Application Program Interface: This is a defined interface of functions that can be called by the scripts. This interface will remain reasonably constant and no functions will be removed without deprecation and warning.

A message that appears as a result of an action initiated within the wizard. Callouts usually point to a toolbar button, a row in the Details Pane, or object in the Outline. The message contains descriptive and instructive text.

Provides a short list of options applicable to a specific object or window. To view a context menu, click the right mouse button on an object or in a window.

A toolbar containing options appropriate for the current level in the Outline.

When a function in the API is removed it will be deprecated and undocumented. This means that it will still be available for the next release, but will be removed in the future. A warning will be provided with a suggested alternative method of achieving the same function.

Provides information on the highlighted object in the Outline.

A vector quantity used to measure the movement of a point from one location to another. The basic unit for displacement is (Length).

Data type that can be assigned to real (decimal) numbers, e.g. 2.3462

Moving an on-screen object in the Outline from one location to another using the mouse cursor while holding down the left button. The drag is interpreted as "move" if the object is dragged from the outline and "copy" if the object is dragged from the outline while holding down the Ctrl key

A selectable entity on a part that occurs at the intersection of two surfaces. In a surface model, an edge can also exist on the edge of one surface.

Normal elastic strain is a measure of the elongation or contraction of a hypothetical line segment inside a body per unit length. Normal elastic strain is dimensionless, however in practice it is common to assign normal elastic strain the basic unit of (Length / Length). Shear elastic strain is a measure of the change in angle that occurs between two initially perpendicular hypothetical line segment inside a body. The basic unit for shear elastic strain is radians.

This property of the analysis environment object, defines the temperature of the body unless this temperature is specified by a particular load such as a thermal condition or an imported temperature. This will also be the material reference temperature unless overridden by the Body. Not a valid property for thermal analyses.

A selectable area on a part bordered on all sides by edges. Periodic, non-boundary edged faces (like spheres) may occasionally appear.

Factor of safety is defined as the ratio of the limit strength of a material to the maximum stress predicted for the design. This definition of factor of safety assumes that the applied load is linearly related to stress (an assumption implicit in all calculations performed in the application). A factor of safety of less than one generally predicts failure of the design; in practice a factor of safety of one or greater is required to help avoid the potential for failure.

Finite Element Analysis. A robust and mature technique for approximating the physical behavior of a complex system by representing the system as a large number of simple interrelated building blocks called elements.

The fundamental frequencies are the frequencies at which a structure under free vibration will vibrate into its fundamental mode shapes. The fundamental frequencies are measured in Hertz (cycles per second).

A measure of heat flow per unit area. The basic unit for heat flux is (Heat / Length*Length).

Data type that can be assigned to integer (whole) numbers, e.g.2

Margin of safety is always equal to the factor of safety minus one.

Select more than one surface, edge or vertex by holding the Ctrl key.

A set of information displayed visually as an icon (usually in the Outline).

This is a non-proprietary scriptable programming language that is commonly used throughout the world. Full details can be found at www.python.org. A number of debuggers are available to enable a script to be stepped through.

The reference temperature defines the temperature at which strain in the design does not result from thermal expansion or contraction. For many situations, reference temperature is adequately defined as room temperature. The reference temperature is defined for each body in a model. A coefficient of thermal expansion curve will be adjusted for the body's reference temperature if the reference temperature of the coefficient of thermal expansion is different.

The right-hand rule is a convenient method for determining the sense of a rotation defined by a vector: close your right hand and extend your thumb in the direction of the vector defining the rotation. Your fingers will indicate the sense or direction of the rotation. The direction in which your fingers curl is the positive direction.

Might occur when the part is free to translate or rotate in one or more directions. For example, a body floating in space is free to move in the X-, Y-, and Z-directions and to rotate about the X-, Y-, and Z-directions.

A measure of the internal forces inside a body. The basic unit for stress is (Force / Length*Length).

Data type that can be assigned to one or more characters of text, e.g. Hello World

A scalar quantity used to measure the relative hotness or coldness of a point from one location to another. The basic units for temperature are degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius.

A selectable entity on a part that occurs at the intersection of two or more edges.

The fixed global Cartesian (X, Y, Z) coordinate system defined for a part by the CAD system.

eXtensible Markup Language: This is a standard layout of text based files in a metalanguage that enables users to define their own customized markup languages.