc.), only digital entries are required. Do not type the units.
Blue highlighted cells may contain dynamic lists (lists that will change depending on a previous selection). For example the list of available sections will change depending on previously selected shape (W-Shape, S-Shape, HP-Shape, etc.).
We recommend starting the process of data entry from the top left corner and using the tab key to proceed in the right order.
CALCULATIONS AND RESULTS:
User has to make sure EXCEL setting on his computer is set to Automatic Calculations. Failing to do so might lead to displaying old results as current.
In the "Calculations" section, a step by step calculations are displayed. At every step, the corresponding formula is displayed and so is a reference to the used section of the building code / material standard . So the engineer of record and the plan checker can easily follow and review the calculations step by step.