Can you change an element\u2019s model category or type from within a schedule?

You cannot change an element\u2019s model category from within a schedule, but you can change its family and type if these fields appear in the schedule. Family and type typically appear as drop-down menus listing all available types currently in the model, so new types can be selected from the menu in the same way they are selected using the Type Selector.

Is the schedule a frozen snapshot of a particular stage in the design process or does it dynamically update as the model changes?

Schedules are live model views that are dynamically updated as changes are made to the building model. If you want to save a static snapshot of the schedule data at a particular point in time, you can export it as a delimited text file.

Can you use schedule views to find or delete elements?

Yes. Each row in the schedule represents a building element in the model. You can select a row, then right-click to access commands that let you show or delete that element.

Can schedules be copied or transferred between projects?

Yes. You can and should standardize your schedules between projects. You can used the clipboard to copy and paste schedules between projects. Or you can add a schedule to a project template file to automatically include it in new projects.

Give examples of calculated values that would be useful for different participants on the project team.

Many answers are possible. Calculated values provide great flexibility to compute the numbers of greatest interest for each discipline involved in the project. 

For example, construction managers often focus on project costs, so calculations which tabulate the total cost of building elements or summarize square footage cost estimates are typically useful to them. 

Similarly, schedules with calculated values can be used to compute percentages and values needed for LEED analysis and certification - for example, estimating the water or energy savings available through high-efficiency fixture selection or innovative alternative design strategies.

Can schedules be used to automatically create a complete material take-off?

Schedules in Autodesk Revit can be used to compute key quantities, but they typically do not provide the level of detail needed to create a complete material take-off. The tools available in Revit focus on modeling the building information and supporting design tasks. The information in the building models created can be used by other software solutions, for example Autodesk Quantity Takeoff software, to perform a more detailed analysis and quantification of the design.