The key changes made to SPACE GASS since version 8.00 are described below. Note that minor enhancements and bug fixes are not listed here.

Version 10.86

Version 10.85b

Version 10.85a

Version 10.85

Version 10.84

Version 10.83

• Fixed an intermittent bug that caused some of the thermal loads, member prestress loads and plate pressure loads to not be applied during the analysis in some circumstances. This bug was present in all versions of SPACE GASS from v10.70 to v10.82. We would recommend that you re-run jobs containing the above-mentioned loads in v10.83 or later if they were previously analysed with v10.70 - v10.82.

Version 10.82b

• Allowed for 5 section property ID digits in graphical display.

Version 10.82a

• Added Australian section name conversion for Bentley Structural.

Version 10.82

• Released the new v9.03c version of the TitanLM softlock system. This new version no longer causes a significant delay when there are more than 20 SPACE GASS users on the network.
• Now allow "."s to be used in filenames without everything after the last "." being taken as the extension.
• Upgraded the Revit link to support Revit 2011. Note that SPACE GASS models can now be exported via a CIS/2 file to create a Revit 2011 model from scratch.
• Included v3.5 of LIMSTEEL (AS4100 and NZS3404 steel member design) that allows for welded channels, angles and tees.
• An error message is now displayed in SPACE GASS when a roaming license expires.
• The message for missing .NET Framework 2.0 or 3.5 has been re-worded to allow for v4.0 already installed.
• Fixed load case titles being in the wrong position after being turned on via the labelling and annotation dialogue.
• Allowed up to 5 digits for the section ID in the member properties form.
• All SPACE GASS job and other file opening and saving commands are now enabled in script mode.
• If items selected in a filter were off-screen when a filter dialogue "Select" button was clicked, those items were incorrectly shown de-selected and this has now been fixed.
• Made a small change to the CIS/2 importer to allow CadWorks files to be imported.
• Can now import both the CIS/2 and IFC physical and analytical models, and this is the default.
• Fixed a bug in the CIS/2 export related to mixing up section centroid and centre positions.
• Fixed a crash in the CIS/2 and IFC section name conversion template creation.
• Made a number of minor adjustments to the CIS/2 and IFC import/export tools.
• Added the ability to import CADWorx design parts.
• Added STAAD.Pro section name conversion to the import/export tools.
• Fixed a bug that specified the wrong material in the structure wizard plate models.
• Fixed a bug in the moving load generator that sometimes caused a curved travel path to be the long arc between its end points rather than the short arc.
• If normal strength bolts were incorrectly specified for bolted end plate or moment baseplate connections (which always assume high strength bolts in the design calculations), the output and drawings showing them as normal strength has now been corrected to show them as high strength.
• Included the first vehicle distance travelled in load case notes during moving load generation.
• Improved the accuracy of the cable stiffness in the first iteration by using a more accurate estimate of the initial cable geometry.

Version 10.81d (limited release only)

• Fixed the RAM allocation error that sometimes occurred when shutting down SPACE GASS.
• Removed the 5 minute hardware lock queries from the analysis.
• Removed the hardwired 999 section properties limit in the renderer.

Version 10.81c (limited release only)

• Fixed a bug in the moving loads generator that occasionally caused a wheel load to not be applied if it fell in the wedge between the normals of the two closest members that were at a slight angle to each other (eg. such as members arranged end-to-end in a curved path). In this situation the load is beyond the end of one member and before the start of the other member even though the two members are connected to each other. This fix applies the load to the common node provided the load falls no more than 1mm beyond the ends of the closest member when projected onto it.

Version 10.81b

• Fixed a problem that sometimes generated errors when the renderer was opened.
• Stopped steel member design/check reports being selectable when no results were actually available.
• Fixed a problem that sometimes caused the copy steel member properties tool to fail.

Version 10.81a

• A bug that sometimes caused plate loads to be deleted has been fixed. Loads were incorrectly deleted on plates that were either filtered out or were outside of the visible screen area while other visible plates were being deleted.

Version 10.81

• Released a new improved version of the TitanLM softlock system. Click here for more information.
• When a node is moved onto and merged with another node, the stationary node is now retained rather than the moving node.
• If you have set the next node, member or plate number, it is used whenever new nodes, members or plates are added regardless of the method used. Previously it only worked when drawing.
• The 9999 dimension limit on shape builder sections has been removed.
• Fix moving loads sometimes missing the first or last position due to a tolerance error.
• The tolerance for determining if a member is too short when drawing by typing in coordinates is now based on 1mm in structure units rather than 1mm on the screen.
• Members can now be drawn normal to the screen when using keyboard input.
• Fixed shape builder shapes containing fillets sometimes calculating a negative Iw.
• Can now include analysis results in exported CIS/2 and IFC files.
• Can now import loads from CIS/2 files.

Version 10.80/80a/80b

• Released the new TitanLM softlock system as an alternative to hardware locks. Click here for more information.
• Changed the concrete column moment magnifier calculation to stop ds being calculated for braced columns. We have also changed the wording of the configuration variable from “Buckling LF” to “Lambda uc” to reflect what it actually is in AS3600 clause 10.4.3.
• Fixed analysis optimization not being recognised in script files due to “N” optimization being read from “TON” string by mistake.
• Fixed some member orientation problems with importing IFC “Design” models.
• If a security error occurs and you are forced to shut down SPACE GASS, you now get the opportunity to save the job you have been working on under a different name.

Version 10.72a

• Plates have been added to the bill of materials report.
• Some problems associated with the renderer's infotips has been fixed.
• The renderer sometimes losing its link to SPACE GASS has been fixed.
• The renderer infotips setting is now remembered.
• A 5mm error in the renderer printing margins has been corrected.
• Members with no section properties are now drawn as lines rather than very small cylinders in the renderer.

Version 10.72

• If you hover the mouse over a node, member or plate in the renderer, an infotip showing all of the object's properties is displayed.
• You can now work in SPACE GASS while the renderer is left open. Any changes made to the model in SPACE GASS are automatically reflected in the renderer. It is especially useful with dual monitor systems, whereby you can have SPACE GASS on one monitor and the renderer on the other.
• All of the renderer colors can now be set in the renderer.
• Buttons for rendered, wireframe and centreline modes have been added to the renderer.
• A link to Inducta SLABS has been added.
• The conversion of section property names when importing or exporting has been improved.
• Now properly convert Aust300 UB and UC section names if no decimal provided when importing. For example, “410 UB 54” is now converted to “410 UB 53.7”.
• Some parts of the analysis have been sped up somewhat when doing plate calculations.
• The conversion of the compression effective lengths to principal axes for single angle sections can now be skipped if desired during a steel member design or check.
• Fixed the area loader from doubling up on some areas and missing others.
• The structure wizard models that have a member or plate option are now separated into separate models.
• Analysis results can now be included in CIS/2 and IFC exports.
• A number of bugs when importing or exporting CIS/2, IFC or Revit files have been fixed.
• Section names are now sorted by size rather than by name when opened in the library editor from the file menu.
• A number of other minor enhancements and bug fixes have also been added.

Version 10.71f

• When converting the non-principal compression effective lengths to principal for single angle sections, members specified as braced at the ends for both the major and minor axes have their principal compression effective lengths limited to no longer than the group length.
• Some minor changes have also been made.

Version 10.71e (limited release only)

• The analysis crash problem fixed in v10.71c caused incorrect masses to be passed through to the dynamic response analysis module. This has now been fixed.

Version 10.71d

• Fixed a problem with plate element forces and moments being incorrectly factored up in combination load cases that had not been analysed (ie. combination load cases that were obtained by linear combinations of their analysed child load cases). Note that this problem did not affect plate nodal forces and moments or plate stresses.

Version 10.71c

• Fixed an analysis crash that happened when the temporary displacements were put onto disk and the temporary reactions were put into memory.
• Fixed the 3D renderer not drawing a shape builder wedge properly when D1=0 or D2=0.

Version 10.71b

• Corrected the Z coordinates sign when importing plates from SDNF files with Y-up in SPACE GASS.
• Fixed the 3D renderer not labelling section names sometimes.
• Stopped the 3D renderer from showing itself until after it is adjusted for its final size and position.
• Now remember the 3D renderer sidebar width while SPACE GASS stays running.
• Fixed a bug that was adding big P-delta effects to intermediate member moments when the shear at either end was released.
• Fixed the line/arc/helix question sometimes being skipped during a copy.
• Changed propped portal frame wizard to put FFFRRR restraint at bottom of props instead of FFFFRR.
• Fixed the conical wizard only producing a cylinder.
• Fixed the library editor not sorting sections properly.
• Fixed a few bugs related to exporting to Excel/Access/Word due to running out of memory.
• Fixed an error when importing plates from Excel or Access.

Version 10.71a

• Made some further adjustments to the ill-conditioning check.
• Fixed not being able to read the static analysis header sometimes when displaying graphics. This sometimes presented as a crash.
• Fixed the subdivide tool not working with more than 50 intermediate nodes.
• Fixed the query stresses tool not working unless a stress diagram was displayed.
• Restored the internal 3D viewer due to popular demand.
• Fixed an intermittent crash when drawing graphically.

Version 10.71

• Made the ill-conditioning check less sensitive so that it no longer appears prematurely.
• Now allow the user to set the upper and lower contour range limits.
• Fixed the slowness in the calculation of forces and moments when a large number of load cases were being analysed.
• The icons in the 3D renderer are now scaled down for models that have very small elements.
• Fixed the false ill-conditioning message that appeared when prescribed displacements were used.
• Fixed the DXF export tool not recognizing the "layer specific" settings.
• Fixed members remaining selected internally if the Connection tool could not make any connections.
• When importing a text file, if illegal data is found, all the data of the type currently being read is no longer discarded.
• Fixed plate pressure load diagrams not being adjusted for a non-zero direction angle/node/axis.
• Upgraded the Revit link to be compatible with Revit Structure 2010.
• Fixed the incorrect member orientations and offsets when importing from Revit Structure.
• Added the components required by the 3D renderer to export rendered models to AutoCAD DWG and DXF files.
• The position and size of the main SPACE GASS and renderer windows are now remembered.

Version 10.70b/c/d

• Fixed the 3D renderer not being able to render custom library sections.
• Fixed the structure wizard sometimes generating a cone instead of a cylinder when plates were selected.
• Fixed the plate element not being able to be trialed properly in network versions.
• Fixed the installation program incorrectly reporting that Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 or later is not installed.

Version 10.70/10.70a

• The new plate element has been added.
• Links have been added to commonly used CAD and BIM programs such as Tekla Structures (XSteel), ProSteel, Microstation, Frameworks Plus, StruCAD, Revit Structure, Bentley Structural, AutoCAD and others.
• When exporting to SDNF the file is now written in v3.0 format rather than v2.0.
• A new built-in 3D graphics renderer has been added.
• The minimum and maximum intermediate values are now shown on deflection diagrams.
• Can now have envelopes of just minimums, just maximums or absolute maximums.
• Added a node, member and plate connectivity checking tool.
• During a copy or mirror, restraint springs and master-slave constraints are now copied.
• Nodes can now be moved, rotated or deleted directly.
• During a move or rotate, if any nodes or members are deleted during the operation, their loads are now also deleted.
• Members with a local offset that are cut into during a draw or single node move operation are now converted to a global offset and adjusted correctly.
• When exporting to Excel, the member and steel member design sheets are no longer converted to text.
• The default compression effective length ratio limit in the steel member design modules has been reduced to 5.0.
• In the steel member design modules, now warn if the minor axis compression effective length is adjusted due to flange restraints.
• Fixed the steel member design failure equation reporting things like “… 4.56 < 1.00 (Pass)”. This was just a reporting problem and didn't affect the results.
• Stopped the cleanup from deleting “lumped mass-only” load cases from combinations.
• Added the results of the node equilibrium checks to the reactions report.
• Added the final strained cable length to output reports.
• The number of modes per spectral load case has been increased to 200.
• The dynamic resonse analysis now adopts the user specified value of Sp in NZS1170.5 clauses 5.2.1.2 and 5.2.2.3 instead of 0.7.
• Changed dynamic response scaling so that it is based on the static force in the vector direction rather than derived from the static forces in the X, Y and Z directions.
• A number of other minor enhancements and bug fixes have also been added.

Version 10.60

• The minimum and maximum intermediate values are now shown on bending moment, shear force, axial force, torsion and stress diagrams.
  
• If a script file doesn't contain an exit command, SPACE GASS just exits script mode and stays running when the end of the script file is reached.
  
• When editing a filter graphically after clicking the nodes or members Select button in the Filters dialogue, nodes or members are no longer deselected when doing a dynamic zoom, pan, rotate or re-scale.
  

Version 10.52g

• Applied the limitation on ZRu in NZS1170.5 clause 5.2(2).
  
• Fixed the shape builder sometimes calculating the wrong sign for Ixy (and hence miscalculating the principal angle) for sections input by coordinates.
  
• Fixed the overflow message that sometimes appeared when running SPACE GASS on dual screens.
  
• Stopped exporting summary totals when exporting to MS-Excel/MS-Access.
  
• Fixed the “Out of memory” error when exporting large jobs to MS-Access.
  
• Added the lock number to error messages that involve lock checking.
  

Version 10.52e/10.52f

• Allowed the job name in a command line prompt to be enclosed in quotes.
  
• The ZRu <= 0.7 limit in NZS1170.5 clause 3.1.1 is now just applied to the ultimate limit state and is also now reflected in the reported spectral curve multiplier.
  
• Prevented typing into the response analysis base shear combo box and changed the default to 100% for NZS1170.5.
  
• Removed reduced problem size limits from the student version and allowed buckling and dynamic response analysis.
  
• Fixed the steel member design module sometimes reporting a member failure but showing the values for a section failure. It also affected the governing failure equation values because it was a member failure equation using inappropriate section failure values. The problem occurred if the section and member failures returned exactly the same load factor.
  

Version 10.52d

• Changed to using the code formulae for the standard AS1170.4-2007 and NZS1170.5-2004 spectral curves rather than interpolating between the discrete curve points.
  
• Updated the Revit Structure interface for the new 2009 version.
  

Version 10.52b/10.52c (limited release only)

• Made some minor changes.
  

Version 10.52/10.52a

• Fixed some errors and added some extra checks to the NZS1170.5-2004 dynamic response analysis module.
  
• Released an interface to Autodesk’s Revit Structure.
  

Version 10.51b (limited release only)

• Fixed the problem in v10.51 of not being able to delete a steel member design group via the delete button in the graphical input form.
  

Version 10.51a

• Fixed the problem in v10.51 of the steel member design data not being saved for a new graphically defined design group if you simply click the Ok button in the input form without changing anything.
  

Version 10.51

• The dynamic response analysis module now supports AS1170.4-2007 and NZS1170.5-2004.
  
• Negative member numbers in an SDNF file are now accepted.
  
• In the shape builder, when a standard shape is saved to a library, it is now treated as a library shape in the SPACE GASS job after exiting the shape builder.
  
• The job file is now zipped with less compression than before to avoid the job being treated as spam by many Internet spam filters. It was treated as spam because the @JB file was previously compressed by around 400% due to the large number of zeroes in it if no filters or views were used.
  
• A library of Chinese sections has been added.
  
• A library of Onesteel aluminium sections has been added.
  
• Steel member design results are no longer deleted if you view the design data via the input form and click the Ok button without changing anything.
  
• In the steel member design module, a partial restraint applied to the critical flange is now treated as a full restraint on the cross section.
  
• Load case titles are now automatically prompted for as load cases are created.
  
• Filters and views can now be created without providing a name.
  
• When creating a filter or view graphically, the selection dialogue now defaults to the next available unused filter or view rather than the first or active one.
  

Version 10.50e (limited release only)

• For Hong Kong licences, added an option to include buckling mode shapes in reports.
  

Version 10.50d (limited release only)

• Fixed members being incorrectly connected if a dynamic zoom, pan, rotate or re-scale was done while drawing.
  
• Fixed nodes/members being suppressed or node/member selections being cancelled if a dynamic zoom, pan or rotate was done while nodes or members were graphically being added or removed from a filter.
  
• Modified the bending effective lengths for HK CP2005. They were previously assumed to be identical to BS5950:2000.
  
• Added an option to choose between clauses 6.8.3 and 8.9.2 for HK CP2005.
  
• Fixed a problem with the BS5950:2000 module returning the incorrect load factors for sections with high shear.
  
• Changed the method for adjusting intermediate moments from spectral load cases so that they always agree with the end moments.
  

Version 10.50c (limited release only)

• Instabilities now refer to the affected node and degree of freedom.
  
• Fixed the incorrect quarter point values along the design group for the HK CP2005 and BS5950:2000 steel member design modules. This affected mx (HK 8.9.2) and mx/mxy (BS 4.8.3.3).
  
• Removed clause 8.9.2 checks from HK CP2005 and now rely on the user to build initial member imperfections into the analysis model.
  

Version 10.50b

• A problem related to filters involving nodes or members being selected while not appearing to be selected has been fixed. The problem only affects v10.50/10.50a and occurs when a filter is created from a graphical selection of nodes or members after which the selected items are deselected visually but not internally. Although the filter is created correctly, if the operation following the filter creation involves you selecting nodes or members graphically then that operation may act on the items you select plus the ones that are still internally selected from the filter creation. Note that the incorrectly selected items become deselected properly as soon as you perform another graphics operation, open a datasheet, generate a report, analyse, etc.
  
• Some minor changes were made to the Hong Kong CP2005 steel member design module. This involved enabling equation 8.79 and using the actual member length rather than the effective length in equation 8.80.
  

Version 10.50/10.50a

• Dynamic zoom, pan, viewpoint and diagram scaling have been added. You can use the mousewheel or keyboard arrow keys to dynamically zoom, pan, rotate or change diagram scales without interrupting your current operation or losing your node or member selections. Refer to "shortcuts" in the help system for more information.
  
• The help system is now HTML and is fully compatible with Windows Vista.
  
• The stiffness adjustments for a member during a non-linear analysis are now based on the maximum of the axial forces at the ends of the member rather than the average of the axial forces at the ends of the member. This is slightly more conservative than the previous approach when the axial force varies along the member, but gives more consistent results when comparing loads applied at a node versus loads applied at the end of a member.
  
• “D” restraints are no longer used. Restraints are now just “F”, “S” or “R”. Existing jobs will automatically have their "D" restraints converted to "F" when you open them.
  
• The standard restraint buttons have been changed and some new ones added.
  
• The structure wizard restraints have been revamped and are now generally less restraining.
  
• The structure wizard no longer generates a general restraint.
  
• The concrete material properties in the standard metric library have been updated. The new values are based on AS3600-2001 clauses 6.1.5, 6.1.6 and Commentary Table C6.1.2.
  
• SPACE GASS can be run minimized, normal or maximized depending on the -min, -nml or -max command line options. It can also be controlled by the SHOW line in a script file.
  
• Dynamic analyses can now consider up to 200 modes.
  
• A message is displayed at the end of a static analysis if any members failed the single member buckling check.
  
• Importing/exporting of Excel, Access and Word files now works in script mode.
  
• SDNF version 3 files can now be imported.
  
• Shape codes for beam and column tees in the US library have been corrected.
  
• The incorrect vehicle positions that occurred when a moving load travel path with a radius was used have been fixed.
  
• The NZ spectral curves with an “f” at the end of the name not being recognised has been fixed.
  
• A number of other minor enhancements and bug fixes have also been added.
  

Version 10.41

• A new steel member design module for the British code BS5950-1:2000 is now available. Because this is a completely different code to BS5950:1990 and has involved a complete rewrite for us, you cannot upgrade to it from the BS5950:1990 module. It has to be purchased as a new module.
  
• A new steel member design module for the Hong Kong code CP2005 is now available. Note that this module is not supplied for free with the v10.41 upgrade. It can be purchased just like any of the other steel member design modules.
  
• To activate a script file, it must now be specified as a command line option.
  
• The full member geometry for circular tube and solid rod sections can now be included when exporting to a DXF file.
  
• If Y is set as the vertical axis in SPACE GASS, when importing a DXF file the coordinates are now converted assuming that Z is vertical in the DXF file.
  
• An option for putting members into section-specific layers when exporting to a DXF file has been added.
  
• The feature that lets you iterate the analysis-design procedure automatically has been modified as follows:
  a) Added an option for displaying a warning if the lowest buckling load factor is less than a prescribed value.
  b) A warning is displayed if any design errors occur.
  c) The iterations now stop if an analysis error occurs.
  
• Fixed the problem of the bending effective length being ignored for Eurocode 3 if specified manually rather than being calculated based on the flange restraints.
  
• Added back-to-back LiteSteel^TM beam sections to the Smorgon library. At this stage the back-to-back sections can be analysed but not designed.
  
• Added an "Austold" library that contains a number of old BHP sections.
  
• In the US library, the high strength material properties for pipes, square and rectangular tubes have been changed to match A500 Gr. B in AISC-LRFD Table 2-1.
  
• Fixed a few minor bugs.
  

Version 10.40

• A new LSB^TM module has been added which allows you to analyse and design the range of LiteSteel^TM beam products from Smorgon Steel. The design is fully compliant with the latest editions of AS/NZS 4600.
  
• After a steel member design, the analysis update feature now allows you to update the analysis section properties with the new design member sizes and automatically iterate the entire update-analysis-design process until the analysis and design member sizes match.
  
• A toolbar button for accessing the Quickstart Guide for new users has been added.
  

Version 10.31

• The problem of spectral load case bending moment diagrams and reported intermediate moments not agreeing with the end moments has been fixed. Note that this may have affected steel member designs because they are dependent on the intermediate member moments.
  
  When the results from a number of dynamic modes are combined during the dynamic response analysis, the end shears and moments for a member are no longer in equilibrium. While this is normal and correct, the lack of equilibrium means that the end shears cannot be used in the calculation of the intermediate moments.
  
  Because there are no intermediate member loads in spectral load cases, the spectral bending moment diagrams are now taken to be a straight line from one end moment to the other.
  
  
• The problem of semi-rigid joint stiffnesses being cumulatively factored due to units conversion in each analysis if the moment units weren't consistent with the force and length units has been fixed.
  
• The torsion stress calculations for open sections are now more accurate and less conservative.
  
• The Euro and Euro2 libraries incorrectly contained the non-principal moments of inertia for unequal angle sections. They have now been corrected for the principal axes. The Euro libraries also contained incorrect plastic section modulus values for unequal angle sections which have also been corrected.
  
• Some new sections have been added to the Euro and Euro2 libraries.
  
• Bow and attic trusses have been added to the structure wizard.
  
• The structure wizard now allows for cut-off trusses and input of the truss pitch.
  
• Member pins have been added to structure wizard truss chords where a change in direction occurs.
  
• An option for exporting reports in RTF format has been added.
  
• A right mouse button popup menu for copying to the clipboard from the report viewer has been added.
  

Version 10.30b

• A problem with a faulty "DOF size mismatch" error in the dynamic response analysis has been fixed.
  

Version 10.30a

• Mode shapes from the dynamic frequency analysis in v10.30 were not always accurate unless a very small tolerance was used, even though the natural frequencies were always accurate. Inaccurate mode shapes can cause the dynamic response analysis to give incorrect results, sometimes evidenced by mass participation factors that exceed 100%. The SPACE GASS dynamic frequency analysis can now detect if a mode shape is incorrect and will perform extra iterations automatically to achieve more accurate mode shapes. Note, however, that the accuracy of mode shapes is still dependent, but to a lesser extent than before, on the tolerance used.
  
  
• Extra iterations can now also be automatically performed in the buckling analysis to achieve more accurate buckling mode shapes.
  
• The dynamic modes limit has been increased to 200.
  
• A crash that could occur in the dynamic frequency and buckling analysis modules with large jobs if many modes were requested has been fixed.
  
• A comprehensive range of timber has been added to the standard section and material libraries.
  
• A command line option for controlling the location of the SG.INI configuration file has been added.
  
• A graphics display problem with tension-only or compression-only members that are disabled in all load cases of an envelope has been fixed.
  
• A problem with the thermal/prestress loads datasheet not working due to a counter not being set properly in v10.30 has been fixed.
  
• The user manual has been updated to reflect some changes in the way node and flange restraints should be modelled in 2D frames. Refer to the "Node restraints" and "Structure wizard" sections and the portal frame worked example.
  

Version 10.30

• A new dynamic frequency analysis module has been added which uses the same wavefront matrix solver as the static and buckling analysis modules. It has the following attributes and advantages:
  
  a) Uses the wavefront optimizer.
  b) The memory requirement is dependent on the matrix frontwidth which is usually much smaller than the bandwidth used in the previous version.
  c) Can handle much larger jobs than the previous version.
  d) Is faster than the previous version for medium to large jobs.
  e) Has precise frequency shift control.
  f) Can analyse combination load cases.
  g) Self-mass in a dynamic frequency analysis is now specified in the same way as self-weight in a static analysis.
  h) The stiffness matrix from a static analysis no longer has to be saved.
  
  Note that in developing the new dynamic frequency analysis solver, it was discovered that the old solver missed some higher order frequencies in some models. If this is of significance to you, you should re-analyse with the new solver.
  
  
• The base shear scaling in the dynamic response analysis module has been adjusted to more accurately allow for the summing of the reactions when their sign is controlled by one of the dynamic modes. Note that for AS1170.4 and NZS4203 the direction vector should always be parallel to one of the global horizontal axis directions when auto-scaling of the base shear is activated. The correct way to model an earthquake at an angle to the global horizontal axes is to have a spectral load case for each of the global horizontal axis directions and then combine them into a combination load case using multiplying factors that are proportional to the projected lengths of the desired direction vector.
  
  
• The wavefront optimizer can now be controlled at the start of buckling and dynamic frequency analyses.
  
• The shapes of buckling mode shapes are now more accurate.
  
• Cancelling an analysis or design session must now be confirmed to avoid accidental cancellation.
  
• A variety of triangular trusses have been added to the structure wizard.
  
• The color of alternate lines in the datasheets can now be controlled via a command line switch. Select "properties" of your SPACE GASS shortcut and append the contents of the "target" field with -cbbggrr, where bbggrr is the 6 character hexadecimal representation of the desired color with bb=blue component, gg=green component and rr=red component. For example, 50% blue, 50% green and 20% red could be specified with a command line switch of -c7f7f33.
  
• Problems associated with saving and opening jobs if the path or job names were the same as the current job but with different case have been fixed.
  
• Added the new Smorgon LSB sections to the library.
  
• Incorrect labelling of some concrete column cross section dimensions has been fixed.
  
• Fixed a number of other minor bugs.
  

Version 10.22

• Very small reactions that show up as "0" in the graphics display are now omitted graphically.
  
• Shaded areas now print properly when "mono" is not selected.
  
• The problem of no graphical envelope being displayed for tens/comp-only members that are disabled for just some of the load cases in the envelope has been fixed.
  
• Jobs with no nodes can now be merged into the current job.
  
• Steel members that have a satisfactory load factor but which fail the l/r checks are now shown as failed in the graphics display.
  
• Steel members that fail the l/r checks can now be defined in a filter.
  
• Computers with more than 4Gb RAM are now allowed for.
  
• When dual monitors are used, the problem of some forms appearing on the wrong monitor has been fixed.
  
• Fixed a number of other minor bugs.
  

Version 10.21

• Fixed the flanges being taken as the wrong way around by LIMSTEEL for box or plate girder sections when the top flange is smaller than the bottom flange.
  
• When the steel member design bending effective length is specified manually, the use of Lb+ or Lb- is now based on the sign of the design moment rather than the sign of the moment at the start of the segment.
  
• Fixed translational restraints being applied in error if the stabilize unrestrained nodes feature was used and the model contained members that were lined up with a global axis, had an offset applied and had a translational fixity release.
  
• Negative thermal coefficients are now allowed.
  
• The load case selection box on the toolbar is now refreshed after members are deleted just in case it causes any load cases to be deleted.
  
• Fixed reports not recognizing filters that are based on steel member design pass/fail criteria.
  
• Fixed not being able to open jobs in some network folders.
  
• Fixed Sx and Sy not being transposed if Ix and Iy were transposed while saving a section to a library from the shape builder.
  
• For graphical reaction envelopes, if the minimum and maximum values for a degree of freedom both have the same sign, then only the largest one is displayed rather than both.
  
• Fixed an intermittent crash when displaying the job status.
  
• Fixed a number of other minor bugs.
  

Version 10.20a/10.20b

• The problem of the program sometimes crashing when generating filtered output reports or graphical printouts, and sometimes showing the wrong filter name in the report headings has been fixed. This occurred only if filters were not numbered sequentially.
  

Version 10.20

• An option for SPACE GASS to check for program updates via the SPACE GASS website has been added.
  
• The moving load generator is now able to generate combination load cases that combine the moving loads with other static loads.
  
• Moving load travel path coordinates, when used in conjunction with travel path node numbers, are now treated as offsets from the path defined by the node numbers.
  
• The number of moving load wheels per vehicle has been increased to 200.
  
• Custom libraries are now stored in a separate file to the standard libraries. They can also be stored in a different folder to the standard libraries.
  
• Your company logo can now be scaled to an exact height that you specify and can optionally be included on every page or just the first page. JPG image formats are now also supported.
  
• Saving of loads after graphical editing, importing of text files and report generation have all been sped up dramatically.
  
• Zooming via the mousewheel is now centered on the mouse position.
  
• An option for allowing duplicate members to be drawn has been added. Finding and filtering duplicate members has also been added to the cleanup, find and filter functions.
  
• Deleting members with zero length has been added to the cleanup function.
  
• Filters defined in terms of analysis members now also affect steel design reports.
  
• Options for suppressing automatic re-scaling of load and analysis results diagrams have been added.
  
• The lowest buckling load factor is now displayed at the end of a buckling analysis.
  
• The end offset distance for members exported to a DXF drawing file can now be specified.
  
• The problem of some members being shown in the VRML viewer with the incorrect orientation has been fixed. This problem only affected near vertical members (ie. those with a horizontal difference of less than 1mm between the coordinates at each end) that had their local x-axis pointing downwards. It did not affect members that were exactly vertical or members that weren't close to being vertical.
  
• Filtered reports now include the name of the filter in the heading.
  
• The data generated by the structure wizard is now adjusted according to the vertical axis setting.
  
• The default gravity direction in the self-weight datasheet is now adjusted according to the vertical axis setting.
  
  The following items relate to features that were changed or removed in SPACE GASS 10.00 and have now been re-introduced due to popular demand.
  
  
• New members being drawn graphically can now be optionally given the default attributes or those of the previously accessed member.
  
• The starting page number for reports can now be specified.
  
• Reports can now be left open while working on other parts of the program.
  
• Query toolbar buttons for the frame, analysis results and steel member design results have been restored.
  
• The analysis results query window can now handle 500 lines of data.
  
• The steel member design "Use previous" button for data input has been restored.
  

Version 10.10 (limited release only)

• Auto-created steel members are now terminated at pin-ended members.
  
• The default bolt, plate, weld, rebar, spectral and vehicle library names can now be specified in the configuration.
  
• Selection of the local XY and/or XZ planes for the display of moments, shears and stresses can now be made direct from the side toolbar rather than via a filter.
  
• An option for selecting steel members and connections graphically and then viewing or editing them in a datasheet has been added.
  
• The problem of dynamic response analysis results not being proportional to the spectral curve multiplier (SCM) for very small values of the SCM has been fixed.
  

Version 10.01b/10.01c

• If not all steel members have been designed or checked, when you attempt to show the results graphically an error message appears stating that the results data cannot be read. This message is incorrect and has now been removed.
  

Version 10.01a

• Fixed a units conversion problem with the steel member design if the selected length, force and moment units were not consistent with each other.
  
• Prevented the screen graphics being displayed in mono if the printed graphical output was specified for mono.
  

Version 10.00/10.01

• This is a major new version with many new features. Click here to find out more.
  

Version 9.03

• When designing with single angle sections, the method that was introduced in v9.00 to convert the compression effective lengths from non-principal axes to principal axes may, in some cases, result in unconservative designs.
  
  The pre-v9.03 procedure calculated the principal effective lengths so that the member's Euler buckling capacity for buckling about the principal axes using the principal effective lengths was the same as its capacity for buckling about the non-principal axes using the non-principal effective lengths.
  
  This results in a minor axis principal effective length (Ly) that is often smaller than either of the non-principal effective lengths (Ln and Lp). It also means that Ly/ryy is often smaller than Lp/ryy which some codes such as AS3995 base their strut design upon.
  
  Consequently, a change has been made that prevents Lx and Ly from being less than the minimum of Ln and Lp.
  
  Note that this change does not affect members designed to AS3990 or SABS0162.
  
  
• The check for combinations that contain non-existent load cases that was introduced in v9.02 has now been made optional.
  
• The problem of "unstable" buckling modes being incorrectly reported for some load cases after a buckling analysis has been rectified.
  
• The problem of bolted end plate flange fillet welds being incorrectly reported as being required on "1 side" only has now been changed to "2 sides".
  

Version 9.02

• The problem of the cleanup feature deleting combinations of combination load cases has been fixed. This will affect you if you have been using the cleanup feature and you have combined combination load cases into further combinations.
  
• The problem of other programs moving in front of SPACE GASS and hiding it after you exit from a SPACE GASS datasheet (and some other forms) has been fixed.
  
• A few of the steel connection design datasheet column headings were out of sequence and were incorrect for the data being displayed under them. They have now been fixed. The affected headings are haunch length and depth, weld categories and flange weld type.
  
• It is now possible to save jobs containing a space in their name to a network drive.
  
• The steel member design module speed has been further increased.
  
• Double angle sections have now been properly allowed for when running a steel member design with the "Equalize Design Sizes for Matching Analysis Sections" feature activated.
  
• Segment and effective lengths have now been added to the steel member design query form.
  
• A crash that occurred when exporting thermal/prestress loads to Excel has been rectified.
  
• Support for Dutch factors has been added to the Eurocode 3 steel member design module.
  
• The steel member design slenderness ratio check has now been made optional. It is not required by AS4100, NZS3404, Eurocode 3, AS4600 and BS5950, and now defaults to "Off" for those codes. This partly addresses the problem of members being over-designed as a result of the very long effective lengths that sometimes come from the buckling analysis for very lightly loaded members.
  
• The section properties legend displayed at the bottom of the graphics screen sometimes included sections belonging to members that had been deleted. It is now strictly limited to the currently displayed members. Note that the material properties legend includes all materials, regardless of whether they belong to the displayed members or not.
  
• Filters are now applied to reports written to a file. Previously, reports written to a file were unfiltered, regardless of the filter selected.
  
• A check for combinations that contain non-existent load cases has been added.
  

Version 9.01a

• Fixed the problem of incorrect results for analysed load combinations that contain primary cases numbered 16, 32, 48, etc... (ie. those divisible by 16) and further combinations of those combinations. Click here to obtain a small program that searches your computer for any SPACE GASS jobs affected by the bug.
  

Version 9.01

• If a non-analysed load combination of another combination obtained its analysis results by a simple linear combination of the analysis results of the primary load cases then its results were incorrect. You can check for these by looking for load cases labelled "linear combination" in the analysis results report. This has now been rectified.
  
  Note that this problem only occurs with linear analysis and does not apply to combinations that have been analysed or combinations that contain only primary load cases.
  
  
• If an analysed load combination of another combination was indirectly affected as a result of changes you made to the combination load case data, its analysis results were not automatically deleted. This means that its analysis results would be out-of-date until the combination was re-analysed. The affected combination load cases now have their results deleted automatically and have to be re-analysed.
  
  Note that this problem does not apply to combinations that contain only primary load cases.
  
  
• Fixed not being able to design connections containing haunches.
  
• Updated the reinforcement library for the new Australian 500 MPa "N" bars.
  

Version 9.00e

• The shape builder "Save to library" button has been activated. This button also lets you create custom section libraries without having to go through the library editor.
  
• Double angle sections imported from a library via the section properties datasheet incorrectly had a non-zero principal angle. This has now been corrected and we would recommend that you check your section data if you have used double angle sections in SPACE GASS 9.00-9.00d.
  
• The swapping of the chords for trusses generated by the structure wizard has now been fixed.
  
• Allowed the taper/haunch feature to work with other than I or H shaped sections.
  
• The speed of the steel member design module has been increased substantially.
  
  

Version 9.00d

• The graphical steel member design scan code "Select" button has been activated.
  
• When defining custom shapes in the shape builder by entering perimeter coordinates, duplicate points are now allowed.
  
• The frame buckling check included in the non-linear static analysis has now been made optional.
  
• An "Equalize" feature has been added to the steel member design module. When activated, members that share the same section property number in the analysis data will finish up with the same design member size. For example, this would allow you to keep the left and right columns of a portal frame equal when running the member design module in "design" mode.
  
• When designing with single angle sections, the method that was used in SPACE GASS 9.00-9.00c to convert the compression effective lengths from non-principal axes to principal axes was, in some cases, unconservative and this has now been corrected. We would therefore recommend that you re-run the design/check on any SPACE GASS 9.00-9.00c jobs that contain single angles.
  
• Widened the datasheets and re-sized some of the column widths to allow more data to be displayed without scrolling.
  
  

Version 9.00c

• When inputting loads graphically, you now have the option of applying a single set of loads to all the selected nodes or members (similar to the SPACE GASS 8 system), rather than having to specify the loads on each selected node or member individually.
  
• Fixed the steel member design report crash if all groups had design errors.
  
• SPACE GASS 8 libraries can now be imported directly into the new SPACE GASS 9 library format.
  
• Library data in text file format can now be imported into the new SPACE GASS 9 library format.
  
• The default finish load for member distributed loads is now automatically set to the same as the start load in the datasheets. This allows you to input uniformly distributed loads without having to enter the load value twice.
  
• The incorrect units displayed in the prescribed node displacements datasheet in SPACE GASS 9.00-9.00b have now been corrected.
  
• Fixed some minor datasheet bugs.
  
• Fixed some minor library editor bugs.
  
  

Version 9.00b (released to universities only)

• Removed the check for the old spectral library from the dynamic response analysis.
  
• Fixed the case sensitivity of spectral curve names during a dynamic response analysis.
  
• Fixed student and university versions not being able to open SPACE GASS 8 jobs.
  
  

Version 9.00a

• Changed the buckling analysis so that buckled members had all their stiffness terms zeroed rather than just the bending terms. This fixed the problem of the buckling analysis and the static analysis buckling check not always agreeing.
  
• Capped the buckling Pcr at the local member buckling capacity in buckling reports and steel member design. This effectively imposed a lower limit on effective lengths for members where Pcr previously exceeded the buckling capacity.
  
• Lowered the default compression effective length ratio limit to 100.
  
• Added messages about why effective lengths could not be calculated for some members in buckling analysis output reports.
  
• Fixed some installation problems.
  
• Sped up the saving of loads.
  
  

Version 9.00

• This is a major new version with many new features. Click here to find out more.
  
  

Version 8.07b

• Unit labels KN, KNm, KPa and g`s are now shown as kN, kNm, kPa and g's.
  
• Analysis and import error messages are now retained after the Ok button has been clicked.
  
• Fixed the incorrect self-mass value displayed in graphics mode shape displays.
  
• Subset node or member lists are now renumbered whenever nodes or members are renumbered.
  
• Fixed the reinforced concrete column input data being lost if the job was saved un-analysed.
  
• Allowed for member offsets in bill of materials reports.
  
• Addressed a number of other minor bugs and enhancements.
  
  

Version 8.07a

• Dots are now allowed in path and file names.
  
• Increased stack size to avoid stack overflow errors in Windows ME.
  
• Fixed steel member and connection subsets so that only those groups/connections listed in the subset are enabled.
  
• Fixed the insufficient memory error message that sometimes appeared during renumbering.
  
  

Version 8.07

• A new type of hardware lock that plugs into a USB port is now available.
  
• Fixed the EURO library plastic modulus being incorrectly input as the elastic modulus.
  
• Fixed supressed members (via a subset) being active if one node was off-screen.
  
• Changed the strength of "R" reinforcing bars from 400MPa to 250MPa.
  
• Fixed not being able to print graphics when viewport 1 is closed.
  
• Fixed a number of minor bugs that caused the program to crash under certain circumstances.
  
  

Version 8.06e

• A problem with incorrect units in SPACE GASS versions 8.06 - 8.06d has been fixed. The problem affects some jobs that were saved with SPACE GASS versions 8.06 - 8.06d and causes them to be saved with the wrong units. This means that their analysis results could be out by a factor of 1000 or more. Jobs affected by the problem are as follows:
  
  a) Any jobs that were saved with SPACE GASS 8.06d, or
  b) Any SPACE GASS 7 jobs that were opened in SPACE GASS versions 8.06 - 8.06d and then re-saved.
  
  It may be prudent to assume that all jobs saved with SPACE GASS versions 8.06 - 8.06d are affected. Affected jobs can be fixed with SPACE GASS 8.06e as follows:
  
  a) Open the job with SPACE GASS 8.06e.
  b) Obtain a complete report of the input data.
  c) Compare the data with the units displayed at the top of each section.
  d) If all of the displayed units match the data then the job is Ok. If not, proceed as follows.
  e) Go to the units selection dialog and change the units so that they match the data.
  f) Ensure that the "Convert the current job for any unit changes" check box is not ticked.
  g) Click the Ok button.
  h) Confirm via another input data report that the units now match the data and, if so, save the job.
  
  

Version 8.06 - 8.06d

• Mixed units can now be used and you can specify different units for different parts of the input or output data. For example, you could specify lengths in feet, section properties in inches, moments in Kip-feet and stresses in Psi. Alternatively, you could have lengths in m, section properties in mm, strengths in MPa, moments in KNm and translations in cm. You can even mix imperial and metric units.
  
• When you change units, SPACE GASS can now optionally convert all of your data to match the new units.
  
• LIMSTEEL 3.3 has been incorporated.
  
  

Version 8.05b - 8.05e

• Incorrect alignment of report headings on two column reports has been fixed.
  
• Delays that occurred in network copies of SPACE GASS at the start of an analysis or design (and some other locations) have been removed.
  
• Incorrect page numbers on single column reports has been fixed.
  
• Some further installation problems have been fixed.
  
• Some network installation problems have been fixed.
  
  

Version 8.05a

• An undo / redo feature has been added.
  
• Support for long file and path names has been added.
  
• Support for printing through USB ports has been added.
  
• Shear stresses in the analysis "Stresses" report are now calculated using the appropriate areas for each section type rather than using the gross cross sectional area. Note that shear stresses calculated during a design have always used the correct areas.
  
• Shear stress diagrams can now be displayed graphically.
  
• SPACE GASS can now open job files that have been renamed externally.
  
  

Version 8.05

• Not released commercially.
  
  

Version 8.04b

• Support for a new type of hardware lock that works with all versions of Windows, including Windows 2000, has been added.
  
  

Version 8.04a

• The very thick lines in graphical printer output that occurred on some systems in 8.04 has been fixed.
  
• The crash that occurred in 8.04 when exiting from the shape builder has been fixed.
  
  

Version 8.04

• Steel member design for AISC-LRFD has been added.
  
• An uninstall option is now available.
  
• You can now double click on a job file to start SPACE GASS with the job loaded.
  
• You can now specify the printer line thickness for graphical output. Previously, SPACE GASS lines on high resolution printers came out very thin.
  
• Support for Windows 3.11 has been discontinued.
  
• If you zoom in on a member so that both of its ends are outside of the drawing area, the visible part of the member is still drawn. Previously, members were not drawn unless at least one end was visible.
  
• The problem of node loads not always being deleted with their nodes when requested has been fixed.
  
• The US standard sections library has been updated.
  
• The text editor (with path) can now be specified in the SPACE GASS configuration.
  
• A new installation program that avoids the clashes that occurred with some hardware drivers has been incorporated.
  
• The problem of built-up shapes (library or standard) being treated as custom shapes when read back in to the shape builder has been fixed. This bug was introduced in 8.03d.
  
  

Version 8.03d

• The subset capacity has been increased to 64.
  
• Nodes connected only to suppressed members in a subset are now also suppressed. Similarly, members connected at both ends to suppressed nodes in a subset are now also suppressed.
  
• A one-way loading option has been added to the area loader.
  
• The very narrow triangular loads placed at the ends of some members by the area loader have now been eliminated.
  
• During arc generation, arcs can now be defined by specifying the radius, chord deviation, centre angle or arc length.
  
• The problem associated with renumbering of nodes that have spring restraints has been fixed.
  
• Not being able to edit the coordinates for custom shapes in the shape builder has been fixed.
  
• It is now possible to get analysis results for items selected using Find.
  
  

Version 8.03c

• Steel member design for Eurocode 3 has been added.
  
• Calculation of the R value in BS5950 clause 3.5.4 has been changed.
  
• Fixed not being able to create a nodes subset from the right mouse menu.
  
  

Version 8.03b

• Not released commercially.
  
  

Version 8.03a

• A BS5950 steel member design check for channels with Iw = 0.0 introduced in 8.02b was inadvertently applied to all sections rather than just channels. This has now been fixed.
  
  

Version 8.03

• An area loading facility is now included as a standard feature. This allows you to select a group of members that form one or more surface areas, specify a surface pressure and direction, and then have SPACE GASS calculate the equivalent member distributed loads.
  
  
• Member concentrated loads and distributed forces are now automatically sub-divided and re-distributed whenever members are sub-divided or broken into as a result of a SUB-DIVIDE, DRAW, MOVE or INTERSECT operation.
  
  
• A new scale nodes feature has been added. You can use this feature to enlarge or shrink parts of your model by a scale factor that you specify.
  
  
• SDNF (Steel Detailing Neutral Files) files can now be imported and exported by SPACE GASS for direct interfacing to steel detailing packages such as Frameworks, XSteel and others.
  
  
• Real numbers in SPACE GASS text files no longer have to contain a decimal point and are no longer limited to 10 digits. Furthermore, real numbers in text files generated by SPACE GASS are now 15 digits long. If you have programs that read SPACE GASS generated text files then you may have to adjust them to allow for this.
  
  
• SPACE GASS text files can now contain comment lines (preceded by the # character).
  
  

Version 8.02d

• The bug addressed in version 8.02c (see below) still persisted for the material ID number in some circumstances. This has now been fixed.
  
  

Version 8.02c

• A bug introduced in version 8.02b has been fixed. The bug occurred when you selected multiple members graphically and then changed the section or material ID number in the member properties dialogue, resulting in only one of the selected members having its section or material ID number updated instead of all of them.
  
  

Version 8.02b

• The steel member design module for the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) - Allowable Stress Design (ASD) specification (June 1, 1989 edition) has been finalised.
  
  
• LIMSTEEL Integrated has been updated to version 3.1.
  
  
• The BHP Duragal sections library has been updated. The changes involve the mechanical properties of the 2.5mm thick CA Duragal Angles in which the yield stress has been reduced from 450 to 350 MPa and the tensile stress from 500 to 400 MPa.
  
  
• Comment lines (starting with #) and blank lines are now allowed in text files.
  
  
• The structure of some of the program's menus and popups has been changed.
  
  
• The second paragraph in section 10.12.7 of the SPACE GASS reference manual beginning "If Ly exceeds..." should be replaced with:
  
  "Ly is taken as the segment length for segments where Ly exceeds the segment length and:
  
  (a) both ends of the segment have full or partial flange restraints; or
  (b) both ends of the segment have full, partial or lateral flange restraints and the member is a tube or an equal flanged I-shape or box girder."
  
  This is different to previous versions in which Ly was taken as the segment length for segments where Ly exceeded the segment length and both ends of the segment had full, partial or lateral flange restraints regardless of the member type.
  
  
• AS4600 segment lengths are now based on the distance between torsional restraints. Lateral restraints on one flange only are ignored.
  
  
• The torsional effective length is now reported for steel member designs to AS4100, NZS3404 and AS4600.
  
  
• The shape builder root radius calculations have now been fixed.
  
  
• The problem of the section source not being changed to "manual" when a property value was changed manually in the member properties dialogue has been fixed. Note that this only occurred when more than one member was selected.
  
  
• The problem of members excluded from a subset with one or both nodes non-existent being shown drawn to infinity has been fixed.
  
  

Version 8.02a

• A pre-release version of the steel member design module for the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) - Allowable Stress Design (ASD) specification (June 1, 1989 edition) is included. This can be activated on request.
  
  
• The British sections library has been fully updated in accordance with the August 1998 British Steel specifications.
  
  
• SPACE GASS text files with extensions of CSV (MS-Excel) can now be imported into the program.
  
  
• The shape builder calculation of torsion constants for single angle sections is now more accurate than before.
  
  
• The shape builder calculation of moments of inertia for fillets has been fixed.
  
  
• The shape builder calculation of Sx and Sy is now taken about the plastic centroid rather than the elastic centroid which was incorrect for unsymmetrical sections.
  
  

Version 8.02

• The help system has been completely updated to exactly match the printed reference manual and the program's features.
  
  
• The problem of flipped Tee sections being considered internally by the program as unflipped has been fixed.
  
  
• The problem of no bolt holes being removed from Duragal flanges has been fixed.
  
  
• A warning is now issued in the steel member design output if your specified number of bolt holes per cross section doesn't fit. Previously, only the bolt holes that could be fitted into the cross section were considered.
  
  
• An error in the shape builder causing the torsion constant for solid rectangular or square shapes to be slightly miscalculated has been fixed.
  
  
• On a small number of network types, previous 32-bit versions of SPACE GASS had difficulty opening jobs on a network drive or being run remotely across the network. This has now been fixed.
  
  
• The problem of a steel member design flange restraint sometimes being ignored (and thus causing a longer than expected segment length) has been fixed.
  
  
• A discontinuity in the interaction curve of reinforced concrete columns containing voids has been fixed. This may have caused an incorrect load factor if a line joining the origin with the load point crossed the interaction curve at a point affected by the discontinuity.
  
  
• A number of internal changes preventing invalid input data and resolving some reported program crashes have been made. This includes a problem with jobs that contained spring restraints which, under some circumstances, caused the program to crash.
  
  

Version 8.01b

• The problem of prestress on a cable member having no effect if the cable material's coefficient of thermal expansion is zero has been fixed.
  
  
• DXF files exported from SPACE GASS are now compatible with all new versions of AutoCAD.
  
  
• The dynamic response analysis units conversion problem that occurred with unit systems other than kN,m has been fixed.
  
  
• Enveloping is now available for each intermediate member station rather than just having an envelope for the entire member. This builds on the new enveloping enhancements introduced in version 8.01 (see below).
  
  
• Analysis warning messages now appear in all output reports regardless of the enveloping or sorting options selected.
  
  
• A message has been added to the steel member design output indicating if L/r failure occurred in a non-critical load case.
  
  

Version 8.01a

• Contains some internal security changes that don't affect the user.

Version 8.01

• Contains new facilities for generating envelopes of analysis results in output reports.

  Load case numbers are now shown with all node and member maximums and minimums. You can also report the matching coincident values that occur at the same location and load case as each maximum and minimum.

  Finally, you can obtain a summary envelope showing the maximums and minimums for a group of nodes and/or members. The summary report also shows the load case numbers and the matching coincident values.

  By default, envelope reports include an envelope summary at the end, however you can limit your report to just the summary by checking the box marked "Produce Envelope Summary Only" in the report generation dialogue.
  
  

• Incorporates the new fully integrated concrete column design module.

  This module is not a standard feature and must be purchased before it can be used. However, if not purchased, you can still access and operate it in a mode that restricts you to a pre-defined column shape. All other features are fully enabled.

  Features of the concrete column design module include:

  • Rectangular, circular, trapezoidal, tee, cruciform and non-standard shapes.
  • Multiple rectangular and circular voids.
  • Multiple reinforcing bars of any size and location.
  • Reinforcing bar library.
  • Numerous methods of quickly generating bar layouts.
  • Calculation of interaction curves for the actual reinforcement, and for other reinforcement percentages that you specify.
  • Allowance for both column tension and compression.
  • Calculation of load factors for X-axis, Y-axis and biaxial bending.
  • Automatic transfer of column geometry, including cross section shape from your frame analysis model.
  • Automatic transfer of loads from your frame analysis model.
  • Allowance for input of extra user-defined load cases.
  • Calculation of multiple load cases simultaneously.
  • Graphical display of the cross section showing all bars and voids.
  • Graphical display of the load application point and the direction of moments on the cross section.
  • Graphical display of the interaction diagrams showing load points and key curve points.
  • Comprehensive output report showing all input and output data in a combined graphical and text format.
  • Single screen user interface that is extremely logical and easy to understand.

  
  

• The SPACE GASS AUST300 steel sections library has been completely revised to include the entire range of BHP's 1998 hot rolled steel sections. All of the 300 grade steel sections available from BHP are included.

  Please note that some of the section names have changed slightly from previous versions of AUST300. This may mean that for old jobs, the SPACE GASS steel design modules may not be able to find the sections that have had a name change unless you first re-input them from the new library into your frame analysis model.

  Note also that this new library supersedes the SPACE GASS library that BHP is distributing directly to engineers on diskette. The BHP diskette is marked "BHP Structural Steel Library 1998" and contains an out-of-date SPACE GASS library.
  
  

• Inconsistent margins in output reports from different printers has been fixed.
  
  
• The error that occurred when reading some files that were generated with new versions of Microstran has been fixed.

Version 8.00E

• The SGWIN.EXE self check introduced in version 8.00e was found to fail when SPACE GASS was run remotely across some networks. This has now been fixed in version 8.00E.
  
  
• During a steel member design, SPACE GASS now correctly calculates the load height factor for cases when a top flange load is applied at the end of a segment (in the absence of any self weight or other transverse loads within the segment). It does this by detecting the presence of shear force at the segment ends and hence treats the case of shear transfer from other interconnecting members the same as transverse loads at the segment ends.

  Note that previously, in the absence of self weight or other transverse loads within the segment, any transverse loads at the segments ends were ignored when calculating kl.

  The first two paragraphs in section 10.12.9 of the SPACE GASS reference manual should be replaced with:

  "The load height factor kl relates to the point of application of gravity loads. It is always 1.0 if the loads are applied at or below the member's shear centre. It can, however, exceed 1.0 if the top flange is loaded with a downwards load causing a destabilizing effect.

  If the top flange is loaded within the segment then kl = 1.2 for all codes, except AS4100 and NZS3404 where kl = 1.4 if both ends of the segment are fully, partially or laterally restrained or kl = 2.0 if either end is unrestrained.

  If the top flange is not loaded within the segment and shear force is detected at a segment end that is unrestrained then kl = 1.2 for all codes, except AS4100 and NZS3404 where kl = 2.0.

  For all codes, kl = 1.0 if the load height position is specified as "C". If the load height position is specified as "T" then all transverse loads (including self weight) are considered to be acting at the top flange."

Version 8.00e

• Sxp and Syp being transposed incorrectly in the shape builder if Iy>Ix has been fixed.
  
  
• A duplicate node being created when you "MID/END" attached a new member to the end of an existing member has been fixed. This only occurred when the aperture circle touched the existing member away from its end node.
  
  
• A fault in converting some pre-v6.00 jobs to the latest format has been fixed.
  
  
• A problem with the shape builder calculating the wrong section properties for box girders has been fixed.
  
  
• The BS5950 shear check has been changed. The reduced value of Pyw is only for the calculation of moment and compression and is no longer used in the shear check.
  
  
• A BS5950 reporting problem for when clause 4.8.2 (tension) governs has been fixed. The equation now reports Py instead of Pydes.
  
  
• The default graphics input load case is now the same as the displayed one if there is only one displayed.
  
  
• The load cases combo box on the toolbar can now be changed even if a load case specific diagram is not displayed.
  
  
• The problem of a graphics command exiting automatically when first used after viewing a report on the screen has been fixed.
  
  
• The problem of output for linear combinations (non-analysed combinations) ignoring primary load cases that have a negative multiplying factor has been fixed.
  
  
• The buckling analysis crash that happened if the highest spectral load case number was larger than the highest static load case number has been fixed.
  
  
• Spaces at the end of spectral curve names are now disallowed.
  
  
• Spaces at the end of section names when saved to a library from the shape builder are now disallowed.
  
  
• The program now checks the integrity of the main SPACE GASS program file whenever it is started. This detects any changes to SGWIN.EXE and ensures that no corruption or virus contamination has occurred.

Version 8.00d

• An academic version that was not released commercially.