> Last I checked, it's slightly expensive. ;-)

I have no idea about AutoCAD, but I think a base license of Catia is about 
5K.  For personal use, ermm, no not really :-)

> I doubt I'll ever need to simulate thermals.

Me too :-) But in my job I do.  A few weeks ago we had to choose between two 
microprocessors, the standard 85 degree C max version, or the special 125 
degree C max version.  Obviously there's a price difference, and our product 
must work up to 75 degrees ambient.  Do we order the 85 degree version or 
the 125 degree version?

> (Do you have any idea what the "bending moment of reinforced concrete" is? 
> I haven't.)

The material doesn't matter, bending moment is just a description of the 
internal torques of a bent object.  If you cut a bent object (eg a bent 
ruler) obviously the two halves would spring back to their normal flat 
shapes, the bending moment is the torque you would need to apply to each 
side of the cut to keep the original bent shape.

If you're mathematically minded, you can calculate lots of interesting 
things by repeatedly integrating any applied forces to the object with 
respect to distance.  The first integration gives you the shear force in the 
object, the second gives you the bending moment, the third gives the 
curvature (multiplied by some constant) and the fourth gives you the 
deflection.  The constant you need depends on the cross-sectional shape and 
the material properties, but it's relatively straightforward to look up 
and/or calculate.

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