Drum roll please: Introducing SketchUp 7

Two years in the making and the result of many, many people's hard work, Google SketchUp 7 has arrived. You are cordially invited to visit our website to download a copy for yourself. We can't wait to see what you think.

First things first: We made a video to tell you about the new stuff in 7. I recommend watching it twice: Once to learn about what's new, and once more to see what programmers do when they're told to "just stand there" in front of a video camera. Feel free to microwave yourself some popcorn before you click "play".



You can find an exhaustive list of what's new in 7 on our (aptly named) What's New in SketchUp 7 page, so I won't bother repeating everything here. Suffice it to say, there's a lot, and we couldn't be prouder.

For SketchUp 7, we decided to focus on three main areas:

1. Making SketchUp easier for new modelers to learn
2. Adding "power tools" for SketchUp Pro gurus who dream in faces and edges
3. Clearing the way for even more model sharing and collaboration

To that end, we've done everything from making small changes that make everyone's life easier (like making it so that edges automatically split other edges where they cross), to launching LayOut 2 (a whole separate program that lets Pro users create detailed multi-page documents and presentations).

Enough blathering from me – the best way to learn about 7 is to download and try it out for yourself. But before you go, three things:

• Installing SketchUp 7 on your computer won't affect SketchUp 6; you'll have access to both versions for as long as you like.
• If you have a license for SketchUp Pro 6 and you'd like to upgrade to Pro 7, have a look at our store to find out how.
• Keep an eye on this blog for plenty of in-depth follow-up posts about the features and improvements in SketchUp 7. We'll be adding new stuff every day this week.

Have fun!

Posted by Aidan Chopra (on behalf of the SketchUp, LayOut and 3D Warehouse teams)