Index: /issm/trunk/src/m/qmu/setupdesign/IsScaled.m
===================================================================
--- /issm/trunk/src/m/qmu/setupdesign/IsScaled.m	(revision 5242)
+++ /issm/trunk/src/m/qmu/setupdesign/IsScaled.m	(revision 5242)
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+function status=IsScaled(variablename)
+%ISSCALED decide whether a variable should be scaled or not. 
+
+switch variablename,
+case {'RhoIce','RhoWater','HeatCapacity','ThermalConductivity','Gravity'},
+
+	status=0;
+
+case {'Thickness','Surface','Bed','DragCoefficient'},
+
+	status=1;
+
+case {'RiftsFriction'},
+	
+	status=2; %special treatment
+
+otherwise
+	error(['IsScaled error  message: could not find ' variablename]);
+end
Index: /issm/trunk/src/m/qmu/setupdesign/QmuSetupDesign.m
===================================================================
--- /issm/trunk/src/m/qmu/setupdesign/QmuSetupDesign.m	(revision 5241)
+++ /issm/trunk/src/m/qmu/setupdesign/QmuSetupDesign.m	(revision 5242)
@@ -14,10 +14,10 @@
 
 %if descriptor is more generic, like 'Thickness','RhoIce', decide whether it will get expanded.
-switch descriptor,
-case {'RhoIce','RhoWater','HeatCapacity','ThermalConductivity','Gravity'},
+flag=IsScaled(descriptor); %will error out if the descriptor is unknow.
 
+if flag==0,
 	dvar(end+1)=variables;
 
-case {'Thickness','Surface','Bed','DragCoefficient'},
+else if flag==1,
 
 	if length(variables.stddev)>md.npart,
@@ -36,9 +36,9 @@
 	end
 
-case {'RiftsFriction'},
-	
-	dvar=setupriftsfriction(md,dvar,variable);
+else if flag==2,
 
-otherwise
-	error(['QmuSetupDesign warning message: could not find ' descriptor ' setup design function']);
+	%special case
+	if strcmpi(descriptor,'RiftsFriction'),
+		dvar=setupriftsfriction(md,dvar,variable);
+	end
 end