Most efficient image type to use with SketchUp?

matthew.robert · 24 Feb 2008, 02:45

I don't know why I even bother posting at the Google groups anymore... So I bring my question to where I should have come in the first place:

Take a look at the attached file, it is pretty self-explanatory. I am not finding much rhyme or reason as to the relation between a saved image file size, the resultant addition in size to the SketchUp file, and the size of the image when it is exported back out of the model. Anyone have any light to shed on this issue?

MC

A SU file explaining my image question.

Alan Fraser · 24 Feb 2008, 06:27

I've found that when images are imported into SU in a simple kind of way they generally don't add much to the file size other than their own size. Obviously if an image is imported into a blank SU file and that is saved, then the skp will be larger than the image to some degree because of all the bottom-line SU data that needs to be there.

If an image file is used in a very complex way on an organic shape in SU, the file size can go through the roof. I've experienced files in which the mapping info for an image is apparently taking far more code than the image itself. SU seems to be very bad at handling complex mapping.

SU does seem to resample images...maybe it's the OpenGL. I can understand why a jpg may export a different size; it has variable compression. But a png uses a standard, lossless png compression and ought to export the same as it went in...weird.

What Coen says about the different formats just about covers it. Personally I'd steer clear of gifs. I have tested the workaround but have occasionally got a bugsplat when doing so.

Incidentally, on a slightly different note, there remains the question of the maximum size of images that can be imported into SU. OpenGL supports a max. of 2048x2048 but SU reduced this to 1024x1024 because certain Mac systems couldn't handle the larger format. Google briefly raised the limit in the Windows version during V5 but I believe it is now back at the lower one. They did supply beta testers with a reg file that will raise it to 2048x2048 on a Windows machine. I'll post it if anyone is interested.

Gaieus · 24 Feb 2008, 06:41

It would be interesting to know if a larger image is applied in Windows, would it cause problems when opened on a Mac.

matthew.robert · 26 Feb 2008, 23:26

Thanks for all the ideas everyone. Interestingly, I created a file with Mac SU that resulted in about a 700kb file size. I opened the exact same file in Windows, replaced the textures with the exact same image files, re-saved the sketchup file and the end file was 450kb! There is something weird going on in the Mac version.

mc