Selection Limits
The Selection Limits part of the Material Setup menu (see Illustration 1) allows you to further isolate what is to be included in the material calculation. You do this by filling in the necessary spaces provided in this section to define what you want to include.
Illustration 1: Sill Plate Material Setup Menu
To learn how to specify the Selection Limits for a material, select R-12 Ceiling Insulation from the materials listed in the Material Definition table. The following illustration shows the Selection Criteria and the Selection Limits portion of the Material Setup menu for defining R-12 Ceiling Insulation.
Illustration 2: Defining the Selection Limits for a Material
While creating a ceiling plan for a drawing, you can edit each ceiling added to specify the thickness of insulation to be used above the ceiling.
As specified in the Selection Criteria part of the Material Setup menu, R-12 Ceiling Insulation is to be used only above ceilings that have been specified as insulated.
In the Selection Limits part of the menu, you can further define for SoftList what insulation is to be used in the material calculation.
To Set Selection Limits for a Material (for example R-12 Ceiling Insulation)
1. In the Selection Limits part of the menu, select the down arrow in the first field. A list of the SoftPlan Variables for the Ceiling group is displayed.
Note:
When creating a material formula, in order for SoftList to calculate the amount of material needed, it must know about the various lengths and dimensions of objects on the floor plan. We must therefore represent these values in terms which both you and the computer can understand. This is where variables can be used. To us the variable represents an English word, to the computer it represents the numerical value to use.
There are three types of variables you can use in material formulas: SoftPlan variables, User Defined variables, and Local variables. SoftPlan and User Defined variables can be used in the Material Setup menu to automatically create formulas. These two types of variables will be discussed in detail in this chapter, in the section Using Variables. Local variables can be added directly to formulas when modifying or writing them.
2. Select the Variable that describes the selection limit you want to use when specifying where R-12 Ceiling Insulation is to be used. In this example, choose the variable insulation_thick.
Note that the first entry in the list of variables is blank. This allows you to leave the field blank if you wish.
3. Select the down arrow on the next field. The following menu opens:
4. Choose the word that defines the thickness limit that you will set in the following two fields. In this case of the material R-12 Ceiling Insulation, choose the word Between.
Note that the first entry in the list of defining words is blank. This allows you to leave the field blank if you wish.
5. When you drew the ceilings for the plan you were able to specify the thickness of the insulation that is to be placed above the ceiling. In the next field, enter the minimum thickness of ceiling insulation specified that is to use R-12 Ceiling Insulation. In this case enter 3".
6. In the next field, enter the maximum thickness of ceiling insulation specified that is to use R-12 Ceiling Insulation. In this case enter 5.
So far the selection information that you have now entered specifies that R-12 Ceiling Insulation is only to be used above ceilings where you have specified to use a ceiling insulation thickness between 3" to 5" (exclusive).
7. If the material selection needs further defining as it does in this example, use the remaining fields in the Selection Limits. For example, to further define that R-12 Ceiling Insulation is to be used where the thickness of the insulation has been set at 3", do the following:
i. Select the down arrow in the next field and choose the word or.
ii. In the next field select the Variable that describes the selection limit you want to specify in order to define where R-12 Ceiling Insulation is to be used. In this example, choose the variable insulation_thick.
iii. In the next field choose the word that defines the thickness limit that you will set in the following field. In this case, choose the word Equal.
iv. In the next field enter the thickness the insulation must be equal to. In this case, enter 3".
SoftList now knows to use R-12 Ceiling Insulation where you have specified to use a ceiling insulation thickness anywhere between 3" to 5" thick or where you have specified to use a ceiling insulation that is 3" thick.
In the Selection Limits part of the menu, if a field
has a 
button beside it, you can either enter
information directly into the field or click the button to display the
Add to Formula menu.
Variables and Constants specific to the current material group, for example Ceiling, can then be selected from this menu for automatic placement into the field.
· To learn about Variables and Constants, see Using Variables and Using Constants.
· To learn how to add information from this menu to the Selection Limits fields, see Entering Information in the Material Setup Menu Fields.