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    What's your beginners tip?

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    • JQLJ Offline
      JQL
      last edited by

      I hadn't had the patience to read all tips so this one may be out there:

      Forget about hitting ESC a thousand times when you want to cancel the mess you're in, as you used to do in AutoCAD. Try using the SPACE key instead.

      SPACE key is the one to use as it cancels the command by switching to SELECT tool.

      Hitting ESC key will probably get you in a bigger mess because:
      1 - Your command isn't cancelled, just reset to it's initial action.
      2 - Any active dialog box (like the Paint dialog, components, or entity info, etc) will close...
      3 - If you're in editing a group/component context (double click to edit) ESC cancels editing and returns to the context you were before. When you know what you're doing it's very useful but for beginners, sometimes this means jumping out of multiple nested groups/components and getting lost in the model.

      Now that you know, use ESC key and double click to speed up your navigation.

      www.casca.pt
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      • JQLJ Offline
        JQL
        last edited by

        To be sure you are selecting some basic geometry for edition and not the group/component wich is nesting it, click a thousand times on it until all connected edges and faces get selected (visually this is usually blue or orange edges and blue or orange dotted faces).

        Then you can select the single face/edge and move it, pushpull it, offset it, paint it directly or do whatever you want with it.

        www.casca.pt
        Visit us on facebook!

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        • pbacotP Offline
          pbacot
          last edited by

          Hornoxx to quote another post, hit the " " " quotation mark icon in the upper right of that post. It will place the post text and pictures in that format into your reply window.

          MacOSX MojaveSketchUp Pro v19 Twilight v2 Thea v3 PowerCADD

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          • HornOxxH Offline
            HornOxx
            last edited by

            @pbacot said:

            Hornoxx to quote another post, hit the " " " quotation mark icon in the upper right of that post. It will place the post text and pictures in that format into your reply window.

            pbacot - thank you !
            (please don´t tell it anyone) 😆

            never trust a skinny cook

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            • I Offline
              IntelCoreDuo
              last edited by

              My tip:

              If you ever find yourself not being able to do a certain task in an efficient manner, there is a very good chance someone else has been there before. If they have, they may have created a plugin to solve it. Or a clever workaround. Never settle for a "adequate" solution, always try to find a better way. It will turn you into the office guru in no time. This is about making a short-term investment that will often pay out in the short term, and always in the long term.

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              • S Offline
                ScottchUp
                last edited by

                Create and use an easily readable layering system

                Double/triple check working layer OFTEN

                learn to group & use components

                Learn shortcuts (print them & keep at workstation until they become muscle memory)

                Buy Nick Sonders book "Sketchup and Layout for Architecture"

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                • Dave RD Offline
                  Dave R
                  last edited by

                  @scottchup said:

                  Create and use an easily readable layering system

                  Double/triple check working layer OFTEN

                  learn to group & use components

                  Learn shortcuts (print them & keep at workstation until they become muscle memory)

                  Buy Nick Sonders book "Sketchup and Layout for Architecture"

                  Good list. As for the working layer. You might write that as, "Double/triple check that Layer 0 is always the active layer."

                  Etaoin Shrdlu

                  %

                  (THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE)

                  G28 X0.0 Y0.0 Z0.0

                  M30

                  %

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                  • D Offline
                    drafter
                    last edited by

                    I discovered, by accident, that dimensions can be rotated any number of degrees and their value is automatically recalculated.

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                    • JQLJ Offline
                      JQL
                      last edited by

                      Brute leftclick yourself into context until your faces are hatched blue as selected. Then you can edit them.

                      If what you want is to select the group/component nesting those faces, hit ESC once and click the mouse once.

                      By doing that you'll be able easily tell the difference between transforming a component (move, scale, rotate, etc) or editing the entities inside it.

                      www.casca.pt
                      Visit us on facebook!

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                      • pbacotP Offline
                        pbacot
                        last edited by

                        @jql said:

                        Brute leftclick yourself into context until your faces are hatched blue as selected. Then you can edit them.

                        If what you want is to select the group/component nesting those faces, hit ESC once and click the mouse once.

                        By doing that you'll be able easily tell the difference between transforming a component (move, scale, rotate, etc) or editing the entities inside it.

                        Brute-leftclick until you are blue in the face? What?

                        MacOSX MojaveSketchUp Pro v19 Twilight v2 Thea v3 PowerCADD

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                        • JQLJ Offline
                          JQL
                          last edited by

                          @pbacot said:

                          @jql said:

                          Brute leftclick yourself into context until your faces are hatched blue as selected. Then you can edit them.

                          If what you want is to select the group/component nesting those faces, hit ESC once and click the mouse once.

                          By doing that you'll be able easily tell the difference between transforming a component (move, scale, rotate, etc) or editing the entities inside it.

                          Brute-leftclick until you are blue in the face? What?

                          LOL...

                          Use select tool and click 3.000.000 times in a component or group until you select all it's faces. Then you know you're inside it.

                          It's good for nested groups and components that eventually make up a complex model.

                          Most people I teach SU to, have a hard time figuring out if they are inside or outside of the group. This way they are sure they are inside as suddenly all the faces are selected with a triple click.

                          It sounds strange, but it's the best advice I have for beginners.

                          www.casca.pt
                          Visit us on facebook!

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                          • pbacotP Offline
                            pbacot
                            last edited by

                            That's cool. (Now you see, I want a command click /plugin that opens the nested component where the face lives.)

                            MacOSX MojaveSketchUp Pro v19 Twilight v2 Thea v3 PowerCADD

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                            • Dave RD Offline
                              Dave R
                              last edited by

                              @pbacot said:

                              That's cool. (Now you see, I want a command click /plugin that opens the nested component where the face lives.)

                              You can already do that from Outliner. Of course you need to give the components useful names so you can identify the one you want to edit. 😄

                              Etaoin Shrdlu

                              %

                              (THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE)

                              G28 X0.0 Y0.0 Z0.0

                              M30

                              %

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                              • Rich O BrienR Offline
                                Rich O Brien Moderator
                                last edited by

                                Someone needs to make an Extension called Deep Dive that brings you into the murky waters of selecting Component#512 by simply knowing you want to select it.

                                Download the free D'oh Book for SketchUp 📖

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                                • JQLJ Offline
                                  JQL
                                  last edited by

                                  @rich o brien said:

                                  Someone needs to make an Extension called Deep Dive that brings you into the murky waters of selecting Component#512 by simply knowing you want to select it.

                                  Mind Reading?

                                  www.casca.pt
                                  Visit us on facebook!

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                                  • BoxB Online
                                    Box
                                    last edited by

                                    @rich o brien said:

                                    Someone needs to make an Extension called Deep Dive that brings you into the murky waters of selecting Component#512 by simply knowing you want to select it.

                                    Powered by the infinite improbability drive.

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                                    • eneroth3E Offline
                                      eneroth3
                                      last edited by

                                      Don't think of layers as layers. They don't introduce drawing contexts as layers in other programs usually do (e.g. LayOut). In SketchUp groups and components server that purpose. Think of layers as tags that you apply to entities, not places you put the entities on. Also, think of layer0 as "none" or "No tag has been applied" as it is fundamentally diofferent from the "other" layers. It's the only one that cannot be renamed or deleted.

                                      Think of the default material as No Material. That makes material inheritance in groups and components and the fact that its color is controlled from Styles and not Materials much easier to understand.

                                      Read the status bar! The native tools and properly made plugins show a lot of useful information here.

                                      Remember that the instructor exists. A lot of users, including myself, starts off by hiding the instructor because it's too d**n distracting with its animation. However, if you don't know how a tool functions or forget what modifier keys there are, or even just are curious if there is any additional functionality of the tool that you didn't know of, the instructor is a very useful resource.

                                      My website: http://julia-christina-eneroth.se/

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                                      • eneroth3E Offline
                                        eneroth3
                                        last edited by

                                        Oh, forgot the maybe most important tip:

                                        Group anything that can be though of as an objects of its own, whether it's a chair, a door, a door handle, a chair leg or the little plastic end of the chair leg that protects the floor. Grouping allows you to move around items without having them stick to other items.

                                        Anything that is a product that can be bought and has a name, e.g. a car or a window, should be made a component. This way it shows up in the Component browser's In Model category and can be easily re-used. If the object only exists in a specific context, e.g. a slab cast on site, it should be a group. This way it doesn't clutter the component browser.

                                        My website: http://julia-christina-eneroth.se/

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                                        • M Offline
                                          Miya66 Newcomers
                                          last edited by

                                          Applying styles to selected text offers a swift and efficient way to enhance its appearance. Whether it's bold, italics, or underline, these formatting options enable emphasis and clarity. With a simple click or shortcut, you can transform ordinary text into something visually appealing and impactful. This time-saving feature allows users to effortlessly communicate their ideas while maintaining a professional and polished presentation. By utilizing quick style application, you can ensure that your text stands out and engages readers effectively. Free Fire

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                                          • M Offline
                                            Miya66 Newcomers
                                            last edited by

                                            hi everyone!

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