SAP2000 v14.2.

5 2011-07-08 Page 1
SAP2000 Version 14.2.5
Release Notes
Copyright Computers and Structures, Inc., 2011
Release Date: 2011-07-08

This file lists all changes made to the SAP2000 since the previous version. Most changes do not affect most users.
Incidents marked with an asterisk (*) in the first column of the tables below are more significant and are included in the
ReadMe file.

Note that all Incidents listed below (as well as others) have also been resolved in either SAP2000 v15.0.0 or CSiBridge
v15.1.0 or both, as applicable. We recommend that you upgrade to SAP2000 v15.0.0 and/or CSiBridge v15.1.0 at your
earliest convenience.

Changes from V14.2.4 (Released 2010-12-21)
License and Installation
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
31478 An incident was resolved where it was sometimes necessary for each user to use the option "Run As
Administrator" the first time a Workstation version of SAP2000 was started after installation. This
option requires administrative privileges. This issue only affects Windows 7, Vista, and XP SP3
operating systems with higher levels of UAC (User Account Control) turned on. This did not affect
Standalone installations.
User Interface and Display
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
26208 An incident was resolved for the graphical user interface in which the option to add a copy of a
nonprismatic frame section property did not copy the original properties to the new section, but
rather added a new section with the default definition.
31566 An incident was resolved where mirror replication of collapsed solid objects sometimes failed. This
was the case where the same joint is used for multiple corners to create wedges, tetrahedra, and
other shapes degenerated from a cuboid. This affected the creation of the model, so the error was
obvious and the analysis results were consistent with the model.
33088
33151
An incident was resolved in which converting a cylindrical grid system to a general grid system
would generate an exception (runtime error) in various cases, including when the cylindrical system
had been defined with only one grid line in the radial direction. No results were affected.
Section Designer
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
35239 An incident has been resolved in which the moments of inertia calculated for rectangular shapes in a
Section Designer section were incorrect if the shape was rotated from its default orientation by a
non-zero angle. The moments of inertia were calculated as if the shape had been rotated by twice
the specified angle. This did not affect the axial- or shear-area properties or the torsional constant.
Note that the rotation here refers to the rotation of the rectangular shape itself, not to the rotation of
the local axes. No other shape types in Section Designer sections were affected. Rectangles that
were converted to polygons were not affected.
SAP2000 v14.2.5 2011-07-08 Page 2
Loading
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
34571 An incident has been resolved in which the length-effect scale factor used for the British HA vehicle
loading was sometimes too large for short spans. The algorithm used to determine the length effect
neglects those regions of an influence line that have small enough influence values such that the
increase in response due to this influence is less than the overall decrease in response due to the
added length. This behavior is desirable for long continuous structures, but does not agree with
expected results for short spans with localized influence, where the length-effect factor tends to
grow quickly. When this error occurred, it was always over-conservative due to the enveloping
nature of moving-load response. The algorithm has been changed so that the length used is never
less than the length of the contiguous influence region containing the maximum influence value.
This gives the expected behavior for simple spans but still preserves the previous desirable behavior
for long continuous structures. This affected v14.2.4 only, since previous versions used an older
version of the HA length-effect function.
* 33123 An issue was resolved where the cable diameter used when calculating open structure auto wind
loads on cable objects may be incorrect leading to incorrect loads being applied to the cable. The
diameter was usually too large, causing the load to be overestimated.
* 34732 An incident has been resolved where the point of application of the user-defined automated quake
(seismic) loads on the diaphragm could be incorrect. This only affects the statically applied quake
loads of type "User Loads" where the loads were specified to be applied with respect to the center of
mass of the diaphragm. The center-of-mass location was approximate and was not being correctly
calculated from the assembled mass matrix from analysis. This has been corrected.
Bridge Modeler
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
31595 An incident was resolved in which a runtime error was sometimes generated when clicking the OK
button after editing using the Bridge > Foundation Springs command in a model where a bridge
object used a bent property at an abutment. No results were affected.
32666 An incident was resolved in which a runtime error was sometimes generated in the bridge modeler
when performing the following operations: (1) Define an advanced concrete box-girder deck section
with no interior girders, (2) Define a parametric variation, and (3) Assign the parametric variation to
the girder web thickness. No results were affected.
Analysis
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
31085 An incident was resolved in which the labels of the link deformation loads used in a Ritz analysis
were not properly printed in the analysis log (.LOG) file for models which also contained rigid
types of constraints. This was a cosmetic issue and had no effect on the analysis results.
31541
31905
An incident has been resolved for the bridge modeler in which the diagonal V-bracing did not
always connect to the bottom chord of a cross-frame (diaphragm) for steel girder bridges modeled
as areas. This error is obvious when looking at mode shapes, but may not be obvious for other
behavior. This problem does not affect other types of cross frames (diaphragms) and does not affect
spine models.
29041 An incident was resolved for the layered shell in which the mass and weight for layers of type Shell
or Membrane were being set to zero if only the material shear component (S12) was active, i.e., if
both the S11 and S22 components were inactive. Now the mass and weight are computed for layers
of type Shell or Membrane if one or more of the material components S11, S22, or S12 are active.
As before, the mass and weight are always set to zero for layers of type Plate.
SAP2000 v14.2.5 2011-07-08 Page 3
Frame Design
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
30990 An incident was resolved for concrete frame design using the "ACI 318-08" code where the phi
factor for spiral shear reinforcement was defaulted to 0.7 instead of 0.75. The factor being used
was clearly shown in the design preferences and could be changed by the user. The documentation
has also been revised to reflect the revised default phi factor used for spiral shear reinforcement.
The previous default value was conservative.
30993 An incident was resolved for concrete frame design using the "Hong Kong CP 2004" code where
the term (fcu/25)^(1/3) for the concrete strength used in computing the shear capacity of beams
and columns was being limited to a maximum of 40 N/mm^2 instead of 80 N/mm^2 when
concrete strength was greater than 80 N/mm^2 . The results were over-conservative for concrete
strengths above 80 N/mm^2. The capacity actually used was being reported, although the strength
was not, so the error was obvious.
* 32130 An incident was resolved where in a particular model file the indexing of steel design data was
corrupted. The design was done correctly and was displayed correctly on screen and in the tables,
but would show an incorrect frame object name in the design details. This has now been trapped
and corrected in the opening of files. A message is given if such corruption of indexing is found.
33395 An incident was resolved for concrete frame design using code "AS 3600-01" where the
implementation of the minimum torsional reinforcement required per section AS 8.2.8 was not
accounting for unit conversion. Correct results were produced for models having database units set
to N-mm, otherwise the results could be incorrect but conservative when the torsional
reinforcement was governed by Asv,min.
33940 An incident has been resolved for Eurocode 2-2004 concrete frame design in which the column
axial capacity based on gross area (Ag * fcd) for the special seismic check was being computed
using the characteristic concrete strength, fck, instead of the design concrete strength, fcd. The
regular strength check based on P-M-M interaction was correct and not affected by this error. In
addition, the seismic column compression ratio limit for DCM frames was conservatively being
taken as 0.55, whereas the code permits a larger value of 0.65 to be used. Now the value of 0.65 is
being used.
34569 An incident was resolved where the section classification reported in the steel design detail form
for the AS 4100-1998 code was from the axial check only where the intention was to report the
classification due to the major bending check. This was a reporting problem only. No results are
affected.
* 34570 An incident is resolved for steel frame design using code "AS 4100-1998" where the parameter
lambda_n as specified in section AS 6.3.3 was incorrectly calculated. The term fy/250 was taken
to the fourth root rather than to the square root. This could underestimate lambda_n in the common
case where fy is greater than 250 MPa, which would then overestimate the nominal member
capacity (Nc) and be under-conservative.
34803 An incident was resolved for steel frame design using the Australian code "AS 4100-1998" where
the values of Alpha-b as used in AS 4100-1998 section 6.3.3 were incorrectly correlated with the
Steel type specified in Design Preferences. Although the Alpha_b values were taken from the
wrong steel type, the actual value for Alpha-b used for the design calculation was being reported
with the design results.
* 34908 An incident was resolved for steel frame design using the Australian code "AS 4100-1998" in
which the compactness criteria for the web of I sections, box, channel, double-channel, and T-
sections could be incorrectly computed for major and minor direction bending. The b/t ratio being
checked for the web was actually taken as the b/t for the flange. Here web means the portion of the
section that is parallel to the local 2 axis of the member, regardless of the direction of bending.
Results were unaffected for compact sections. For non-compact and slender sections, the
classification, and hence the moment capacities, could be unconservative in the case where the b/t
ratio for the web is larger than that for the flange.
SAP2000 v14.2.5 2011-07-08 Page 4
* Incident Description
34972 An incident was resolved for steel frame design using the Australian "AS 4100-1998" code where
the coefficient alpha_v as specified in section 5.11.5.1 of the code was incorrectly calculated. The
calculated value was the square root of the correct value. Because alpha_v must not exceed unity,
the calculated value may be larger than the correct value, leading to an overestimation of the shear
capacity.
34976 An incident is resolved for steel frame design using code "AS 4100-1998" where the element
slenderness parameter lambda_c for pipe sections as specified in section AS 5.2.2 was incorrectly
calculated. Parameter lambda_e should be proportional to fy/250, but instead was taken as
proportional to the square root of fy/250. This could lead to incorrect classification of the section.
In the common case where fy is greater than 250 MPa, lambda_c may be underestimated, and the
classification could be under-conservative. The actual classification used was being reported in the
design results.

Results Display and Output
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
25233 An incident was resolved in which the right-click display for the principal stress Sc for concrete
shell reinforcement design showed the units to be force/length whereas they should be force/area.
This was a typographical error only. The numerical values were correct.
28925
33626
35184
An incident was resolved where a model that included section cuts would generate a runtime error
when using the File > Create Report command. This would terminate the report creation, but did not
affect results extracted using other methods.
31042 An incident was resolved where results for multi-step static load cases and nonlinear static loads
cases were not being included in reports generated using the command File > Create Report. Results
extracted by other means were not affected.
* 34577 An incident was resolved for bridge modeler in which the stress results for section cuts in steel I-
girder deck sections could be incorrect at locations within a span or span segment where the cross
section of the steel I-girder changes. At each section cut within a span or span segment, results are
always calculated just BEFORE and just AFTER the section cut. Previously, the section properties
of the steel I-girder used AFTER the section cut were being taken to be the same as those BEFORE
the section cut. This may adversely affect the stresses reported in the steel I-girder at the AFTER
location. The results at the BEFORE location were correct. Forces and moments at the BEFORE
and AFTER locations were not affected. Results at the ends of a span or span segment were not
affected. Versions affected: v14.2.0 to v14.2.4.
* 34828 An incident was resolved where, in some rare cases, the request for Section Cut forces would result
in a runtime error or cause incorrect results to be reported. The problem was due to an indexing
error that could only be triggered if line constraints were present due to incompatible area or solid
meshes, and even then it was uncommon. Only user-defined or drawn Section Cut results were
affected, no other results were affected. Section cuts that are internally created to calculate bridge
forces and stresses for design, display, and output were not affected. This issue affected versions
12.0.1 to 14.2.4.







SAP2000 v14.2.5 2011-07-08 Page 5
Database Tables
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
28959 An incident was resolved where, for certain models, the database tables "Auto Seismic Loads to
Horizontal Diaphragms" and "Auto Seismic Loads to Joints" for auto seismic load patterns were
unavailable. The loads were still being applied and no results were affected.
29079 An incident was resolved in which the unnecessary message "Error creating database table for
tablekey Case - Static 2 - Nonlinear Load Application!" appeared when a model containing
nonlinear static load cases but no point objects was saved after being exported and re-imported, or
after being edited using Interactive Database Editing. Such a model had no results to be affected.
30888 An incident was resolved in which a runtime error was generated when importing the database table
for pipe frame section properties and the wall thickness tw was set equal to the diameter t3. This
data is invalid and should not be used, and is now trapped with an error message. No results were
affected.
32417 An incident has been resolved in which the bubble size for the grid system could be initialized using
the wrong units when importing a full model from a database file (.S2K, .$2K, .XLS, .MDB) that
has no grid system. This may affect the scaling of the graphical display of the model when using the
command View > Restore Full View. No results are affected.
Application Programming Interface
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
30848 An incident was resolved in which the documented Open API example for the C++ language does
not work because the file csigo_c.dll was not being registered with the operating system as part of
the installation. No results were affected. New installations will perform the needed registration. In
addition, the Open API documentation has been updated to indicate that the published C++ example
works with Visual Studio 2008 and 2010, as well as the previous Visual Studio 2005. The published
example has been updated to change how the model is referenced from "model = sap-
>Get_SapModel();" to "model.Attach(sap->Get_SapModel());" in order to prevent duplicate
references from being created.
31435 An incident was resolved for the Open API (Application Programming Interface) in which the
menus and toolbars became inactive after running the analysis. This prevented users from
subsequently interacting with the software, but did not prevent further control by the Open API.
This only affected the use of the Open API from an external script. It did not affect PlugIns. Results
were not affected.
Data Files (.SDB, .S2K, .$2K)
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
33026 An incident was resolved in which a certain v12.0.2 model file was unable to be opened in v14.2.4
due to corruption to tendon load data. No results were available.
External Import/Export
Incidents Resolved
* Incident Description
28711 An incident was resolved in which opening a model and exporting to DXF could cause a runtime
error if the model had been previously saved when displaying analysis results and the results were
subsequently deleted. No results were affected since the results were deleted by the user.
* 30642 An incident was resolved for the export to SAFE where the wall loads were not being exported
when the "Loads from above" option was selected. This had no effect on the results in SAP2000,
and was obvious in the model imported to SAFE.

SAP2000 v14.2.5 2011-07-08 Page 6
Documentation
* Incident Description
30732 An incident was resolved for the documentation of the Norsok N-004-2004 punching load check
which incorrectly showed the Mz portion of the joint check interaction equation (Eq. 6.57) as being
squared. The joint check ratio in the software was being computed correctly; this was only a
documentation error.
31000 An incident was resolved for the concrete frame design documentation of the codes "ACI 318-02",
"ACI 318-05", and "ACI 318-08" in which the torsion design equations 11-21 and 11-24 were
incorrectly written. The documentation has been revised to reflect the actual and correct formulas
used in the design algorithm. The design results being produced were correct and have not been
changed.
Miscellaneous
* Incident Description
32606 The version number has been changed to SAP2000 v14.2.5 for a new minor release.