As we had seen in the customize settings, there are several view types in TRACE 700. These view types can be accessed by going to the view menu and selecting either component tree or project tree. My preference is component tree. If you look into the component tree, you'll see it's basically the TRACE 700 model, but in a format more similar to a spreadsheet. For instance, if we look at the rooms, we can see the rooms all listed as are all of their parameters.
While we can’t create or delete anything in the component tree view, it's important to know that we can select a field, an entire row, or an entire column, copy it and paste it into Excel. In Excel we can make changes to it using the many features of Excel and then paste it back into the model. The only downside here is that you'll lose any template information. However, in fields for things like walls we could change the length of the wall, which is not linked to a template value.
The best way to learn the component tree is to use it yourself. A common issue for new users in the component tree is they believe you can only edit alternative one. However, if you have multiple alternatives, you'll notice that the other alternatives are located behind alternative one. They can also be accessed by going to the window menu and selecting cascade, tile horizontally, or tile vertically. Or you can simply move from window to window by clicking under the window screen.
The next view type is the project tree. The project tree is useful for finding something by name. You type the name of a room and it will find it. The project tree displays information differently than the component tree. However, you can create and delete information from this view. For instance, if we select room, we can right click it, and delete it. In this case, we're simply going to copy it. Upon copying the room, we can right click on the system and paste, insert room, which we will do, and it will give it a new name, but it will be identical to the room that we copied.
Some users of TRACE 700 only use the project tree view. Another important aspect of the project tree view is that it can be used to troubleshoot when your file is being a little bit buggy. For instance, if you have a room showing up in the project navigator, and you can’t edit it, it may be a good idea to go into the project tree view, find that room, and delete it here. The reason is that the project tree works in a deeper level of the program, and some of the changes made under the project navigator that are not taking effect, for instance, when there’s a glitch in the file, can be fixed by going into the project tree view. Again, the only way to learn the project tree view is to simply use it.