Consolidated release notes

Author: tomas-soltys

README.md

@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ Range FEA is an open-source desktop application for computer-aided engineering u
 
 The application is built on Qt6 and ships with a standalone CLI solver (`fea-solver`) alongside the main GUI (`fea`). Mesh generation uses the embedded TetGen library for automatic tetrahedral meshing.
 
-![Range Software](http://www.range-software.com/files/common/Range3-CFD.png)
+![Range Software](./doc/RangeFEA-CFD.png)
 
 ## Help and tutorials
 
@@ -36,20 +36,20 @@ cmake --build build-Release --target package
 ### MacOS
 #### Drag & Drop
 ```
-open './build-Release/range-fea-1.2.1-darwin-arm64.dmg'
+open './build-Release/range-fea-1.3.0-darwin-arm64.dmg'
 ```
 ### Linux
 #### Self extracting Tar GZip
 ```
-./build-Release/range-fea-1.2.1-linux-x86_64.sh
+./build-Release/range-fea-1.3.0-linux-x86_64.sh
 ```
 #### Debian DEB package
 ```
-sudo apt install ./build-Release/range-fea-1.2.1-linux-x86_64.deb
+sudo apt install ./build-Release/range-fea-1.3.0-linux-x86_64.deb
 ```
 #### RedHat RPM package
 ```
-sudo dnf install ./build-Release/range-fea-1.2.1-linux-x86_64.rpm
+sudo dnf install ./build-Release/range-fea-1.3.0-linux-x86_64.rpm
 ```
 
 ## Rendering backends

doc/RangeFEA-CFD.png

@@ -1,18 +1,14 @@
 ## Version 1.3.0
 
-### Improvements
+### Compatibility
 
-#### Acoustics
+- The model file format is raised to **1.4.0**. Models saved by this version
+  cannot be opened by earlier ones; older models open with default values
+- **Results of existing models change** for transient stress (now dynamic),
+  thermal stress, surface elements with a thickness, electro-statics and
+  magneto-statics. See the items below for details
 
-- **Acoustics** is available again, with transient or harmonic analysis set up
-  in the new **Acoustic analysis setup** group: frequency sweep and reference
-  pressure for the sound pressure level
-- New *Acoustic impedance* condition, absorption coefficient of the *Absorbing
-  boundary*, *Velocity potential / s* initial condition, *Speed of sound* and
-  *Acoustic damping factor* material properties, and sound pressure level,
-  intensity and phase results
-- A harmonic analysis writes one record per frequency, so the records tree steps
-  through the frequency sweep
+### Improvements
 
 #### Stress analysis
 
@@ -23,16 +19,31 @@
   static answer. **Transient stress models from earlier versions give different,
   dynamic results**; select *Quasi-static* to solve a static problem at every
   time step instead
-- New **Transient stress analysis setup** group, active only while the time solver is
-  enabled: analysis type (*Dynamic* or *Quasi-static*), numerical damping (HHT
-  alpha) and lumped mass matrix
+- New **Transient stress analysis setup** group, active only while the time
+  solver is enabled: analysis type (*Dynamic* or *Quasi-static*), numerical
+  damping (HHT alpha) and lumped mass matrix
 - New optional *Rayleigh mass damping coefficient* and *Rayleigh stiffness
   damping coefficient* material properties, a *Structural velocity* initial
   condition, and *Structural velocity* and *Structural acceleration* results.
   The *Displacement* initial condition is now applied as well
-- A material missing an optional property (Rayleigh damping, acoustic damping
-  factor, the alternative of speed of sound or modulus of elasticity) is no
-  longer marked invalid, and its entities are solved
+- Displacement constraints meeting at one node are combined, so *Displacement*
+  and *Roller displacement* can act on the same node. Conflicting values stop
+  the run with an error naming the node
+- Individual *Displacement* components can be switched off with a check box
+- The local direction of *Normal displacement* and *Roller displacement* can be
+  entered for surfaces and lines with **Use entered local direction**
+
+#### Acoustics
+
+- **Acoustics** is available again, with transient or harmonic analysis set up
+  in the new **Acoustic analysis setup** group: frequency sweep and reference
+  pressure for the sound pressure level
+- New *Acoustic impedance* condition, absorption coefficient of the *Absorbing
+  boundary*, *Velocity potential / s* initial condition, *Speed of sound* and
+  *Acoustic damping factor* material properties, and sound pressure level,
+  intensity and phase results
+- A harmonic analysis writes one record per frequency, so the records tree steps
+  through the frequency sweep
 
 #### Fluids and contaminant dispersion
 
@@ -46,134 +57,117 @@
   or removal through a surface, and *Particle mass transfer*, for deposition or
   exchange with an ambient concentration
 
-#### Boundary conditions
-
-- Displacement constraints meeting at one node are combined, so *Displacement*
-  and *Roller displacement* can act on the same node. Conflicting values stop
-  the run with an error naming the node
-- Individual *Displacement* components can be switched off with a check box
-- The local direction of *Normal displacement* and *Roller displacement* can be
-  entered for surfaces and lines with **Use entered local direction**
-
-#### Geometry
+#### Languages and documentation
 
-- **Merge nodes** merges the picked nodes into one, placed at their center,
-  regardless of their distance
+- **Multiple languages.** The user interface, action help, tutorials and theory
+  manuals are available in English, Czech, French, German, Italian, Polish,
+  Slovak, Spanish and Ukrainian. Choose the language in the **Appearance** tab
+  of the application settings (takes effect after restart)
+- Theory manuals with formulation, boundary conditions, user interface and
+  tutorials for heat transfer, stress, acoustics, fluid flow, heat transfer in
+  fluids, contaminant dispersion, electro-statics and magneto-statics
 
-#### 3D view
+#### Application
 
+- Packages for the Apple App Store and the Microsoft Store
 - The view can be rendered with **QRhi** (Metal, Vulkan, Direct3D or OpenGL) as
   well as with the legacy OpenGL pipeline. Choose it in the **General** tab of
   the application settings or with `--render-backend` and `--rhi-api`. QRhi
   draws dashed lines solid and, on Metal, lines one pixel wide
-- **Shift** + scroll zooms ten times faster
-- Entities selected in the model tree are highlighted in the 3D view
-- Applying a variable as *Scalar* or *Displacement* clears that role from the
-  other variables of the entity
-
-#### Application
-
+- Materials are stored in JSON; existing material files are converted on start
+- All icons are redrawn in a consistent style, with variants for the dark colour
+  scheme that switch immediately
 - `--reset-settings` resets all settings to defaults, a way out of a
   configuration that keeps the application from starting
-- On macOS the menubar can be drawn inside the main window (**Appearance** tab,
-  takes effect after restart)
-- The **Process output** tab keeps at most *Max lines* lines (default `10000`),
-  set next to the **Clear** button. The oldest lines are removed first
 - Adding a problem type to the task flow skips types already there, so adding
   *Contaminant dispersion* no longer adds a second *Incompressible viscous flow*
-- Materials are stored in JSON; existing material files are converted on start
-- All icons are redrawn in a consistent style, with variants for the dark colour
-  scheme that switch immediately
-- Packages for the Apple App Store and the Microsoft Store
+- The **Process output** tab keeps at most *Max lines* lines (default `10000`),
+  set next to the **Clear** button. The oldest lines are removed first
+- On macOS the menubar can be drawn inside the main window (**Appearance** tab,
+  takes effect after restart)
 
-#### Documentation
+#### 3D view and geometry
 
-- Theory manuals with formulation, boundary conditions, user interface and
-  tutorials for heat transfer, stress, acoustics, fluid flow, heat transfer in
-  fluids, contaminant dispersion, electro-statics and magneto-statics
+- Entities selected in the model tree are highlighted in the 3D view
+- **Merge nodes** merges the picked nodes into one, placed at their center,
+  regardless of their distance
+- Applying a variable as *Scalar* or *Displacement* clears that role from the
+  other variables of the entity
+- **Shift** + scroll zooms ten times faster
 
-#### File format
+### Bug fixes
 
-- The model file format is raised to **1.3.3**. Models saved by this version
-  cannot be opened by earlier ones; older models open with default values
+#### Stress analysis
 
-### Bug fixes
+- **Thermal stress was missing from the stress results** of volume and surface
+  elements: a body free to expand showed stress and a clamped one showed none.
+  The *Force* result now also balances under a thermal load. Surface elements
+  get the plane strain thermal strain `(1+v)*alpha*dT`, so their thermal
+  deflection changes. **Results of thermal stress models change**
+- Surface elements with a thickness were assembled wrongly. Their stiffness and
+  mass coupled every pair of element nodes, only the last integration point of
+  a quadrilateral counted, and the stiffness ignored the thickness. **Stress
+  results of models with thick surfaces change**; volume and line elements are
+  not affected
 
 #### Electro-statics and magneto-statics
 
 - **Results of electro-static models change.** *Electric field*, *Current
   density*, *Electric energy* and *Joule heat* no longer depend on the element
   size, and *Charge density* enters with the correct sign, which reverses the
   potential of models using it on lines, surfaces or volumes
-- Units corrected: *Relative permittivity* `N/A`, *Charge density* `C/m^3`,
-  *Electric energy* `J/m^3`, *Joule heat* `W/m^3`
 - **Magneto-statics** computes the magnetic field with the Biot-Savart law. The
   previous formulation had no boundary condition, so its field level was
   arbitrary. Lines with a cross area and surfaces with a thickness now carry
   current too, and every node receives a value
+- Units corrected: *Relative permittivity* `N/A`, *Charge density* `C/m^3`,
+  *Electric energy* `J/m^3`, *Joule heat* `W/m^3`
 
-#### Contaminant dispersion
+#### Fluids and contaminant dispersion
 
-- Transient runs no longer blow up. Concentration used to grow far above the
-  inflow value where the flow recirculates, and later next to an outlet meeting
-  a wall. Negative values are no longer clipped, so small undershoots are now
-  visible
+- Transient contaminant dispersion runs no longer blow up. Concentration used to
+  grow far above the inflow value where the flow recirculates, and later next to
+  an outlet meeting a wall. Negative values are no longer clipped, so small
+  undershoots are now visible
+- Density and viscosity of a flow follow the temperature of a *Heat transfer in
+  fluids* task on every iteration of a task group. A temperature-dependent
+  density now drives natural convection in steady-state runs too; the fluid
+  flow manuals no longer claim the solver has no buoyancy
 - Restarting a transient run from a steady-state result starts at the *Start
   time*. All times, including those of time-dependent conditions, used to be
   shifted by `1.001 s`
 
-#### Solver
+#### Solver and materials
 
-- The setup checker no longer reports optional or alternative material
-  properties as missing
+- A material missing an optional or alternative property (Rayleigh damping,
+  acoustic damping factor, speed of sound or modulus of elasticity) is no longer
+  marked invalid or reported as missing by the setup checker, and its entities
+  are solved
+- A material is not lost when converting its file fails, and editing a converted
+  material no longer recreates the old file
 - **Start solver**, **Stop solver** and **Kill solver** are enabled only when
   they apply, so a solver can no longer be started twice for the same model
 - On Windows the default **Solver executable** includes the `.exe` extension,
   so the application settings no longer report an existing solver as
   `(does not exist)`. A path stored by an older version triggers the
   *Unusual configuration* question once; answer *Yes* to switch to the default
-- Density and viscosity of a flow follow the temperature of a *Heat transfer in
-  fluids* task on every iteration of a task group. A temperature-dependent
-  density now drives natural convection in steady-state runs too; the fluid
-  flow manuals no longer claim the solver has no buoyancy
-
-#### Stress analysis
-
-- Surface elements with a thickness were assembled wrongly. Their stiffness and
-  mass coupled every pair of element nodes, only the last integration point of
-  a quadrilateral counted, and the stiffness ignored the thickness. **Stress
-  results of models with thick surfaces change**; volume and line elements are
-  not affected
-- The *Force* result got the colour range of the displacement on first display
-- **Thermal stress was missing from the stress results** of volume and surface
-  elements: a body free to expand showed stress and a clamped one showed none.
-  The *Force* result now also balances under a thermal load. Surface elements
-  get the plane strain thermal strain `(1+v)*alpha*dT`, so their thermal
-  deflection changes. **Results of thermal stress models change**
+- Changing the selection or a condition no longer re-reads the whole material
+  database, which made the user interface slow
 
-#### 3D view and picking
+#### User interface and 3D view
 
-- Picked nodes are visible
-- Changing display properties sometimes took effect only after another change
+- Checking or unchecking a *Displacement* component no longer crashes the
+  application
 - Results could not be displayed on a volume left over from a previously solved
   problem type
-- Model edges are updated after swapping or synchronizing normals
+- Changing display properties sometimes took effect only after another change
+- Picked nodes are visible
 - **Pick details** lists every picked item, not only the first
-- Transparent volumes no longer show inner triangles along edges and corners
+- Model edges are updated after swapping or synchronizing normals
+- The *Force* result got the colour range of the displacement on first display
 - Local direction arrows (e.g. roller displacement on a surface) are sized
   relative to the model and zoom instead of extending far beyond small models
-
-#### Materials
-
-- Changing the selection or a condition no longer re-reads the whole material
-  database, which made the user interface slow
-- A material is not lost when converting its file fails, and editing a converted
-  material no longer recreates the old file
-
-#### User interface
-
-- Checking or unchecking a *Displacement* component no longer crashes the
-  application
+- Transparent volumes no longer show inner triangles along edges and corners
 - Menus, tool bars and the model tree context menu show all their separators
 - Missing icons of several buttons and of the **Session** menu are shown