Custom inquiry
You can use the Custom inquiry command to display information about the selected model object in the side pane. You can define what information you want to display.
Use the Custom Inquiry tool
-
Click the
Custom Inquiry button
in the side pane.
Alternatively, you can click the down arrow next to
on the ribbon, and then select
Custom inquiry.
The Custom Inquiry window opens in the side pane.
Define what information is shown by Custom Inquiry tool
You can define what information is displayed in the Custom Inquiry side pane window. You can add and modify report templates and the attributes in them.
-
Click the
Custom Inquiry button
in the side pane.
Alternatively, you can click the down arrow next to
on the ribbon, and then select
Custom inquiry.
The Custom Inquiry window opens in the side pane.
-
Click the
button.
The Manage contents dialog box appears.
The Attributes list contains the attributes that are available by default. In the Calculated attributes area you can create your own attribute formulas. The Contents of Custom Inquiry list contains the attributes whose values will be displayed in the side pane.
-
Define which report templates and attributes are available.
-
To modify an existing report template, select it from the top left-hand list in the Manage contents dialog box.
-
To create a new report template, enter a name in the box next to the
button, and then click
.
-
To modify the default attributes, edit the InquiryTool.config file.
For example, you can change the units of the attributes.
-
To create a new calculated attribute, click the
button below
the Calculated attributes area. To modify a calculated attribute, double-click a cell
in the Calculated attributes area. In the Attribute cell, type the name of the attribute. In the Equation cell, use attribute names and standard mathematical symbols
(+, -, *, and /) to form equations.
-
-
Define which attributes are shown in the
Custom Inquiry side pane window.
-
To add more attributes to the side pane, select an attribute in the Attributes or Calculated attributes list and then click the
button. -
To remove attributes from the side pane, select an attribute in the Contents of Custom Inquiry list and then click the
button.
-
To change the order of the attributes, use the
buttons.
-
To change the formula of an attribute, click the down arrow and select a different formula (Sum, Average, Max, or Min) from the list.
-
-
Click
to save the changes.
Modify the default attributes in InquiryTool.config file
Use the InquiryTool.config file to control which attributes are shown as default attributes in the Manage contents dialog box in the Custom Inquiry tool.
Note:
This section is for advanced users.
Tekla Structures searches for the InquiryTool.config file in the following folders in the following order:
- \attributes folder in the model folder
- \CustomInquiry subfolder in the folder defined by XS_PROJECT
- \CustomInquiry subfolder in the folder defined by XS_FIRM
- \CustomInquiry subfolder in the folder defined by XS_SYSTEM
If you specify several folders that have \CustomInquiry as a subfolder, Tekla Structures uses the first folder it finds.
To add new attributes to the InquiryTool.config file: