Helpout a newbie

Gaieus

Hi Tom and welcome to both SketchUp and the forums!

Well, let's see...

Many times when I'm trying to position elements, they automatically snap to the axis, preventing me from positioning them where I want them. I do not need this feature. Not only that, but I can't seem to get them to snap to existing elements...

Snapping (and generally inferencing) is one of the main and key features of SketchUp. All you can turn off is lenght and angle snapping (to some kind of an invisible grid) under Window > Model info > Units. Snapping to other elements (axes, geometry etzc.) cannot be turned off so the only way to "win" is to learn how to exploit these features rather than trying to fight against them.

@unknownuser said:

often automatically merges two elements, etc. Can I disable this somehow? ie. I'm trying to move an element only to notice that it's somehow connected to a previous 3d shape and is now doing really weird stuff

This can only be prevented by grouping things. In SU, everything will "merge" (this is also how we can force SU to create or modify complicated shapes when it comes to it). Even geometry on different layers affect other geometry so do not even try using layers to separate geometry (they only control visibility and only groups/components should be assigned on other than Layer 0).

So whenever you want to protect a set of geometry from merging with others, make a selection of it, right click and "Make group" OR if you are planning to re-use that set more than one instance, make a component instead. Now you can handle this set independently from other geometry.

@unknownuser said:

Also, measurements are important so is there anyway to see how far I am along the edge of a line, etc. when hovering over before making a new shape?

By default, you can see the Measurement box at the bottom right of your drawing window. Whenever you draw/move/rotate/etc. something, the values dynamically change there. By typing new values (do NOT click in there just start typing) and then hitting Enter, you can work with precise measurements, too. See a complete list of what can be entered there here:
http://sketchup.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=151558

@unknownuser said:

Finally, any tips on making blueprints?

If you mean some thimng like plan and elevation views with orthogonal output and scaled drawings, yes, you can do that. When you are at a stage, let's open another topic for that or search for "Print to scale" here or inthe SU Help Center (start from the link above).

@unknownuser said:

I'm having difficulty adding diagrams for doors/stairs/etc. and snapping new rectangles (walls) to the current design.

What do you mean by "diagrams"? As for snapping, we have touched that above; you will need to learn to exploit this feature rather than fight against it.

@unknownuser said:

It also keeps assuming I'm trying to work in 3D and ends up skewing my diagram into 3 dimensions.

Well, SU IS a 3D modelling tool. If you desperately want to stay in 2D, go to top view and draw a big rectangle to use it as a certain "drawing board". SU will always try to snap to that face thus allowing you to stay in 2D.

jim smith

@unknownuser said:

Sketchup seems like a great program..... ? Again, I'm having difficulty adding diagrams for doors/stairs/etc. and snapping new rectangles (walls) to the current design. It also keeps assuming I'm trying to work in 3D and ends up skewing my diagram into 3 dimensions.

Thanks in advance for any tips/help

Tom,

Welcome to Sketchupping and to the forum.

Keep your first thought- Sketchup IS a great program, but does have a learning curve. Evidence of the greatness and simplicity are shown in that you have just downloaded and have made that much progress in so short a time. SU has it's own personality and has a different work style than other 3D and 2D programs and many of us wrongly carry some of those habits into SU. Gaieus gave you a great short tutorial that should help ease your startup frustrations. Use the forum and tutorials as a resource with issues as they come up.

A somewhat advanced feature of SU is the "plug-ins" These little programs add tremendously to the program function. I would, however, ease into them, a few at a time since there are so many they could overwhelm you. One starter I would recommend, since you seem interested in using SU in 2D together with 3D is a group of tools called "tools on surface" which are specifically for 2D drawing. See the thread in the plug-ins section. Tools On Surface - v1.6c - 15 May 10. Good luck and keep in touch, you will find many friendly users here that will be glad to help you.

catkinsonfox

My problem is, I'd love to create separate components that I could then drag over and attach to the main component. Think the complexity of a motorcycles engine! Is it possible to do that? I have not yet tried it, having crashed and burned the first time (two years ago) I even thought of the idea . . .

Conversely, are there any 3D models of motorcycles I could borrow and modify to give me what I need: decent 6-view renderings of the basic machine -- chassis, engine, wheels/tires, etc.?

Dave R

@catkinsonfox said:

My problem is, I'd love to create separate components that I could then drag over and attach to the main component. Think the complexity of a motorcycles engine! Is it possible to do that? I have not yet tried it, having crashed and burned the first time (two years ago) I even thought of the idea . . .

Conversely, are there any 3D models of motorcycles I could borrow and modify to give me what I need: decent 6-view renderings of the basic machine -- chassis, engine, wheels/tires, etc.?

Yes. You can create separate components and attach them to the main model. You should spend some time learning the basics of SketchUp. Watch the tutorial videos on the SketchUp website as well as here and other places.

You can check out the 3D Warehouse for motorcycles or the parts. You might find what you need there.