End of Sketchup development?
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I tend to agree with Marian...
I do believe we'll see a SU v8 and most likely also a ver. 9, but no-one knows what will happen after that... I don't even believe people at Google knows...I'm sure they've made a long term business strategy, but it will rate high class confidential...
If, however, they would have made plans to abandon SU, I'm quite certain that they wouldn't even bother to make the SU Basecamp...It's all pure speculation and malicious tongues (perhaps initiated by competitors or people who think bad about SU)...
I'd imagine that if Google decided to abandon further development of SU, they could decide to make it open source and I'm sure that would mean "new life"...
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You're absolutely right Marian. SketchUp won't be dropped by Google, but I can imagine that they have other interests then the users that are working with it for years....At the moment I'm working with a SU-setup that is completely based on the plug-ins I use. Without them, SU can't do the job for me anymore....And these are quit fundamental plug-ins, needed for decent architectural design.
That's why I was concerned about the "hearsay"....I have the feeling that I'm using a product that won't evolve to the one I want to work with. This is hard for me te say because I'm working with it since version 2!
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I think most of us sketchuppers rely heavily on plugins to get decent results easier and faster and most of us have that same feeling as you, I know I have.
These plugins also make Google's job a lot easier, all they have to do is to improve the base app, make it more stable, more flexible, more efficient and up to date without contending with the development of each specialised tool like most professional modelling software.
Because of this I doubt that the budget for SU is very big or will ever be very big compared with the serious competitors.
While this strategy is not as satisfying as we would want, I think you have nothing to fear, Su was initially developed for architecture and SU still relies on that for the GE models and that means it is the most likely direction for its near future developement if any. -
I always thought that the main idea behind Sketchup, was to keep it simple, so everyone could use it with little knowledge of 3D software. I think that basic Sketchup fits that concept. We have seen further development with the addition of Presentation to Sketchup Pro and might continue in that direction.
Look what happened to Microsoft Vista. Most people thought it was over-developed and did not buy the software. Microsoft saw the light and produced Windows 7 sofware.
Reducing the size of the Sketchup development team would be a sign; that there were no plans to continue developing Sketchup Pro. Has there been a reduction of team size?
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As long as we are speculating, prior to the release of v7, based on Google's stated positions on SU (not a product that will compete with professional CAD applications), I too believed that SU's development was stagnant. Then with the release of v7, for the first time (to my knowledge) Google actually stated that SU would contain additional features in the future. They also took a step towards distinguishing SU Pro as a professional tool by removing Dxf2Su from v8 free, and making it an exclusive part of v8 Pro. Beware of what we ask for, there may be unanticipated complications that come with an improved version of SU.
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well, of course, no-one can say anything for sure (there is always some secret around further development) but based on the SU version that program manager John Bacus's profile is showing, I would tend to suspect that development has not stopped - at least yet.
Now it is of course a different matter where, which direction this development is going but I doubt they would have started a relatively new tool (for the Pro users); LayOut, if they intended to abandon development completely.If SU itself is not developed with newer and newer tools but the concentrate on improving the core engine and making it possible for plugin developers to use newer and more effective methods - i.e. if SU is going to the direction that it is becoming a better and improved platformfor third party developers, I am already pleased. After all, we get all tools we need from these developers.
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I'm far less worried about Google stopping development than I am about Fredo6 or TIG getting bored and moving on to something else. I would be happy to see Google strictly consult with the developers on this forum and give Sketchup the tools they need to keep creating better plugins. I love SU just how it is, built by users, for users. The best case scenario would be a future of open source development.
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+1 for SU as a platform. Give us access to the inner gears of SU so we can mould SU to what we want it to be.
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@thomthom said:
+1 for SU as a platform. Give us access to the inner gears of SU so we can mould SU to what we want it to be.
I'm wondering what would this mean in terms of copyright infringement. I mean if skp. went open source would this mean the shadow bug could be fixed without legal recrimination? Would proprietary skp patents be forgotten (isn't pushpull patented?)
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Dale, i think thom is talking about a more powerful api rather than open sourcing SU, although that would be rather cool
With regards to the legal stuff you mention, carmacks reverse (aka the shadow bug fix) is still patented, so even if SU was open sourced youd have to break the law (or find an alternative fix.) Not sure what would happen with respect to patents, it'd probably depend on what license the source code was released under.
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Ah, thanks for the clarification Remus.
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I´m looking foward to blender bmesh integration that will be implemented in the next version, with blender 2.5 enhanced UI customization, I don´t think is necessary sketchup to go open source.
http://bmeshblender.wordpress.com/ -
i'm not quite following what you're saying there jaceguay.
what's bmesh have to do with sketchup? (or, what's bmesh in the first place?)
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@unknownuser said:
the day that Google becomes insolvent.
I'm sure that's just around the corner. . . .probably keepin' em up at night.
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Among other things is the ability to make faces with more than 4 vertices (NGONS), like we have in sketchup. It could make the 3d modeling workflow a little more like sketchup for architectural models.
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how often i find myself wishing that sketchup was like blender! Not the program itself, but the open source, enthusiastic and fast paced development community. Even if bmesh fails to fulfill my architectural modeling needs, sketchup and blender would still compliment one another nicely as sibling projects don't you think!? each filling their own niche.
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Personally, I think Blender is awful. Awful interface, awful backup, possible one of the most arrogant communities I've ever had the displeasure of meeting. Awful! I am so pleased that SketchUp is nothing like Blender, both by application and online forum.
As it is, SketchUp is fine. I'm in no hurry for an update right now, mainly because I'll loose DWG import, but then again, the Pro version of SU isn't really very much outlay anyway. It wasn't very long ago when there was a major update to SletchUp. If there is no update in 3 years time, then I may start to 'worry', but until then...
Tom
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I don't think blender will be the answer to people's problem here, or at least not the one they are expecting or looking for. But for all their "arrogant" community, one has to admit that they are really reaping almost all the possible benefits to open source development. I often make it my tool of choice apart from architectural related projects due to the fact that it's development doesn't look like stopping any time soon, in fact things seen to be picking up pace as more people join in the fun. Blender, in it's core is alive, sketchup on the other hand is stagnating. There are so many small and extremely annoying issues with sketchup that have not been fixed for a very long time. That, along with the fact in the last 2-3 years, very little has changed, and there is no hopeful, public, general plan for the future practically prove the point for all to see. It's getting ridiculous. All the major 3d packages seem provide at least some future development info to get excited about. I didn't make this post to promote blender itself (which is certainly not for everyone), but rather to make an interesting contrast.
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I can't help but think of the StarOffice/OpenOffice opensource example.
Sun released the code for opensource... but still retains interest. Whenever a new update / version comes out for the free OpenOffice, Sun picks over the features / bug fixes, etc. and applies those they think as stable to the StarOffice package.
So the differences are that StarOffice is supported (and costs money,) and may lag a bit behind in the features.
OpenOffice is free, and always has the latest fixes, and features; but has no support. (You also risk that a feature, or fix may be rolled back, if it proves to be problematic.)
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Sketchup could go this route, either totally.. or just with the Ruby API. (Not talking about the SKP C++ API here.)With respect to the Ruby API.. I really wish they would separate it out from the exe file, as an so (source object) file that could be updated independant of the application builds.
It desperately needs an overhaul. Numerous little nagging bugs that should be easy to fix, always get classed as low priority, and shoved to the bottom of the "fix list" where they stay. New high priority features, and bug fixes get pushed onto the top of the list. The easy stuff, which prevents developers from fully utilizing the API, never get fixed.
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@pep75 said:
There seems to be a "clash" between the @Last-group and Google.
Is this true?No it's not true.
Because, Google, Inc., purchased @Last Software, lock, stock and barrel. (There are official press releases, do a search.) @Last Software no longer exists.
My understanding, is that there very few (and perhaps only 1 person,) still at Google from the old @Last "posse."
All @Last employees that stayed after the acquistion, became Google employees.As an employee, if you have an unresolvable difference of opinion with your company, or it's management, your only recourse is to leave and find another place of employment.
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