Now Architect, Interior Designers, Landscapers and more use SketchUp Pro 2020
What Is SketchUp?
SketchUp is a polygonal surface modeling program. Polygonal means that everything SketchUp creates is made out of polygons (flat shapes bordered by straight lines). Surface means that everything it makes is hollow. Modeling means that it makes models, which are three-dimensional (3D) digital drawings composed of lines and faces (planes). Collectively, those lines and faces are called geometry.
SketchUp is also a vector program, meaning it creates vector files with an skp extension. A vector file is a collection of lines and curves that scale up or down without loss of quality. Examples are pdfs (Adobe documents) and dwgs (AutoCAD documents). This is as opposed to a raster file, which is made with individual pixels and loses resolution quality when enlarged. Examples are jpgs and gifs. SketchUp is strictly a desktop application, not a Web-based one. It works on both the PC and the Mac. Files made on one platform transfer easily to the other.
Who Uses It?
SketchUp was written as a user-friendly alternative to the complex modeling software common in the architectural field, its original user base. Previous owner Google made it free to the public, which wildly expanded its popularity beyond the original architect user base. Now interior designers, game developers, filmmakers, woodworkers, catalog illustrators, packaging designers, landscapers, and more use it too.
Is It Easy to Learn?
It’s probably easier than other industry-standard modeling programs, because it has fewer features and is somewhat intuitive. But “easy” is relative. Like everything else, it still takes practice—you probably didn’t make great pencil sketches right away, either. Know that there are many ways to do the same thing in SketchUp, and no one “right” way. Some ways take a few more steps, but if you make learning it the first priority, efficiency will follow.
What Is SketchUp Used For?
SketchUp is used to electronically sketch ideas three-dimensionally—to “get your doodle on.” It’s the closest you can get to pencil and tracing paper for thinking out ideas. Since you can “sketch” loosely (meaning without inputting numbers), this software helps you think spatially. Height/width relationships become easy to see; for example, a hallway that seems wide in a floor plan may reveal itself as dark and narrow when the vertical dimension is added. As with a physical foam-core model, a digital model can be studied from any direction. However, SketchUp one-ups the foam-core model with camera tools that let you stroll through the digital model at eye level. Finally, SketchUp models can make the jump to the construction documentation process when the LayOut feature are added.
SketchUp has evolved into two programs: a free, noncommercial one called Make and a commercial product called Pro. Both are owned by Trimble, a company that makes positioning technology products.
The Difference between Traditional CaD Drawings and Models
With traditional computer-aided drafting software such as AutoCAD, the mouse is an electronic pencil with which you basically replicate the hand-drafting process. Three-dimensional (3D) drawings made with AutoCAD are really a collection of two-dimensional (2D) entities that give the illusion of three dimensions. A model, however, is a true 3D object that the viewer can “orbit” around and view from any position. Two-dimensional (orthographic) views are generated from it.
AutoCAD is not a prerequisite to learning SketchUp; the two programs operate differently. If your computer drafting experience to date is limited to traditional 2D software, you will find that modeling requires a different approach. You may also find that you never want to go back to 2D software once you see the advantages of 3D.
How SketchUp Displays the Model
By default, SketchUp displays the model as a 3-point perspective. That is, all parallel lines converge to left, right, and top or bottom vanishing points. However, it can be set to display as a 2-point perspective, as an isometric (3D view in which parallel lines remain parallel), and orthographically (plan, elevation, and section views).
Types of Models
It’s helpful to understand the different model types before you learn SketchUp, because this may affect how you plan to use it. Knowing a software program’s strengths and limitations affects the time spent on a piece and its resultant quality.
There are three types of models: solid, surface, and wireframe.Solid models are just that: filled solid inside. They contain data such as interior volume, mass, and weight. This enables you to perform tasks such as specifying a constant wall thickness or connecting and curving adjacent edges. Solid model file sizes are large, so they may run and regenerate slowly. 3ds Max and form•Z are two solid modeling programs popular with architects and interior designers.
Surface models are hollow with a thin skin, com- posed strictly of lines and faces (planes). You can create complex curves and forms, but only surface data e.g., area is stored. A surface model doesn’t recognize geometry as specific features; for example, where a solid model would recognize a staircase and perform relevant calculations, a surface model just sees the staircase as lines and faces. Surface models are used when the designer is primarily concerned with external form and appearance. Their file sizes are generally smaller than those of solid models, so they run faster. Besides SketchUp, another popular surface modeling program is Rhinoceros 3D.
Wireframe models are the simplest. They only contain information about the object’s edges and intersections. As the name implies, this model appears constructed from wires. Its file size is very small; hence, it runs quickly. Wireframes can be created or displayed with any modeling software. BIM, or building information modeling, refers to a particular, data-rich type of solid model plus a collaboration process. A popular BIM program used in the construction industry is Revit.
No model type is “best”; all have unique advantages. For example, designs that require a constant wall thickness are better drawn with a solid modeler. Designs that require curved, sculpted surfaces are better drawn with a surface modeler. Older and newer versions of SketchUp can work on the same computer,but Make and Pro cannot. Only one can be installed.
What SketchUp Make (Free Version) Can Do
The free version of SketchUp can do almost everything the commercial version can, such as:
- Make complete interior and exterior models
- Add color, texture, shadows, and geolocation information
- Apply styles that simulate art media, such as pencil and watercolor
- Make, download, and edit components
- Download and use dynamic components
- Download and use plugins (add-on software)
- Create (low resolution) raster files and animations of the model
- Import raster files of floor plans to trace, and of real-world materials to apply
- Export the model to 2D image formats
- Pro has additional features that working professionals need.
What SketchUp pro 2020 Can Do
- Import AutoCAD (dwg) and Revit (rvt) files. This turns them into SketchUpgeometry, which enables precise modeling from existing floor plans (tracing a raster filemay be time saving but is not precise). Layers and blocks are also preserved.
- Export SketchUp models into formats that can be directly imported into AutoCAD or Revit.
- Create presentation boards and design documents from the model. This is done with LayOut,a feature that installs with Pro as a separate program.
- Make custom line weights and styles, giving the model a hand-drawn appearance. This is done with Style Builder, a feature that installs as a separate program.
- Export high-resolution animation and raster files. These are more suitable for printing and presentation than the low-resolution files the free version is limited to.
- Create and edit dynamic components. These are models programmed to store informationand perform specific actions. For instance, staircases can add steps whenheight is adjusted, and cabinets can store price and parts information and open doorswith a click.
- Perform additive and subtractive modeling tasks, or what engineers call Boolean operations.This saves steps, making for a faster workflow.
- Generate reports such as materials takeoffs (e.g., how much paint to buy based on the area of walls in the model).
- Receive upgrades, maintenance, and support on technical problems via e-mail and phone. Suchsupport is for installation and licensing issues, not tutorials on the software.
- PC: At least 2+ GHz processor, 2+ GB RAM, 500 MB of avail- able hard-disk space, and a 3D-class video card with 512+ MB of memory or higher. Video card driver must support OpenGL 1.5+. SketchUp Pro requires .NET Framework ver- sion 2.0.
- Operating System: XP, Vista, Windows 7, 8, and the Inter- net Explorer 7.0+ browser.
- Mac: At least 2.1+ GHz Intel processor, 2 GB RAM, 500 MB of available hard-disk space, 3D-class video card with 512+ MB of memory or higher. Video card driver must support OpenGL 1.5+.
- Operating System: Mac OS X 10.7, QuickTime 7, and the Safari browser. Boot Camp and Parallels are not supported.
- A keyboard and three-button mouse, with the third but-ton a scroll wheel, is the easiest and most efficient way to use SketchUp. A one-button mouse or laptop track pad is doable but difficult. Three-dimensional modeling requires much more on- screen movement than 2D drafting. A scroll wheel lets you make that movement faster than clicking icons or keyboard shortcuts. Mac users, your one-button mouse can be swapped with any manufacturer’s two-button/scroll wheel mouse.
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