huangyhg

risa vs ram vs stad pro
this maybe a loaded question and i expect a lot of views based on personal preferenes, but at that risk i would like to know of any pros/cons that i should be aware when selecting a program to purchase. i primarily do industrial projects, steel and concrete, and would like to have ability to use foreign codes as well. in my experiences, i have used ram ss and ram advanse, but would like to know how the other programs stack up.
thanks in advance for any input!
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i have experience with both ram advanse and staad. i would say that ram advanse is a lot better than staad, based on graphical interface and ease of use. i find it a pain to change things around in staad, but a breeze in ram advanse. ram advanse also comes with neat little design modules that makes things like design a continuous beam, footing, retaining wall, and other repetitive things easy. i think staad is more worldwide and geared to use of foreign codes, though.
i have used risa and staad. also used ram for its floor framing but not ram advanse.
i like risa.
(i'm being tactful here)

i've used ram and ram advanse as well as risa and staad. i've only used staad for graduate classes and i don't really like it, but i'm certain i haven't used it enough to make that an educated opinion.
i used risa a lot in undergrad and during my intership. i liked it then, but after using ram advanse........... there isn't much comparison (for me anyway). ram advanse is extremely easy to use and intuitive.
ram structural system is a different animal in my opinion.
i group ram advanse and risa together as analysis tools (i know they have design capabilities, but they aren't the easiest to use), while ram structural system is more of a design tool, and a very easy one at that. it's not the best for really complex structures or geometry, but that's where ram advanse comes in. it's easy to model analyze anything in advanse, just pull the forces out and design by hand.
i totally agree with structuraleit on the ramadvanse and ramss comments.
i use them both in a similar fashion.
i tried staad after i already used ramadvanse, and it did not take long for me to give up based on the poor user interface.
all are fair comments, but every program has its own strengths and weaknesses; knowing what they are and how to compensate for them is the real key.
engphila
staad is a trashy software. stay away.
risa vs ram vs staad .. everyones a loser.
there are 2 main things you need for a structural app to be indispensable.
1. you can do modeling fast and easy.
2. but the more important is, you get the output that you "really" want fast and easy.
everyone likes the 1st point, and do judge apps like staad, risa, etc, based on how good it looks, how you get to model with ease, etc...honestly just too much marketing hype and bloated software.
the 2nd point is the more preferred, because that is what gives you the results, what gives you money in your pocket! for without results, no product to give, no business.
ive been doing design for 20yrs now. for a general purpose application, my recommendation is oasys gsa. made by arup. software made by engineers for engineers. simplified interface, modelling is easy, but it gives you the results fast! without 2 many useless menu clicks.
here's' the things that it can do for you:

mazingerz,
you don't want to advertise the software too much. i've seen people be red-flagged for less.
good thing about gsa is the form-finding and subsequent fabric analysis, which was keyed by an aussie. a real master-craftsman.
just to throw a spanner in the works look up inducta great for rc and pt design
for steel mircostran or spacegass both very good.

spacegass is a great analysis program, it has a very useable interface, however i'm am not fully happy with the design package when designing to as4100. i like to back check all answers, however spacegass will only give you detailed calcs for the critical load case.
on the spacegass analysis, when viewing member forces, it only displays the values for the node points. i would like it to also include the maximum internal forces and displacements for each member, much like strand/straus7.
it has been these two reason why i have begun coding my own frame analysis program.

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