Are you ready for SketchUp 7 news?

tomsdesk

...asked by a certain Googler if I had tried the new SU7 beta in Linux under WINE yet. When I did a double-take, he said, "Oh, wait, we haven't let that one out yet, have we?"

Bah! Humbug!

mpowell1234567890

Cool, I'm ready for Sketchup 7.

Wishlist:

Import / Export gif animated images for use in textures on a model.
The clipping / slicing bug to be fixed.
More Speed rendering, especially when the shadows are turned on, in hidden geometry mode and in textures.
Visual Basic Script functionality along with ruby.

lewiswadsworth

I did talk about scripting languages with John Bacus. I would have preferred Python to Ruby, personally. Ruby always feels oddly like a debased mark-up language to me, on a grammatical level.

That ain't going to change, it seems, though. They are very happy with the way the Ruby scripting is working out.

tbd

lewiswadsworth: any pics from AIA ? want to see how the big Podium renders came out

kwistenbiebel

@unknownuser said:

lewiswadsworth: any pics from AIA ? want to see how the big Podium renders came out

Me too

mpowell1234567890

Cool, I'm looking forward in using the new Sketchup 7. I may design a 2000 acre maze with it soon.

lewiswadsworth

Spent the morning of the last day at the AIA meeting in the exhibit hall...sorry I didn't check SCF earlier, or I would have taken a photo of the Podium booth. Your rendering looked pretty good blown up, KB. They said they had some issues with their printer, and couldn't get it as large as they would like.

lewiswadsworth

And Bryce, in the distance, added, "Yeah, and it's biodegradeable."

Ross Macintosh

Thanks for the news Lewis.

lewiswadsworth

I also spoke with Aidan for a while. He said he is enjoying the conspiracy theories expressed here.

Yes there is a SketchUp 7.0--no they haven't let it out even to beta testers yet--no they don't know when because they're still working on it but they think we will like it--yes they made some changes--no they won't say what but they do pay attention to us.

Almost forgot: yeah, there will be some big improvements (unspecified) to Layout as well.

lewiswadsworth

Other gossip I almost forgot to mention:

You may or may not remember that I teach graduate courses in 3D modeling, design, and illustration at an architecture school. I mentioned to John and Tom that my students were really enthused over Dale's subdivide and smooth tool.

They both asked, "Are tools like that really that useful to architects? Are you really that interested in curvy things?" I replied that FOG and Zaha both taught at the school where I received my degree, so any opinion I expressed was probably a little non-typical. But my students now that I am a teacher myself have constantly asked me for such capabilities, and always disparaged the rigmarole I gave them (pre-S&S)on extruding beziers and messing with the Sandbox tools. And even post-school for me, working in various firms that were not particularly cutting-edge, there had been times when I had to produce more organic forms than SketchUp could easily supply.

They were really interested in my answer. Conspiracy theory #1, anyone?

Also, John asked me if I or my students had any use for the Styles features. In all honesty, no, I told him, although I did have a few projects before Styles came out where I created something like Styles using the old edge display panel and judicious use of Photoshop. I still use a great many other NPR techniques for formal presentation and illustration work, just not edge Styles. However, my students apparently use Styles constantly, mainly to disguise the fact that they are using computers when they present work to the typical Luddite dinosaurs who have appointed themselves as design critics.

John was really, really interested in that answer. Conspiracy theory #2.

boofredlay

Thanks again for the info Lewis.

lewiswadsworth

So it seems like the Googlers are following this thread...when I said hello to John Bacus yesterday, he replied, "Oh hi Lewis...sorry you all hate us!"

--

Anyway, I was joking with him today about the "SketchUp 7 on Linux" gaffe of the day before, which I described above. I asked him if he could tell me anything about 7 that I could post at SCF.

"Tell them it has...lasers."

solo

Just goes to show how detached they are. ... sad really.

mpowell1234567890

@lewiswadsworth said:

I also spoke with Aidan for a while. He said he is enjoying the conspiracy theories expressed here.

Yes there is a SketchUp 7.0--no they haven't let it out even to beta testers yet--no they don't know when because they're still working on it but they think we will like it--yes they made some changes--no they won't say what but they do pay attention to us.

Almost forgot: yeah, there will be some big improvements (unspecified) to Layout as well.

[attachment=0:pmx03mj0]evangelist.JPG[/attachment:pmx03mj0]

Cool, hopefully it come soon. I'm planning on creating a 2000 acre maze with Sketchup 7..

solo

If John and Tom are both unconvinced that SU needs "curvy things" I guess organic tools are off the list.
Thanks to our most excellent coders we do not have to move to the beat of Googles drum.

I am very disappointed by what I have heard so far, my expectation level has shrunk to a few Layout and GE functionalities only.

There was a thread once where it was mentioned that the 'elite' in the arch-vis industry do not take SU serious .... neither does Google it seems.

kwistenbiebel

Lewis,

Your industrial espionage story is really great to read

It's encouraging to read things from the Google boys like "we are working on SU 7" and "... on things you guys will probably like".
Clearly they think of us as a tough crowd to please (they should ) so that is good to hear.

On the other hand: the quote "Do architects really have a need for that" (=about subd. and smooth) makes me wonder if they really seek feedback from architects, as I think most architects, even the less 'architectural' ones, need some form of organic modeling at times.

Anyway,
Thanks for sharing the info.

lewiswadsworth

@solo said:

There was a thread once where it was mentioned that the 'elite' in the arch-vis industry do not take SU serious .... neither does Google it seems.

I don't know...I spoke to the GC/Bentley people about getting one of the $6K parametric packages...and during our conversation, as they were extolling the advantages of their Norman Foster-approved product, without prompting they offered, "Oh, and don't forget, we can import your SketchUp models natively, and even pull things off the Google Warehouse."

Talking to ZCorp about their $40K high end machine, the manufacturer's rep pointed out, "Oh, and if you have a SketchUp model all you need is this free STL script in this language called Ruby...we can give you a link."

Solo, if you're that unhappy with the program you should just go to one of these trade shows and scold them about it, or just resolve to learn (and pay $3-10 grand for) one of the Dinosaur modelers. I actually walked out of the convention feeling much more hopeful about it all, and none of the SU clones or also-rans on display with other companies seemed worth the time I spent watching their demos.

kwistenbiebel

Maybe (hopefully?) some smaller firm (like good old @last) will make a Sketchup clone with extended functionality.

Actually, some clones (or at least ones that share some of SU's tools) do seem to appear on the market lately : Spaceclaim, 3DVIA (the Microsoft counter player of Googles SU to populate Virtual Earth...and it sucks ), 'Bonzai' from the makers of FormZ, the notorious Autodesk SU clone, etc...

But none up to today seems to succeed in making one that truely breaths Sketchup.
I say we wait a little.....If one company doesn't make it, another will.

plot-paris

thanks Lewis for the news.

a short idea about what you said about styles:

to make them much more useful (for students ) coloured faces and especially shadows should be stylized as well - to make a professor truely believe in handdrawn sketches.