FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
The following are some of the frequently asked questions we receive:
Q. Can SPECTEXT® be installed on a Local Area Network or Wide Area Network server?
Q. Do I need a site license or a seat license to use SPECTEXT and EDITSPEC® ?
Q. Does SPECTEXT conform to CSI MasterFormat 04 and 95 and CSI formats?
Q. Why should I choose SPECTEXT ?
Q. What is the difference between SPECTEXT and SPECTEXT II?
Q. What is a SPECTEXT Comprehensive Library?
Q. Why should our firm consider a SPECTEXT Comprehensive Library?
Q. What Technical Support do I receive with my subscription?
Q. Is EDITSPEC included with our subscription?
Q. Can SPECTEXT be installed on a Local Area Network or Wide Area Network server?
A. SPECTEXT Sections may be installed on a Local Area Network or Wide Area Network server for use by all employees at licensed office locations within your company. Installation of the EDITSPEC Section-Editing Tools
relies on the location of the user’s Microsoft Word software, therefore, EDITSPEC must be installed on the user’s
PC.
Q. Do I need a site license or a seat license to use SPECTEXT and EDITSPEC ?
A. SPECTEXT subscriptions are site licenses. All employees at each SPECTEXT licensed location within your company can use SPECTEXT simultaneously. Please contact your SPECTEXT Representative for details on setting up a LAN or WAN licensing arrangement. Special preferred pricing is provided to firms utilizing WAN and Multi-Office licensing arrangements.
Q. How is SPECTEXT updated?
A. SPECTEXT is reviewed and updated by a team of experienced, practicing professional specification writers that place projects out to bid in a wide variety of project disciplines on a daily basis. SPECTEXT is updated on a global basis as opposed to updating a dozen or so sections on a quarterly basis. If a referenced standard or code changes, every affected Section in SPECTEXT, SPECTEXT® II and OUTLINE Specification will be updated at the same time. SPECTEXT subscribers receive a Summary of Changes document with every update aid them in tracking changes made to SPECTEXT that may affect their company specification library.
Additionally, the SPECTEXT Technical Review Committee, comprised of current subscribers, specification writers, architects, engineers, industry professional organizations and manufacturers, continuously reviews SPECTEXT® content for updated standards, codes and current best practices.
Currently complete editions of the SPECTEXT Libraries are published semi-annually.
Q. Does SPECTEXT conform to CSI MasterFormat™ 04 and 95 and CSI formats?
A. SPECTEXT is 100% compliant with MasterFormat 04 and 95 and contains both numbering schemes in one set of specification files. Two new EDITSPEC tools allow users to select either MasterFormat 04 or MasterFormat 95 Section numbers and titles. SPECTEXT also conforms to CSI SectionFormat, PageFormat, and the CSI Project Resource Manual: Manual of Practice. CSI formatting standards have been long recognized as the industry standard for specification documents.
Q. Why should I choose SPECTEXT?
A. SPECTEXT is clear, concise, conforms to the formatting standards recommended by the Construction Specifications Institute MasterFormat 04 and 95, SectionFormat™, PageFormat™, and the CSI Project Resource Manual: Manual of Practice. SPECTEXT users find SPECTEXT is easier to use, more flexible, more straightforward and less verbose and restrictive than other master guide specifications on the market today.
Q. What is the difference between SPECTEXT and SPECTEXT II?
A. SPECTEXT is an accepted industry standard specifications writing database system for writing technically superior specifications in less time. SPECTEXT includes detailed, full-length Sections covering CSI MasterFormat 04 Divisions 1 – 49 and CSI MasterFormat 95 Divisions 1 – 16.
SPECTEXT II is an abridged version of the SPECTEXT database. Requiring less editing, SPECTEXT II Short-form Sections are designed for developing preliminary specifications and specifications for residential, light commercial and low-rise buildings.
Q. What is a SPECTEXT Comprehensive Library?
A. SPECTEXT Comprehensive Libraries provide SPECTEXT (Full-length), SPECTEXT II (Short-form) and OUTLINE Specification Sections by discipline to address project designs from the simplest to the most sophisticated project design. This selection allows users to select the right Section for the project, eliminating the need to “edit down” a SPECTEXT Section or “beef up” a SPECTEXT II Section to match the project at hand.
Comprehensive Library disciplines offered include Engineering, Facility & Building, Architectural/Structural/Civil, Structural, Site/Civil, Mechanical, Electrical and Environmental Engineering (Water, Wastewater, and Sanitary specifications).
Q. Why should our firm consider a SPECTEXT Comprehensive Library?
A. Selecting a Comprehensive Library is a more cost effective choice than subscribing to SPECTEXT or SPECTEXT II Libraries individually as preferred subscription rates are offered to SPECTEXT Comprehensive subscribers. SPECTEXT Comprehensive Libraries allow you to select the right Section for the project.
Q. What Technical Support do I receive with my subscription?
A. SPECTEXT subscribers receive free, unlimited SPECTEXT Technical Support as long as their subscription is current.
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Q. Is EDITSPEC included with our subscription?
A. EDITSPEC Section-Editing Tools are included with your current SPECTEXT subscription at no additional charge.