Did you ever want to see what a 3D Warehouse model looks like in 3D, without having to open the model in Google SketchUp or Google Earth? Wouldn't it be nice to get a better look at a great model car or a character you want in a scene without waiting for a 9MB download? Today, we've launched a new feature that should help. You can now preview 3D models in your web browser, and there's no plugin required.
Here's how it works: on the model details page (the one with the large picture of the model and its description) there are now two buttons marked "Image" and "3D View". Click the "3D View" option, wait a moment, then you can click and drag left or right to spin the model. Pretty simple stuff.
When you upload a new model or update an existing one, we have to modify a couple of things before your "3D View" images can be seen. After uploading, check back in a day or two and the images should be ready to go. Okay, now head back to the 3D Warehouse and enjoy the ride!
A new spin on 3D
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 3:10 PM
For professionals, by (SketchUp) professionals
Monday, December 8, 2008 11:58 AM
About a month ago, the SketchUp Sales & Marketing team was in a meeting chattering excitedly about the new features in SketchUp Pro 7. The buzz in the room got us thinking - why not create a video specifically for design professionals showing the many industries that are using SketchUp Pro and new features like Dynamic Components and LayOut 2? So we put our heads together, and thanks to Tyson's great video work, we came up with the SketchUp Pro video. Enjoy!
P.S. It's a little longer than some of our other videos (4:24), but the construction scenes at the end are well worth the wait!
Modeling for Google Earth is now easier
Thursday, December 4, 2008 4:57 PM
Now that you've downloaded Google SketchUp 7, you may be overwhelmed by all of the new features it has to offer. Let's focus on the new photo matching tools and discover how modeling for Google Earth just got a lot easier.
Let's say we just "matched" a great corner shot of the local bank and are satisfied with the geometry and texturing of the building. Well, almost satisfied -- there are those pesky trees and bushes on every face. Two new tools, Make Unique Texture and Edit Texture will make editing out the trees quick and easy.
First, we'll point SketchUp towards an image editor. In this example, we'll use Photoshop, but any editor will do. Another option is GimPhoto, a free, open source software download.
- Window > Preferences > Applications
- Choose the image editor of your choice.
- Select the face.
- Right-click and choose Make Texture Unique.
- Select the face.
- Right-click and hover over Texture.
- On the pop-out menu, select Edit Texture Image.
- The cropped texture will open in the image editor. Make your edits and save; the edited texture will update in SketchUp.
And voila! A clean, professional looking model.
If you want to submit a model to the 3D Buildings layer in Google Earth, we recommend removing any obstructions such as trees, people, and cars. While edited textures are not an explicit section of our Acceptance Criteria, it's certainly something we keep in mind when comparing two models of the same building.
Now that you know how to make models with obstruction-free textures, it's no surprise you're aching to start modeling. Check out the Help Model a City collections on the Google 3D Warehouse - with 15 different collections and almost 300 buildings ready to be modeled, there are buildings for modelers of every ability level. Each model file contains imported terrain, a sign post marking the intended building, and a description where you'll find a link to a Picasa Web Album with all of the photos you'll need.
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Improved Ruby API scripts
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 10:33 AM
The new SketchUp 7 Ruby API brings significant improvements to performance, stability, and functionality. Some enhancements include faster script performance, improved web dialogs, and there are several new methods that allow your scripts to detect your users' activity. Read about these and other improvements on the SketchUp Ruby API Blog.
Got Style?
Monday, November 24, 2008 8:25 AM
As a designer, you use drawings to communicate much more than just the appearance of spaces or objects. Great drawings "set the tone"; they provide a window into the actual experience of your ideas. Drawings also help communicate the state of your design: Where are you in the process? What level of feedback from your clients is appropriate? Is it time to talk about the roof tile, or are you still working out the building massing? Good drawings lead to good conversations, and that leads to better design.
Style Builder lets you take hand-drawn lines (or any other lines you create) and apply them as edges in a SketchUp model. Now you can make your 3D models look like sketches, abstracting out the things you're not ready to discuss, and bringing forward the things you do. Styles you create in Style Builder are also totally unique; no one else will be able to make drawings that look like yours.
Check out this video to see how Style Builder works:
The Google 3D Warehouse in your language
Friday, November 21, 2008 2:03 PM
One of the fun things about the 3D Warehouse is that we get to see how "globally dispersed" 3D modelers are. There are models from Brazil, China, Russia – just to name a few. Often, these models are described in the languages of the people who posted them; unless you're lucky enough to be fluent in 27 (and counting) languages, you might find our new translation feature interesting.
Using Google's new translation service, we've added a new feature that detects if a model's description is written in something other than your preferred language. If so, it offers you a translate option. So even if you don't read Simplified Chinese, you can still read about this model. And if you're having trouble remembering your German, this model is still within reach.
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All about upgrades
Thursday, November 20, 2008 3:46 PM
As you may have noticed from our long list of new features in 7, SketchUp Pro is now more powerful than ever. We're trying to make it super easy to upgrade from previous versions of SketchUp Pro to the latest one. If you have an active license for SketchUp Pro 6 (or 5, or 4, or 3, or 2, or 1), you can upgrade it to a SketchUp Pro 7 license through our online store. Once you've purchased your new, upgraded license, you'll receive an email with two important pieces of information:
- Link to download Google SketchUp Pro 7 (if you haven't already)
- License information you need to authorize it
Here are some more things to keep in mind:
- The cost to upgrade each license is US$95, EU€64 or UK£51.
- Please have your current serial number, registered user and company name available when you visit the upgrade portion of our store.
- If you have any trouble upgrading, please visit our online help center for more detailed instructions.
- If you purchased a SketchUp Pro 6 license on or after October 1, 2008, the fee is waived as long as you upgrade before or on December 31, 2008.
- If you purchased a SketchUp Pro license through one of our authorized resellers, please contact that reseller directly for upgrade terms.
- If you've contacted us through the Help Center recently, we will try to respond as quickly as possible. Visit this forum post for troubleshooting suggestions.
The 3D Warehouse inside SketchUp
8:55 AM
To help celebrate the launch of SketchUp 7, the 3D Warehouse team got together and decided to give the SketchUp product team (and the worldwide modeling community) a little gift; we made some changes so the 3D Warehouse works better with SketchUp – and not just SketchUp 7. Tom S. and I sat down to work on it, and a few cups of coffee later, here we are.
Now when you click the Get Models icon in SketchUp, you'll see a new, simplified homepage with a cleaner overview of 3D Warehouse content. You can sit back and watch the models roll by or get straight down to business by searching for what you need. Here's another hint: If you're new to the 3D Warehouse, the content under the Browse and Learn menus is also worth a closer look.
We've improved the model upload process, too. Clicking Share Model (back in SketchUp) provides you with a greatly simplified upload page. It also includes a preview of your model image and a map for geo-located models.
Matt Simpson, UX (User Experience) Designer
More about Dynamic Components
Tuesday, November 18, 2008 4:41 PM
If you've never designed in 3D before, you probably assume that 3D objects "just know" what they are – and how they should behave – automatically. Like a staircase that knows to add steps when you make it higher. Or a tree that grows branches as it gets taller. Or a door that opens and closes when you click on it. Up until now, that wasn't possible in Google SketchUp.
But now it is.
In SketchUp 7 (which we just released yesterday), Dynamic Components are 3D models that behave like the real-world objects they represent. They make using SketchUp faster and easier than ever, so you can spend less time modeling and more time designing. They're just "smart" versions of regular SketchUp components, so you can use them in any model you're working on.
Check out this video for a basic rundown on Dynamic Components (a picture's worth a thousand words, after all...)
You can use existing Dynamic Components in both (free and Pro) versions of SketchUp, but if you want to make your own, you'll need SketchUp Pro 7. Dynamic Components work by letting you attach attributes (pieces of extra information) to SketchUp groups and components. After that, you can add formulas to create relationships and control how they interact. It's a lot like working with spreadsheets, actually.
And if you're not sure, just download SketchUp Pro 7 to play around with them. You'll find plenty of resources to help you get started: videos, FAQ, self-paced tutorials, working examples and of course, written documentation.
Sometimes you need more than a model
11:02 AM
LayOut 2 is:
1) included with SketchUp Pro 7
2) out of Beta
3) available today!
What's LayOut? Well, it's like this...
Say you've got kids (like I do) and they've snookered you into working on a design for the new playground at their elementary school. "No problem!" you say, and you whip up a a great design and model it like a pro in SketchUp. Project done, right? Well... now the Principal would like to see the design, as would the president of the PTO. And then the fund raising committee would like a nice picture to display at the bake sale. The well-meaning contractor needs to know what it looks like, and wants to get the landscaping started today. They all think your model is great, and they all want a copy of it. Right now.
What you need is LayOut: the easy-to-use documentation tool for SketchUp models. With LayOut, you drop your SketchUp model into a pre-built document template (with professional titleblock and everything), generate a quick set of scaled drawings for the contractor, and a nice presentation perspective for the bake sale. And when you're done, you email a PDF file to everyone on the project and give the Principal a polished slide presentation in his office from your laptop.
Funds are raised, the playground is built, the kids are heroes with their friends and everybody's happy! In fact, everything is going great now, except the kids (inspired by your success with the playground) would now like you to get them a puppy. You're on your own with that one...
