General Rules in the Keyword Editor

General Rules in the Keyword Editor

• Only one instance of a Keyword editor may be active at any one time on a given Model/Keyword combination. This is because changes made act upon the true definition in the database, not a scratch copy, therefore multiple instances would permit changes to conflict with one another.
  
  A Keyword editor may be used as the output of another command, for example to list results of a Check, or from the Quick Pick selection menu. Such usage counts as an "instance", and will also prevent a second panel being mapped.
  
  
  
• If you open a separate editing panel on an item in the Data rows outside the keyword editor (eg by Keyword, <item type> , Modify ), make changes in that panel and then save it, the current row in the editor will only be updated the next time it is drawn. There is no interlock between these two methods of editing, and in particular the keyword editor does not "know" that one of its Data rows may have been changed externally, so it will not make a backup definition if one does not already exist.
  
  This method of working will not produce conflicts within PRIMER , but it does have the potential to cause confusion for you, the user. If you want to invoke a standard editing panel on an item in the Data rows it is better to use the Edit... option on the popup menu attached to its row index button. This will map exactly the same editing panel, and if the definition is changed it will also update the relevant Data row and create a backup, making it possible to undo changes.
  
  
  
• There are a few specific instances where a keyword editor panels retains something of the "old" layout which restricted display to certain keyword suffices. These have been retained for ergonomic reasons, and are:

• *ELEMENT_SOLID There are options to restrict display by number of nodes on element (eg tetrahedra, wedges, hexahedra) since experience has shown that it makes sense to restrict display in this way.
  
  
• *ELEMENT_SHELL There are similar options to restrict display, and a further option to segregate 4 noded SEATBELT elements, since these are really shells in disguise.
  
  
• *INITIAL _xxx_ STRESS/STRAIN There are options to limit display to specified numbers of integration points, both through the thickness and on plan.
  
  
• *SECTION_xxx is split up into the different section types ( _BEAM , _SHELL , etc) since it would create a total mess trying to display all section types in a single panel.
  
  
  
• The *MAT erial keyword editor limits the keyword suffices you can choose to only those material types currently in the model. If you want to create a material of a new type you won't be able to select its keyword suffix from the sub-keyword popup, instead you will have to use [Right click on row index button] Create (to make a new material) or Edit (to change an existing one) and use the standard scalar editing panel to do this. Once you update from that panel the keyword editor will include the new material type in the list of keyword suffices in the keyword editor. A moment's thought explains this limitation: with over 150 material models to choose from showing them all in the sub-keyword suffix popup menu would be totally impractical.