SketchUp and Rubies on Linux (yes, it works)

lewiswadsworth

thanks for the useful tricks, now sketchup on my ubuntu-8.04 works at 95%
The only one feature blocking the program is jpg export that's very important for my job
Have someone experienced the same and found the solution?

thank you
Mick

Sorry, that one works on the two Ubuntu boxes I have set up. However, SU6 has always had some weird graphics export problems...the other day I had a 3500x3500 pixel image fail, inexplicably, on a Windows box until I changed the export resolution to 3499x3499.

Did you try the export with another image format, like PNG? Also, see what happens if you turn off antialiasing under options when you export a 2D graphic file.

If you really want to test the file, post it to me and I'll try an export using SU on Wine on my Ubuntu workstation.

lewiswadsworth

Just to make sure it works and no update has broken the functionality recently, I just switched over to Linux and did some JPG exports. In fact, for some reason, the export process seemed much faster than it did using the same file on XP. And this is a fairly elaborate model, with shadows and antialiasing turned on, at 3000 pixels in its longest direction (resized here with GIMP).

Mick, you might want to check and see if your current Ubuntu installation can view or create JPG files using any application (try GIMP). I've never had to look for a library for viewing or writing JPGs on Linux, but it is a non-Open-Source format so perhaps you managed to not install it or delete it.

lewiswadsworth

While making these JPG tests, I decided to let Ubuntu update the NVidia GLX driver for my computer, and in fact most elements of graphic performance improved after a restart. Except in one area: when unselecting an object, or when closing a group/component open for editing, actually seeing the change on the screen is delayed until one moves the camera or starts another operation.

That's surprisingly annoying with a complex model full of nested components, and I don't think it was happening prior to the latest batch of updates!

michelinux

sure, with gimp and other sw I can manage jpg without any problem.
Fortunately, thanks to you, I can export in png perfectly
can you paste the output of the command:

aptitude search jpeg

compliments for your work

see you
Mick

lewiswadsworth

@michelinux said:

sure, with gimp and other sw I can manage jpg without any problem.
Fortunately, thanks to you, I can export in png perfectly
can you paste the output of the command:

aptitude search jpeg

compliments for your work

see you
Mick

Here you go:

@unknownuser said:

p avifile-mjpeg-plugin - MJPEG video plugin for libavifile
p cl-jpeg - A JPEG library for Common Lisp
p jpeginfo - Prints information and tests integrity of
p jpegoptim - utility to optimize jpeg files
p jpegpixi - Remove hot spots from JPEG images with min
p libclan2c2a-jpeg - JPEG module for ClanLib game SDK
v libjpeg-dbg -
v libjpeg-dev -
p libjpeg-progs - Programs for manipulating JPEG files
i libjpeg62 - The Independent JPEG Group's JPEG runtime
p libjpeg62-dbg - Development files for the IJG JPEG library
p libjpeg62-dev - Development files for the IJG JPEG library
p libmjpegtools-dev - MJPEG video capture/editting/playback MPEG
i A libmjpegtools0c2a - MJPEG video capture/editting/playback MPEG
v libplayerjpeg-dev -
p libplayerjpeg2 - Networked server for robots and sensors -
p libplayerjpeg2-dev - Networked server for robots and sensors -
i A mjpegtools - MJPEG video capture/editting/playback MPEG
p ov51x-jpeg-source - Source for the ov51x-jpeg driver
p recoverjpeg - Recover jpeg pictures from a filesystem im

I hope that helps, Mick.

michelinux

I have the same packages installed, maybe it happens bacause I have a 64bit version

Thanks anyway, today I've tried to modify export resolution with png format, after that the program makes error exporting in png, even re-turning on use view dimension...

See you
Mick

lewiswadsworth

@michelinux said:

I have the same packages installed, maybe it happens bacause I have a 64bit version

Thanks anyway, today I've tried to modify export resolution with png format, after that the program makes error exporting in png, even re-turning on use view dimension...

See you
Mick

Usually SketchUp starts having problems with export resolutions greater than 4000 pixels in any direction, independent of platform, unless antialiasing is turned off, under Options in the export dialog. You might see if that helps; otherwise you're probably right about the 64-bit version being the issue, although I can't imagine why that would be such an issue.

Quite a few people on this link have been able to run SU on various other distros than SU; if you have the time and partition space, why not test one out, or for that matter make a partition for booting Ubuntu 32-bit? At least that would be one way of isolating the problem.

If I can find the time, I'll download the Ubuntu 64-bit and see if the problem is there for me. Might be a few days, though, until I have that much spare time.

Just out of curiosity, Mick, do you generally see much performance improvement with Ubuntu 64-bit, outside of the SU problem? What applications show the most difference, if you do?

michelinux

If you have a 64bit CPU (Intel or AMD, ubuntu 64 is for both) you can experience clear performance improvement from system boot speed to every application, particularly with applications that require a lot of RAM. Moreover it has been resolved the problem with non-64bit applications like adobe flash player and openoffice.

The space, but the time in order to test a system does not lack me, but I can test it to my friend's pc.

ciao
Mick

juju

@lewiswadsworth said:

By the way, I'm told that if someone contacts Google SketchUp's support team with a question about SU on Linux now, they are directed to look at this thread!

Wow, seems like our pro licence money is hard at work.

lewiswadsworth

@unknownuser said:

@lewiswadsworth said:

By the way, I'm told that if someone contacts Google SketchUp's support team with a question about SU on Linux now, they are directed to look at this thread!

Wow, seems like our pro licence money is hard at work.

No, they're just being nice. First they tell you that they simple don't have the resources to make SU available on major Linux distros, but if you insist on trying...

Actually, everything here works on the free SU as well. In fact, that is easier to install because it doesn't insist on a pointless download of .NET to run Layout (which doesn't work on Linux, because .NET has never been ported to Linux by Microsoft).

linea

I have told various linux 3d purists on other forums about our thread here. Not one has shown any interest, they have all dismissed SU. They all seem to be loyal to Blender, wings 3d or k-3d. I hadn't heard of k-3d before, link below
http://www.k-3d.org/wiki/Main_Page

I was surprised they weren't more interested, or at least a little enthusiastic, with the exception of Blender, Sketchup seems to be streets ahead of any native linux 3d app.

lewiswadsworth

I have heard of k-3d, and keep it on my machines. It'll will be great and fully functional for professional design purposes, at this rate, in about 13.5 years, by which time of course we will be absorbed by the Singularity (so who'll give a damn about 3D modeling then, anyway?).

By Linux purists, do you mean Stallman-type Open-Source advocates? The kind of people who insist upon using the awful version of Ubuntu (or worse, Debian) without any proprietary software at all? That's a religious stance they hold, and it's about as useful. And I have as about as much use for those who hold it as I do for any fundamentalists.

I actually don't care as much about Linux as I do about the interfaces of the various desktop managers, which are of course available on a variety of "engines" that matter very little to non-coders as long as they keep the interfaces running and apps cooking along. I've read of people getting SketchUp to run on BSD and OpenSolaris...more power to them.

Has anyone had more luck with SU-on-Wine-on-Linux on any particular desktop manager than with others? I have personally only tried it on plain-Jane GNOME, and it seems to be fine.

lewiswadsworth

Thanks...that is very interesting. I downloaded a copy of Ubuntu 64 and I'll install it on a Core Duo computer sometime in a day or so and try this myself. Let us know about whether your SU 2D export problem persists on your friend's computer.

I've been working on a fairly large SU project recently (the one pictured above), and I have noticed that with increasing model complexity the general performance (modeling, screen redrawing, etc.) does seem to get worse faster on SU on Wine on Ubuntu 8.04LTS 32bit than it does on XP SP3 on the same hardware. But 2D and 3D exports seem to finish much, much faster on Ubuntu than they do on XP.

By the way, I'm told that if someone contacts Google SketchUp's support team with a question about SU on Linux now, they are directed to look at this thread!

lewiswadsworth

@michelinux said:

If you have a 64bit CPU (Intel or AMD, ubuntu 64 is for both) you can experience clear performance improvement from system boot speed to every application, particularly with applications that require a lot of RAM. Moreover it has been resolved the problem with non-64bit applications like adobe flash player and openoffice.

The space, but the time in order to test a system does not lack me, but I can test it to my friend's pc.

ciao
Mick

Mick, I did test SU Pro on Ubuntu 8.04 AMD64 (on a computer where I also have it running on both XP and Ubuntu 32bit), and I was able to get the same range of image sizes for both PNG and JPEG exports as I can on Windows...an easy 4000 pixel max dimension. And (possibly because of an update recently to WINE) SU no longer required the Registry changes noted above to work immediately after install...it opened with some empty TOD, Instructor, and Learning Center windows, but these no longer aborted the program start.

However, it does seem like SU might be a little more likely to hang on Ubuntu 64. Launching Firefox at the same time as SU was open caused the SU window contents to disappear and the app to freeze at one point, although I haven't been able to duplicate that problem and it has been working since.

Incidentally, the newest update to WINE (they claim) should allow one to run a wider range of Windows graphical applications, most notably Photoshop CS3. That's pretty amazing...I'll have to test it.

--Lewis

linea

There is talk of developing a free CS3 type app for linux, probably a derivative of gimp, inkscape etc.

lewiswadsworth

I'm aware of that. It will be hard to catch up though. I use GIMP for a few things, and it has about the full functionality of PS 4.0, plus a few unusual capabilities if you download the plugins for animation. But with no smart objects, no adjustment layers, and no 3D, it's going to be a long haul to achieve PS CS3 XT equivalency. Krita has adjustment layers, but seemed to have other issues last time I checked...and I can't forever be checking to see if anyone has "caught up." It's always a catch-up game with Open-Source, and with few exceptions (at least in my areas of interest, mainly graphics) there's very little that's truly innovative.

That's not always bad, of course. It could be argued that even the GNOME desktop (which is what non-coders really find so compelling about Ubuntu, and often mistake forLinux) in so many of these OS is functionally equivalent to the old, no-frills pre-OS-X Apple desktop. KDE has attempted some innovation, on the other hand, but I'm not sure anyone really wants more elaborate desktop managers. Do we really need things like Compiz to be productive, anyway?

What actually led me to investigate the whole topic of SU on Linux was the complexity and increasing productivity-restriction of the two main commercial OS, Mac and Vista/Windows 7. I want a bolt-hole when Windows XP finally becomes unusable on modern hardware...open-source versus commercial software development is utterly irrelevant in my particular circumstances.

linea

I kind of agree. I've got my old laptop up and running ubuntu now. It is a lean go anywhere machine(does't matter if I drop it) running free apps that can't do everything but at least give me a useable tool while I'm out about. Trying to get SU installed too, I'll let you know

As for a CS3 clone, I would imagine that Adobe's copyright clauses make it impossible to come anywhere close, but it'll be interesting to see what an open source attempt can create.

Jon

lewiswadsworth

More SU on WINE on Ubuntu 64-bit notes:

I installed this again yesterday (had to wipe a partition...turns out that having 64bit and 32bit versions of Ubuntu on the same drive can be problematic) and tried to do some actual project work with SU once I had it going.

With another couple of minor WINE updates, SU now installs with no differences from the Windows installation process, as long as one allows WINE to install Gecko so that it can render HTML (used in the SU TOD window, for instance). Layout still doesn't work at all, although you must allow the Installer to pointlessly download .NET before it will continue with SU's installation.

There is a noticeable problem, once SU file sizes get a little bigger in this system: certain visual operations don't immediately appear on the screen. For instance, a zoom extents operation does not complete (or perhaps the window simply doesn't redraw) until one clicks somewhere in SU and begins another operation; the same sort of thing happens with hiding/unhiding objects. This can get a little tedious when editing groups and components...it is difficult to know, until you start another operation, whether a component/group is open for editing or not.

Also, 2D exports to DWG format failed about 50% of the time with a Bugsplat, although when they did work they were completed in about half the time it takes on Windows XP. Graphic exports to PNG and JPG complete much, much faster than they do on Windows...almost instantaneous with large resolutions (3000-4000 pixels) and shadows/anti-aliasing on.

eter

Thanks to this thread I'm now running SketchUp on my Ubuntu partition. That Windows partition is suddenly looking a little superfluous.

Thanks for the instructions, although as Lewis observed, this is becoming more and more straightforward with newer releases of WINE.

lewiswadsworth

?eter, are you experiencing the lag in hiding/showing/zooming that I noted in my previous post? It's only slightly annoying (much less annoying than trying to get dual monitors to run on Ubuntu), but I'm curious to know if anyone else has had the problem or had it and done something about it.