Sketchup Pro?

[jollyjohn]

Do any of you use the pro version of Sketchup, and is it worth the money?

I've just started playing around with the free version, extremely powerful app., for free!

 

[wcndave]

I've been using free for a number of years, including designing a house. I think the pro version offers benefits for complex architecture, never heard anything anywhere that suggests pro has much to offer woodworkers.

Just what i've heard mind...

 

[Jensmith]

I think Pro is more for professional applications. I used an older version at work and you can do landforms with the sandbox which you don't have on the free version and the best feature with the Pro version is the ability to import from CAD software so you can do a 2D line drawing in CAD and then inport that in to SketchUP Pro and build up your 3D model from the 2D plan.
That's what we used it for at work.

Unless you are drawing stuff in CAD or want to model terrain then you're probably ok with the free version.

 

[jollyjohn]

Thanks for the reply. I've just watched a couple of the training videos, and it's starting to make sense now, fantastic! I'm sure the free version will give me everything I need, and more! I'm going to go through the whole series of tutorials, before trying to design anything.

John.

 

[wcndave]

Check out http://sketchupforwoodworkers.com/

 

[jollyjohn]

Check out http://sketchupforwoodworkers.com/

Cheers for that, great help!

John.

 

[xy mosian]

Hi, You might also consider the Fine Woodworking site. They have a couple of training DVD's, this one being t he latest,

http://store.finewoodworking.com/google ... e=WW001UPS

Some very good tutorials on there.

Personally I think a program like Sketchup is best learnt by use. There may be some aspects, of the program, which you will not need. Learning to use it to fulfil a specific need will be easier and less easily forgotten.

xy

 

[wcndave]

Totally agree. However I have used it for 3 years, and finding tutorials focused on woodworking improved my ability more than anything else. for example, shift-erase to hide, and outline view are really valuable tools, however I have never even heard of them before.

so a bit of focused tutorial + practise seems the best. Personally i tend to use it to get a feel for the piece, how heavy it looks, relative dimensions, and don't get hung up on doing the joinery etc in sketchup...

 

[xy mosian]

wcndave, I do the same.

I don't have to produce 'This is how it will look drawings'. As you say it is useful to judge the height of a stretcher rail or the proportions of a top. As someone here says 'If it looks right, it is'. Sketchup can help me see if 'It looks right'. In many ways it replaces the back of *** packet sketches in a way which can easily be saved and changed. I would like to be able to add 'scribbled' notes more easily. Perhaps there is a way and I've just not found it. Yes I know about labels and Text but somehow they don't quite suit me.

xy

 

[redmoorphil]

Have you had a look at sketchlist? www.sketchlist.com
This is made specifically for woodworkers and I am waiting patiently for the mac version to be released next month (hopefully).

 

[wcndave]

Google has ditched sketchup now, basically given it back to the firm it took it over from... however it means it's likely to get more architect focused, and the 3d warehouse may disappear...

make sure you keep a copy of the latest installer ;-)

 

[wcndave]

Have you had a look at sketchlist? http://www.sketchlist.com
This is made specifically for woodworkers and I am waiting patiently for the mac version to be released next month (hopefully).

The hobby version looks seriously limited, and is $100, the pro version is $500!

most of us who do this even as a hobby, want the quality / features of a pro... unless the trial version really really gets me going, I can think of lots of nice things i can get with $1-500 8)

 

[Shultzy]

Having just had a look at the video on Sketchlist I don't think its worth changing from Sketchup. I could have made that bookcase with a lot less mouse clicks.

I've just finished designing a new kitchen including all the handles (to make sure they don't collide) and drawer hardware. I've also laid out all 200 pieces on 32 boards which I can print off to provide a comprehensive cutting list. It is useful for woodworkers, and I'm sure that 99% of the designs could be made in the free version.

 

[houtslager]

Yes, I agree , its too clunky and to have 3 screens visiblemay help but imho it helps to confuse the design process. That's why I use SU - sketching on a pc/laptop and if it comes available on a Tablet

hth,

K

 

[xy mosian]

Google has ditched sketchup now, basically given it back to the firm it took it over from... however it means it's likely to get more architect focused, and the 3d warehouse may disappear...

make sure you keep a copy of the latest installer ;-)

Just got back from a brief holiday.
Dave, I've done a bit of reserach and I find that you have some duff information. As I read it the situation is this:-
Google did not give SketchUp back to the firm it took it over from. Google bought SketchUp from a company called @Last. Now they are selling it to a company called Trimble. Seemingly at a substantial profit. Two entirely different companies. Trimble has said they are committed to keeping SketchUp available to everyone. Google and Trimble will manage the 3D Warehouse and it may change but it is unlikely to disappear.
I hope this clarifies the muddy waters.

xy

 

[wcndave]

Yer, sorry, what i meant was different from what I wrote. When google bought them, they bought in all the staff too. It seems most of the staff are now leaving with the product. So in effect it's like Google absorbed and then spat out the company... however at profit yes. I can see that sketchup is niche and not aligned to googles strategy, so i am not surprised, it really only helped with some people building 3d models for google earth. We don't really know what will happen, however as we like it like it is, any change might be bad ;-)

 

[houtslager]

Well I have pro 8 so I may stick to that for years to come

k

 

[Steve Maskery]

Sorry for being a bit late to this, but I just thought it was worth pointing out that, from a woodworker's point of view there is absolutely no difference at all in the modelling capabilities between the Free and Pro versions of SU. SU does off extra functionality like the Sandbox, but its main advantage is the much better annotation tools in Layout, as well as the ability to output rendered images at much higher resolution, neither of which will bother most of us. I use it because I produce graphics which need to print out for BW, but most people won't need this, it's just nice to have.
But from a modelling point of view, they are the same.
S
PS Dave Richards' DVD is well worth the money for anyone struggling to get going.

 

[maxroe]

From a design perspective, somebody should try and sketch out a unibody wooden desk. Like carving one out from a single block or piece of wood. I don't know if it would hold longer or be more sturdy, but it's an idea.

 

[xy mosian]

As this cropped up earlier I'll mention Trimble.

Today I updated Sketchup 8 free edition. I do not use auto update as it is something else calling on the PC resources. Anyway the point is this, the update request led me to the download selection page on the Trimble site. I was immediately impressed by the clean and clear layout of the page. I do not remember the update page on Google Sketchup but feel that in cannot have been any easier to use.



While I'm here. maxroe, I'm not sure about the point of your post, would you give more information please? If you are suggesting a 'conventional' desk then I think wherever the grain, of the wood, were running across a rail, or leg, then the thing would break. I am not a Sketchup master, not even a practised beginner, but I feel that carving a desk from a single block within Sketchup would be straight forward, except for drawers etc. I wouldn't want to build one like that though.

xy