Trouble with layers/visibility

[cmann]

I'm having trouble getting a group/component to stick to a layer. If I select the group the entity info indicates it's on layer 0, but if I turn visibility on layer 1 off then the group disappears. The group is made up of various components and it appeared at one point that some of those components where part of layer 1, but I switched them to layer 0, and still no dice.

The file is here: http://manndesigns.com/misc/desk.skp

I'm sure I've really hacked things up here, so any other advice is appreciated.

-chris

[Gaieus]

That's because some entities within that group are in the "above desk" layer. You can enter the group, select all and put them on layer0. also there are those shelf entities whose primitive geometry is on "above desk" edit the components and put them on layer0 again. Then there are some panels (mainly visible from behind) that are messed up like this, too.

My suggestion is:
Always draw on layer0 and only put geometry on different layers when grouped already. When using such deep nesting complexity, don't even change the default layer other than Layer0.

[farukahmet]

Gaeieus is right about always drawing on Layer0 and then moving the entity to another layer only when made into a group or a component. But even if you're a veteran SketchUpper, you'll have to deal with files that have zillions of layers, each with different entities in them which are distributed in various "depth levels". So i guess you could use one of the layer manager ruby plugins. Check out the Ruby Library Depot's dedicated page here . I'd advice C.Grant's "PutOnLayer_bmw.rb" which, when run from the context menu,"puts all primitive and encapsulated geometry on Layer0. Only the top-level components and groups will move to the specified layer".

[smonrad]

Check for proper layer assignment using the right click properties function, re-label the selected items in the properties box to the desired layer. Easiest if all other parts are in their own layer and can be hidden as layers.
Also hide all other layers to check the one which is not all in the right place.
Use the select "from left" function to grab all pieces, whether in components or not.
So drawing in different layers makes it easier to hide irrelevant parts, thus easier to select, re-layer and also to move components into correct position without distraction.

[cmann]

Thanks for the help. I finally got everything sorted out. Didn't realize how deep I would have to dig into the nested component/group to change layer status. Thought just left selecting the whole group would be enough.

I think what really messed things up is that when working on one layer I would notice something wrong with a component on another layer and start editing it without explicitly changing layers, so now the new stuff would end up on the wrong layer. I guess I expected sketchup to automatically switch the working layer when I went in to edit components on particular layers. Seems like layers in sketchup aren't quite the same as they are in photoshop.

[Gaieus]

Well, this is true. Thus the general "advice": always work (draw) on layer0. I don't even ever make any other layers active.