New Trimble Sketchup Having trouble in Libfredo

benedictloyola

im using the latest version of sketchup the trimble..i have the 32 bit system and windows 7 os
what should i do? with it Ma'am/Sir

it shows that

Cannot load plugin Libfredo6 because the script cannot create
DEFPARAM_Dir folder in:
C:/Program Files/Google/Google SketchUp8/Plugins

Please create it manually, respecting the case.

what should i do..i use the latest version of libfredo too....

cotty

It seems that you have not the required rights in your program folder, change them and it will work...

Dave R

Carsten has it right. You need to set the permssions (administrative rights) for the Plugins folder so that you have full access to it.

Box

This does raise a question that I'm unable to check as I'm not near my PC.

Does the new version, Trimble Version, use a different file structure that could cause problems for plugins looking for the plugin folder? ie: C:/Program Files/Trimble/Trimble SketchUp8/Plugins

TIG

No.
The file/folder structure remains unchanged from the previous Google versions - it's identical.
I'd anticipate that Trimble will introduce a folder change with their next major update [v2013].

A lot of users get caught out, especially when they get a new PC or OS.
Being an Admin is insufficient to ensure that things work correctly.
Windows protects you from yourself - especially when you are messing with the 'Program Files' folder or other potentially sensitive System stuff.

If the Plugins folder does not have FULL security permissions for you [all] - checked/changed by selecting its icon and using the context-menu Properties > Security > Edit - then you might not have successfully installed files or subfolders of files into Plugins - although it looks like it... A 'Compatibility Files...' button/link added to the folder's top Window-Explorer bar is a give-away ! They are actually in a 'VirtualStore' - Windows likes to mess with you sanity... Even if you have managed to wedge the files etc into Plugins some tools will fail because they need to write log or data files into the folder or subfolder, and in this case on a first run actually make a subfolder to take such things. With limited security permissions these will fail.

So fix permissions to your Plugins folder to be FULL - AND ensure they trickle down to all contents [files/subfolders].

Incidentally, from time to time you may want to change the contents of the Materials, Components and Styles folders... so these should have FULL permissions too...

Box

Thanks for the clarification on that Tig, but am I right in thinking that if Trimble do change things in a new version it will cause problems for users and developers alike?
I can see people like yourself and other current developers would release updates to suit, but I imagine older plugins whose authors may not be following things could get lost in translation.
I know it's all "what ifs" but I guess it helps to be aware.

TIG

There might be changes to the API with future versions... but as long as these follow past practice and add to it, and do not change preexisting methods then these shouldn't be an issue...

Changes to the shipped Ruby version [longed for!] might affect some existing code in subtle ways - we await news on all of this...

Changing the 'folder structure' should only mess up very poorly written code.

Most scripts that are 'loaders' will by now use File.dirname(__FILE__) to 'discover' where they are, and look for their related subfolders/files etc 'relative' to their known location; so if a new version has a different Plugins folder location from which Sketchup auto-loads, then everything should still work - provided that the relative files/subfolders relationships are retained.

If a script's guidance says, 'Put this .rb file into the Plugins folder' or 'Extract the ZIP files contents into the Plugins folder...', then it will still work in any changed path arrangements...
There is also a growing trend to use RBZ format archives for installations of all script types, these will automatically 'extract' into the correct Plugins folder for that Sketchup version...

The only potential confusion will be in older threads that advise on the correct Plugins folder to be used. However, these paths include the SketchUp version in the folder names, so the newer version's ones containing 'Trimble' and '2013' in the paths, will be advised and published in time; and they shouldn't be confusing to a user with a few brain-cells - although some members do manage to mis-install files with surprising alacrity

Box

Thanks Tig, a full, clear and concise answer as always. The last line being the clearest.

Thanks again, thread hijack over now.