RichPad

Convenient reporting tool for technical professionals.

Have you ever had to:

ABCDE

112.506.00######0.85210

2wLM_Ed######…

310645.0OK???

LoadCases_REV7 p.14/47

Decipher a printed spreadsheet from your colleague.
calc_v3_FINAL.py

do_not_touch_OLD

README.md
untitled
```
# TODO: ask Dave
def run(x):
  return x/0
```
Inherit a painstakingly-built technical codebase... with poor documentation.
Report

[ calc missing ]
½

Table

?
½

Equations

M = wL²/8 → PDF?
½

Juggle tools that do half of what you need but don't communicate.

Us too.

... and it has driven us to build a tool that combines the print-readiness of a paginated document, the computation of a spreadsheet, and the functionality that a technical document deserves. RichPad offers technical professionals a convenient place for simple technical reporting. Use RichPad for engineering calculations, back-of-the-envelope estimates, or your business as usual reports that need a few tweaks for each client.

Here’s how it works:

Introduction

This note records a preliminary check of a simply supported UB section under uniform load.

Governing actions and section capacity are developed in the calculation blocks that follow.

Utilisation against the governing design checks is summarised at the end of this note.

Permanent actions include the self-weight of the member together with finishes and other dead loads along the span.

The earlier office imposed-load assumption is ~~discarded~~ and replaced by the governing floor case for this check.

Deflection is reviewed against the span limit, with serviceability considered at mid-span and restraint at both ends.

Rich text

A UB 457×191×67 in S355 is adopted for the ULS combination check.

Continuing from the previous page, the governing bending moment is determined at mid-span for the ULS combination.

Section capacity for the selected member is adequate. Lateral–torsional buckling is not critical for the assumed restraint layout.

Serviceability deflection under the characteristic load remains within the span limit. See the appendix for the full load case table.

This Notes tab paginates automatically—what you edit here is what prints to PDF, page break and all.

M_{Ed} = \dfrac{w L^{2}}{8}

M_{Ed} = \dfrac{12.5 \times 6.0^{2}}{8}

M_{Ed} = 56.25\,\mathrm{kNm}

V_{Ed} = \dfrac{w L}{2}

V_{Ed} = \dfrac{12.5 \times 6.0}{2}

V_{Ed} = 37.5\,\mathrm{kN}

Check	Value	Limit	OK?
M_Ed	56.3 kNm	312 kNm	Yes
V_Ed	37.5 kN	489 kN	Yes
δ_max	12.4 mm	L/250	Yes

Table

Block-based flow

A document, sliced into logical blocks.

Every Notes tab is a sequence of blocks—self-contained units you can add, reorder, group, merge, or split. Structure the argument the way you think: heading, calculation, table, figure—each as its own piece.

Focus a block and RichPad lights it with that signature purple ring. The ribbon follows what you’re editing, so tools stay relevant without cluttering the page.

Many forms

Blocks that take the shape of your work.

Prose, markup, tables, sketches, equations, clones—mix them in one linear Notes flow. Each block type brings the right editor; your printed document stays a single, coherent story.

Beyond the basics

Ten other key features

The scroll above covers the spine of RichPad. These are the capabilities that make a technical notebook feel like a finished reporting tool.

Present Fields

Toggle narrative placeholders into live computed values so the prose updates with the calculation model—no retyping numbers into the write-up.
Unit-aware math

Formulas carry and convert engineering units. Dimension mismatches surface as errors unless you mark a relation empirical.
Clone blocks

Live-linked copies of a block so the same definition can appear in more than one place—and stay in sync.
Headers & footers

Repeating multi-cell page bands with rich text, borders, and print layout for titles, revisions, and page marks.
Block templates

Save blank or content-filled block layouts and drop them from a template gallery when the next check looks like the last.
Block hierarchy

Parent–child and sibling links, with the Canvas Blocks menu to inspect how the argument is structured.
Tables that calculate

Cells hold text, equations, sketches, or graphs. Array results can spill across or down neighboring cells—spreadsheet power inside the page.
Python automation

Drive .pad files by User ID from Python: set inputs, read computed outputs, and save—without opening the UI.
Named text styles

Document styles for headings and body—Edit Text Styles once, keep the note consistent everywhere it prints.
Comments & review

Anchored comment threads on selections so review stays in the document instead of a side channel of emails and markups.

Why RichPad

Built for technical reporting—not a workaround

Jupyter is flexible for computation. LaTeX is unmatched for typesetting. Office suites are familiar for documents. RichPad is the tool that keeps human-level math, narrative, figures, and print layout in one simple place.

Feature comparison of Jupyter Notebooks, LaTeX, office suites, and RichPad for technical reporting
For technical reporting	Jupyter	LaTeX	Office suites	RichPad
Human-readable math that recalculates live	~ Code cells / SymPy	✗ Typesets; does not compute	~ Sheet or static equation	✓
Unit-aware engineering formulas	~ With libraries	✗	✗ Manual unit handling	✓
Prose, calcs, tables & figures in one flow	✓	~ Wired by hand	~ Doc ↔ sheet ↔ drawing	✓
Print-faithful pages & PDF-ready layout	✗ Notebook chrome	✓	✓	✓
Works without writing code or markup	✗	✗	✓	✓
Spreadsheet-smart tables on the page	~ DataFrames / widgets	✗	~ Power lives in the sheet	✓
Sketches & graphs stay with the calculation	~ Plots; drawing is separate	~ TikZ / external figures	~ Linked or pasted objects	✓
Professional headers, footers & page marks	✗	✓	✓	✓
Reviewers can open results without a runtime stack	✗ Needs kernel / export	~ PDF yes; source no	✓	✓
One file—no doc ↔ sheet ↔ script handoff	~ Plus data & env files	~ Multi-file projects common	✗ Split across apps	✓
Document UI—not a notebook or source file	✗	✗	✓	✓
Best fit for client-ready calculation notes	✗ Exploration first	~ Heavy for routine notes	~ Calcs live elsewhere	✓

vs Jupyter — similar computational flexibility for human-level math, without asking reviewers to run a notebook or live in code cells.
vs office suites — the calculation, narrative, and figures stay linked on the page instead of split across a document, spreadsheet, and pasted charts.
vs LaTeX — report-quality output and real math notation, with a document UI instead of a markup toolchain.

Ready for Notes that calculate and print?

RichPad runs on your desktop. Your files stay yours.

Get RichPad Back to top

RichPad

Present Fields

Unit-aware math

Clone blocks

Headers & footers

Block templates

Block hierarchy

Tables that calculate

Python automation

Named text styles

Comments & review

Ready for Notes that calculate and print?