Tips for basic tasks
Here we provide useful hints and tips that help you use the Tekla Structural Designer user interface and its basic features more efficiently.
Input data validation
Sometimes when you attempt to input a value in a dialog the field border turns red and you cannot proceed. This is because the value is outside the acceptable range of validity for the given field.
To display the acceptable range hover the cursor over the field - the range may be exclusive or inclusive.
-
Example of an exclusive range
As the limiting values are enclosed by parentheses they are exclusive.
This means for the above example the acceptable range would be 0.101 to 0.999.
-
Example of an inclusive range
As the limiting values are enclosed by brackets they are inclusive.
This means for the above example the acceptable range would be 10.0 to 200.0.
Use the tooltip for input in a command
When you need to specify a distance or pick a point, a tooltip appears, displaying the current value.
Do one the following:
- Move the mouse pointer to the required point and click the point to use it.
- Press F2 to type an exact number, and press Enter.
Cancel a command or go back to the previous prompt
Do one of the following:
| To | Do this |
|---|---|
| Cancel a command |
|
| Go back to the previous command prompt |
|
Tip:
Selecting another command also cancels the current command.
Example
The parallel grid line command consists of four steps. Hence, the following command prompts are displayed one after another:
The grid line is created after the fourth prompt. After that, prompt 2 is automatically redisplayed.
At this point, you can either continue to create additional lines parallel to the original, or go back to the first prompt by pressing Esc.
Then, you can either select a new reference line and continue again, or cancel the command by pressing Esc again.
Undo a command
In the Quick
Access Toolbar, click 
Undo.
Undo.