Hi William!
Thank you for sharing your interest in the Autodesk Simulation solution. If you have any general questions for me on the DesignCheck software that you have downloaded, please let me know! As for how you should move forward, this probably depends on your current needs, as well as how you see yourself advancing with FEA in the future. One important note is that you can not purchase the DesignCheck program, instead you would have to get Autodesk Algor Simulation, which will include the linear static stress analysis as you expect, but also linear dynamics, and steady-state and transient heat transfer analyses. If you are only interested in simple linear statics, you may want to look into upgrading to Autodesk Inventor Professional, which may be able to handle your solid element solutions.
One major difference you will see between the Autodesk Algor Simulation and the Inventor Professional will be the advanced element types availalbe in Simulation. Some of these will include beams, trusses, springs, plates, composites, and gap elements. Each of these solve more quickly than using a solid brick mesh, though each will give a successful solution. The other major difference is that Simulation will be a stand alone package, where as Inventor Professional is built into the Autodesk interface. These would be the main differences between the two, since they both include linear statics packages.
If you do have more questions, please feel free to contact me at AEInbox@autodesk.com, or give me a call at 412-967-2700.
Regards,
James Herzing
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