Product Q&A

SpecLink-E

Q. When I try to print in SpecLink-E, why am I instructed to make sure that other users have saved their work to the database using Save to Database, or by using Check In and Close?
A. The message is there to remind you that if other users are working on sections in the same project, their work may not be included in the reports if they have not saved their sections to the database. It is also possible that work in other open sections could affect a section you wish to print once they are closed. In addition, if you are trying to print a branch or the whole project, the versions of the open sections saved on the server would be included in the output, instead of the most current versions. However, if you are the only one in the project, you need not do anything beyond clicking on the Print dialog box for all of your changes to be included in the report. When you open the Print Dialog box, all of your open sections are saved to the database, and all current edits will be included in your reports.

Q. I see there is a Submittals Log feature now in SpecLink-E. How is this different from the Submittals Report?
A. The Submittals Report lists each section and indicates whether there are submittals required for Product Data, Shop Drawings, and Samples. The Submittals Log is an Excel export from your project, comprising a listing from all project sections of all active paragraphs under the Submittals article title that have Requirement Tags. The data exported includes the entire text of each active submittals paragraph, as well as any active subparagraphs.

The Submittals Log is designed to be pasted into each user’s uniquely formatted Submittals Log template in Excel and used during the construction phase of a project for tracking the progress of all project submittals.

Q. How do I get a list of the manufacturers listed in my project?
A. The Manufacturers Listed in Project report, available under Project Reports, lists all manufacturers listed in active paragraphs in the project. It differs from the other Requirements Reports in that it includes the text of the paragraphs that are tagged with the ML Tag, as well as their parent paragraphs. Manufacturers in the BSD Master are already tagged as ML. Applying the tag to your user added manufacturer listings will result in their inclusion in the same report. For information on tagging user-added paragraphs, see Applying Tags in the User Manual or in Help.

Q. Can I generate a report showing my User-Defined Tags?
A. Once you have created and applied any User-Defined Tags, you can print a report displaying the paragraphs with these tags. The report includes the text of each tagged paragraph, as well as the text of the parents to the tagged paragraphs. The option to generate these reports is found under the Project Reports tab on the Print dialog box.

An example of one potential use for this feature is a report on incomplete paragraphs, which would employ a User Defined Tag (e.g., IN for Incomplete) that would be used to tag incomplete paragraphs. To print a report for User Defined Tags, see the online Help topic called User Defined Tag Reports. Of course, the IN tag should be removed as each incomplete paragraph is subsequently completed.

Q. How can I find out who made edits to my project?
A. The Corporate Edition of SLE includes a new feature called Audit Trail that allows you to display the name of the person who last edited a paragraph and the date of the last edit. Once enabled, you can view the editor and the date of the last edit for individual paragraphs that have been changed.

Once edits have been made, the editor information can be printed in reports by clicking on Show Editors in the Reports Options section of the Print dialog box. Changes began to be tracked with the Fall 2010 release. For more information, see the online Help file.

Q. How can I protect my office spec master?
A. Corporate Edition users can now designate one or more projects as “Office Masters” and can restrict editing of those projects to those designated as a System Manager. To use this feature you must have the Corporate Edition of SpecLink-E and you must enable System Roles. To designate a project as an Office Master, open the Summary Info dialog box and select Office Master from the Project Access Level dropdown menu. The text in this dialog box will turn red, and the title bar for the project will end with "<<<Office Master>>>". Users who have the rights to copy a project can copy an Office Master and edit the copy. Users who have the rights to Import from Project can also import and edit copies of sections from an Office Master but will not be able to edit the Office Master itself.

LinkMan-E

Q. Does LinkMan-E support Revit 2012?
A. Yes, the Summer 2011 release of LinkMan-E will work with Revit 2012, as well as with older Revit releases.

CostLink A/E

Q. When will CostLink/AE be updated?
A. CostLink/AE is updated once a year, in the Spring release that is issued in March.  The most recent update is Spring 2011 and is available from our download page at http://www.bsdsoftlink.com/downloadcenter/userspage.htm.

Q. Do I have to uninstall my software in order to install the current version?
A. No, uninstalling the old software is unnecessary.  Simply download the current version and follow the installation instructions to install the new version over what you currently have.

More questions? Contact BSD Technical Support:

• Toll Free: 800-266-7732
• In Atlanta: 404-365-9226
• Email: support@bsdsoftlink.com