Revision control
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Hi,
What package / workflow do Sketchup designers use for revision control? Sure, there are "big iron" solutions such as Alien Brain for backing up, versioning and generally looking after art assets. But I always found them pretty clunky - particularly compared the tools we use for software revision control (such as Subversion, Git, Perforce) which allows you to quickly move back and forth in time to narrow down to a particular revision (that you liked, had bugs, customer wants, whatever).
I've been saved so many times by being able to roll back to a previous version.
But with .skp files, I find myself doing scummy stuff like making Copy 1, Copy 2, Copy 3 etc.
Any top tips / recommendations from the power users out there?
Adam
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I use the archiver plugin whenever I'm about to change something big. It makes a copy of the current file and puts it in a seperate directory with a timestamp in the filename. Great for rolling back to previous versions.
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I use Mercurial, via TortoiseHg with remote repositories on BitBucket.
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@adamb said:
But with .skp files, I find myself doing scummy stuff like making Copy 1, Copy 2, Copy 3 etc.
OOps..! Didn't finish reading the last important sentence...
For .skp files I usually have an Archive folder in the same folder as my model. Ideally there is only one .skp in the root of the project folder which is the current. I then save a copy in the Archive model when I start a new iteration or alternative. Prefix the original model name with the date and possibly prefix it with a couple of keywords describing it.
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(We also have a backup system that let us go back a couple of weeks, restoring a file as it where at the end of each workday.)
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@thomthom said:
@adamb said:
But with .skp files, I find myself doing scummy stuff like making Copy 1, Copy 2, Copy 3 etc.
OOps..! Didn't finish reading the last important sentence...
For .skp files I usually have an Archive folder in the same folder as my model. Ideally there is only one .skp in the root of the project folder which is the current. I then save a copy in the Archive model when I start a new iteration or alternative. Prefix the original model name with the date and possibly prefix it with a couple of keywords describing it.
That's what my 'Archiver' tool does... -
Please allow me to demonstrate my ignorance --
I apparently don't understand the question. What's the difference between what you guys are saying and just saving copies of your model (with maybe a few words added to the title to help describe why you saved it) whenever you are going to make some changes to it (in addition to the 5 minute autosave feature)? Try as I might I can't figure out the difference.
Of course I'm not a "power user", but then again I might be because I also don't know what defines a "power user"
This is probably one of those questions that's going to embarass me
, but you never know 'till you ask, right? -
It's having the ability to roll back to an earlier version of your model.
So 'Roadster_1' is opened
Changes are made and it's saved as 'Roadster_1_1'
After multiple changes you may end up at 'Roadster_1_7'
But on review you need to see 'Roadster_1_3' and modify this version
This could be saved as 'Roadster_1_3_1' and so the family of models grows to reflect each modelling session/milestone
It needs a Zen like approach to begin. But imagine starting a project and saving after 5min as 'Hellnbak' then modelling and autosave is your only backup. It's not allowing to rollback to a certain stage in the process. It only allows a rollback to the latest autosave or manual save.
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Since SketchUp is not a parametric modeller, saving snapshots is the only way to get back to specific version of a model.
A simple approach using a plugin - such as prompting the user for a few notes and saving the file; combined with a history browser that displays the notes and thumbnail might be enough for most users.
Possibly introduce the idea of branching (the concept borrowed from software version control systems)
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