FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about SkyCiv, our software, and how to get started.
Not at all. All of our software is online, meaning you just need to register and sign in to gain access. All your files and the software are hosted on our servers which means you’re not using your own space or computer’s processing power. When it comes time to update, we do it all from our end so you don’t have to worry. You will automatically be given access to the latest version of the software without having to update the software.
We have a YouTube Channel that has a number of videos and resources available for our users. Within this channel are a number of training videos, depending on what software you are using.
We also have a range of Example Tutorials and a full software documentation with loads of articles, walkthroughs and videos.
Most of the software on SkyCiv have a “Screenshot” function in the “Output” menu. Please ensure you are using Google Chrome as your browser for this function to work properly. If you only want to screen shoot part of the page, don’t wish to use Chrome or are having issues we recommend you manually print screen by following these steps:
- Press “Print Screen” on your keyboard
- Open Paint (or a similar program)
- Paste the image
We highly recommend using Google Chrome or Firefox when using SkyCiv Software. We do most of our testing on Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox and for this reason we say that SkyCiv is optimised and designed for Chrome and Firefox.
For most of the softwares any modern browser (see below) should be fine. However, Google Chrome has significant speed and performance improvements over other browsers when analysing large structures on SkyCiv Structural 3D. So if you’re a SkyCiv Structural 3D user you may want to consider using Google Chrome if you already don’t.
Of course, whichever web browser you’re using we highly recommend updating it to the latest version. SkyCiv Cloud Engineering Software has been tested and confirmed to function correctly on the following browsers:
- Google Chrome
- Mozilla Firefox
- Safari 6+ (Safari 5 and below have issues)
- Internet Explorer 9+ (IE 8 and below have issues)
Frames generally have fully fixed connections while trusses typically have pin joints. For this reason SkyCiv Truss models all connections as pin/hinge joints (FFFFFR fixity code at the member end to simulate the moment being released about the z-axis). In SkyCiv Frame all connections are treated as fully fixed (FFFFFF fixity code at the member end).
Note: Only SkyCiv Structural 3D software allows users to fully control and customise the member connections.
To model a hinge or pin joint you must release the fixity of the member’s end in its local z-axis. This is simply achieved by setting the member end fixity to FFFFFR when creating the member. This means that the moment about the member’s local z-axis is released.
Note: Only SkyCiv Structural 3D software allows users to fully control and customise the member connections.
At SkyCiv we ensure that our software is thoroughly tested. We conduct in-house testing by comparing software output to other structural analysis packages. We’ve run the software in thousands of different scenarios and verified millions of results. Additionally, the software gets used by hundreds of engineers every day and we encourage users to contact us regarding any issues or bugs they think may be occurring. This is also serves as another means for validation and verification of the software since our users often have other software or hand calculations at their disposal to compare the output.
SkyCiv is young and we always take feedback, suggestions and bug reports extremely seriously so that SkyCiv is as accurate as possible – it is of paramount importance to us. Over the course of time the accuracy and quality of the output has improved dramatically and while no software is ever perfect or without bugs we strive for perfection and accuracy.
In the event that you are having issues with the software or you think there may be something wrong with the output you can rest assured that we’ll be with you every step of the way to provide support and technical assistance. If a bug comes to our attention we usually fix it and do more testing ASAP. One of the greatest assets of the software is that it’s on the cloud so all users get automatically updated to the latest and best version of the software immediately without any extra cost.
Hopefully it doesn’t come to this, but no software is perfect so we encourage users to contact us regarding any issues or bugs they think may be occuring. This is why in the top menu of the software under the “Support” menu we have the “Report a Bug” function. This will put you directly in touch with technical support to get you through the issue(s). In these sorts of situations users will have priority support replying within the hour.
SkyCiv is committed to producing high quality software and we always take feedback, suggestions and bug reports extremely seriously. Additionally, because SkyCiv Software is online and on the cloud, all users get automatically updated to the latest version of the software immediately.
If you upgraded to SkyCiv Structural 3D then stop using SkyCiv Truss/Frame because Structural 3D supersedes them. You don’t need to build your files again. Simply use the SkyCiv File Manager to transfer the files to Structural 3D. Right click on any file in your Truss or Frame folder and click “Transfer to SkyCiv Structural 3D”. Now your file can be seen in the Structural 3D software. Easy, right?
SkyCiv offers both a free plan and a number of paid packages to our users – depending on what you need. The SkyCiv Free Account is completely free to register, but has some limitations in terms of features and functionality.
If you require more features, we offer a number of affordable packages that will suit your needs. SkyCiv Software is considerably cheaper than traditional software that can generally run into the thousands of dollars. Find our more on our pricing page.
SkyCiv is mainly used by Structural Engineers, ranging from sole engineers to design engineers in consulting firms. Given the easy and intuitive interface, the software can also be suitable for Mechanical Engineers, Civil Engineers of other disciplines, Scaffolders, Students, Architects and Academic Staff. SkyCiv is very affordable and easy to setup, which makes it popular for users who do not wish to purchase expensive and inconvenient licensing.
Yes. SkyCiv offer Flexible Accounts which are month to month accounts that you can cancel at anytime, without any cancellation fees. In order to access this type of account, please make sure to select the Flexible option when subscribing.
In order to cancel your subscription simply follow these simple steps:
- Log in.
- Hover over your name in the top right corner.
- Click “Account Settings”.
- Click the “My Subscription” button.
- Click the red “Cancel” button.
When you do cancel, you will still have access to the software for the period that you have paid for. Once demoted to the Free Account, you will still be able to view your models and they are not deleted – you will just be unable to edit or solve your models.
Not at all. SkyCiv offers a month to month license that you can cancel at anytime as stated in Q3 above. This is known as our Flexible Account and can be viewed on our pricing page.
You can pay by Credit/Debit Card. Payment is generally of a subscription nature so you will be auto-billed every month or year depending on what sort of subscription account you choose to purchase. Your subscription begins from the date that you pay. For example, if you purchased a Monthly Student Account, you will be billed every 30 days from the day that you purchase until you decide to cancel your subscription. You can cancel your subscription very easily – see above “Can I easily cancel my subscription auto-billing?”.
SkyCiv uses Stripe as its merchant provider. Stripe has a fantastic successful purchase rate but unfortunately in rare cases your card may not work. In this event you will not have been charged. This is completely normal behavior.
As always, if you have any doubts about this or you’re not sure of the charges on your statement please contact us.
SkyCiv uses Stripe as its merchant provider. If you paid via credit card and see small charges (around USD $1) on your credit card statement, this is completely normal behavior as stated by Stripe and they will be immediately refunded (it may take 5-10 business days to reach your account). In fact, even if your payment fails you still may be see these small charges.
SkyCiv offers a free version to all its software. Simply Sign Up to our free account and get given instant access to the free (limited) versions of our engineering software.
Otherwise, we offer full trials for Enterprise Accounts for companies looking to trial a few licenses.
Whenever you make a purchase you are automatically subscribed and you will be automatically billed since the software is sold on a monthly or yearly basis. You can cancel your subscription or auto-billing at anytime. Please refer to Q3 above on how to cancel your billing.
Even though your account has been cancelled you can still log in. You can re-purchase any of the software again while being logged in. This will ensure that you retain all your previous files and settings.
Otherwise you can checkout without being logged in and create a fresh account.
Yes. Please see our pricing page for more info.
Yes you can. On the checkout page under FAQ, you will have an option to pay Annually for SkyCiv Professional and SkyCiv Basic accounts.
Please contact us if you have any issues.
This is designed to protect your account and unlawful use of our software. It will lock itself if:
- (a) too many password attempts or
- (b) someone is trying to login from another computer or
- (c) too many IP address have been used to login in under one account. If this happens it may reset itself in about one hour. Otherwise contact us and we will be able to assist you with this within 24 hours.
In the case of (b) and (c) it is important to know that SkyCiv accounts are licensed to the individual user and are designed for a single user only as per our terms and conditions. Users are not permitted to share the account with others. In the event that you are locked out due to unlawful sharing of your account you may lose access to your account temporarily. If the issue continues, you may have the account cancelled.
As per our terms and conditions, generally all sales are final and there are no refunds unless under exceptional circumstances (you never received the account, never logged in, or you find a genuine fault with it). Please read the detailed features list of each product so you know exactly what you are purchasing before you agree to pay. All SkyCiv Software is classified as a digital good and is therefore intangible. We do not offer refunds or trials to prevent people using the software for their benefit (possibly to complete assignments and homework) and then asking for a refund once they have no use for it anymore.
You may also qualify for a refund if you have been automatically billed and don’t intend to use the software. SkyCiv offers a grace period 30 days from the date of an annual payment and 5 days from the date of monthly payments. This is to protect users who have forgotten about their subscription and are charged an annual/monthly fee when they no longer use the service. For this refund to be granted, the user must not have used the product during this grace period and must email us before the grace period ends.
As always, if you have any doubts about this please contact us.
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