SketchUp 2013 Gripes & Bitchin' ONLY ;)
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I'll slide my quiet gripe in, the start up welcome nag screen is an unfunny joke.
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@jason_maranto said:
They are so far behind the times that their development cycle is like reading a history book of how software was made 5 years ago...
The AutoCAD 12 interface was more advanced & better than the current SU2013 interface. That was about 20 years ago (pre Win95 as I was running it on Win 3.11 for Workgroups.)
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No changes (fixes?) to the Ruby API? Ok, after years of hunger we have learned to live from
nil. But if nothing has been touched then I'd expect at least no regressions.
Now if we compare: the same SketchUp with the same SketchUp, we would not prefer the one with more bugs. -
@dan rathbun said:
The AutoCAD 12 interface was more advanced & better than the current SU2013 interface. That was about 20 years ago (pre Win95 as I was running it on Win 3.11 for Workgroups.)
No doubt. SketchUp has never exactly been a sterling example of UI design -- which largely contributes to its perception as a toy. I have often wondered why Layout has had a better UI than Sketchup for 6 years... Of course neither is anything close to the best UI I have seen, but Layout is far superior.
What I meant though is that the actual functionality of most of the software has not altered since version 6 -- all that has happened is slight refinement. So using Sketchup is like climbing into a time machine and going back 5-6 years ago.
Best,
Jason. -
@jason_maranto said:
What I meant though is that the actual functionality of most of the software has not altered since version 6 -- all that has happened is slight refinement. So using Sketchup is like climbing into a time machine and going back 5-6 years ago.
Which incidentally match the point of time where Google bought SketchUp...
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@thomthom said:
Which incidentally match the point of time where Google bought SketchUp...
I see no gripe here!!! -- don't make me beat you with your own mod wand
Let me show you how it's done: SketchUp = teh Suck!
Best,
Jason. -
I think this comment of mine do not belong to this thread , but ....
hope you donĀ“t mind
I am guessing that what it really need to be as much better as it could ,
(to raise**SketchUp** further) , would be the power of Ruby .
If it is so , and we are in the hands of people who do not care about it , what future can we expect ?Up to what extent working with Ruby as what it is now , 2.013 update included , things could improve ?
What things could not ever be done ?
thanks
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@juanv.soler said:
Up to what extent working with Ruby as what it is now , 2.013 update included , things could improve ?
What things could not ever be done ?
I'm certainly not the best expert on this topic and people like Dan and ThomThom would be far more qualified than I to suggest improvements.
But here's what I think.
The single most important thing would be to open the native tools/windows/dialogs/etc. to 3rd party developers. By this I mean if somebody wanted to add a function to the Entity Info dialog, or place a tool tutorial directly into the Instructor window, or add functionality to the Push/Pull tool they could.
Obviously that would have to come with some oversight and tighter regulation -- but SketchUp/3rd party collaboration will never truly be integrated until this happens... and without that, user adoption will always be less than optimal.
Now that said, I do not expect this to ever happen... "darling" is far too in love with, and protective of, his ideals of simplicity to ever allow infidels to touch his precious.
Best,
Jason. -
I understand
Thanks Jasonbest
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I have a couple of ideas to what can be improved in the API. I've collected them in this Google Docs document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hwEivitbEwU-Lbnkia9K0HOEKlXkYrV3uVPcqeZZofw/edit?usp=sharing
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@unknownuser said:
i'm left with one single voice and that is via my bank account. i hate that i have to play that card but i feel as if i've been pushed into a corner with no other choice.
(well, no other choice with this application in particular)Unfortunately, maybe because I've always trusted my relations with SketchUp, I downloaded and paid for the upgrade before I saw what it was. I draw for a living and $95 doesn't make or break my day but I do think the symbolic aspect of this is important. I might not have upgraded had I understood the whole picture.
Some of the fanboys on the other thread who think anyone who complains is a whining toddler seem not to understand that, as a professional, you have an obligation to voice complaints if you think your business relations have taken a turn against your interests. No improvements in annotations, zooming to details, curves, or anything else I can think of as basic to one's use of SketchUp would seem to justify questioning the legitimacy of calling this an 'upgrade'.
The significant improvements that one expects in an upgrade that fundamentally alter your workflow for the better are not apparent here and I worry that it takes the pressure off other developers to attempt to hit it out of the park with future releases. SketchUp isn't a toy, it's not a private party for the fanboys - it's the program of choice for thousands of individuals and companies around the world. If an upgrade with literally no improvement to workflow is acceptable here it will likely be the standard bearer for other software companies going forward.
The justifications for this are not convincing. Most of them have to do with issues of speed and stability. But when a company buys an asset they are also buying, and responsible for, it's liabilities. The obligation to make the program as crash proof as possible was transferred from Google to Trimble when Trimble purchased SketchUp. To charge for reducing the likelihood of crashes is like a roofer charging you to fix leaks after he's charged you for the cost of a new roof.
Fortunately, there are options now that we didn't have in the past. The SketchUp influence has become widespread over the last few years. The ease of modeling in Rhino V5 would be a good example. The monopoly that AutoCAD LT has in the 2D market is no longer matched by the monopoly in 3D speed modeling that SketchUp once held. I actually hope some of these other companies pick up a few more subscribers because of this fiasco. Competition is good.
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@thomthom said:
I have a couple of ideas to what can be improved in the API. I've collected them in this Google Docs document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hwEivitbEwU-Lbnkia9K0HOEKlXkYrV3uVPcqeZZofw/edit?usp=sharing
I have read it , not to say that I have understood the language of programing .
But it seems to me that there are quite a lot of features that Masters of Ruby , could improve if the Ruby application programming interface (API), was updated .
So to make it clear to me , we do not have those possibilities because the software development team , Trimble , do not want us to have it , for whatever reasons .Thanks for telling thomthom
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@juanv.soler said:
So to make it clear to me , we do not have those possibilities because the software development team , Trimble , do not want us to have it , for whatever reasons .
It's not so much as want - it's more a case of priority of resources I expect. I doubt there are any conspiracies against us.
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@thomthom said:
It's not so much as want - it's more a case of priority of resources I expect. I doubt there are any conspiracies against us.
You are really not getting into the spirit of this thread -- you've gotta go for the throat! For instance I could take your comments and return them like this:
First off, it's not a question of "want"... it's very likely a question of can't -- as in gross incompetence in leadership ("darling") is the most likely answer.
Secondly, resource management must be extremely poor to deliver this "update" (such as it is) after nearly 3 years of development. I guess you could argue they've only had 9 months with Trimble -- but exactly what were they doing the previous 2 years between when SketchUp 8 came out and Google sold SketchUp? It just doesn't add up...
Finally, Since you can't say for certain, how do you know there are no conspiracies against us? I sense a conspiracy to have us finance the buyout of SketchUp for very little in return from Trimble... so far that particular conspiracy theory seems to be holding up to the evidence.
Best,
Jason. -
@arail1 said:
Unfortunately, maybe because I've always trusted my relations with SketchUp, I downloaded and paid for the upgrade before I saw what it was. I draw for a living and $95 doesn't make or break my day but I do think the symbolic aspect of this is important. I might not have upgraded had I understood the whole picture.
I agree with your entire post -- and I would say that it is unfortunate. However, you are not alone. And for that reason I immediately warned several friends to not upgrade as soon as I saw what SketchUp 9 contained (or didn't, as there wasn't really much there but a price tag and a new name).
I've been a bit more theatrical in my approach to protesting this "update", mostly because it is so hard to break through the "Oh, well that's just the way it is... no use in complaining." apathetic mindset that SketchUp seems to have successfully cultivated amongst a large portion of the user base.
You can call them fanboys, but I actually think of them more as battered wives -- as in battered wife syndrome. The violence in this case being the perpetration of "darling" style SketchUp development upon the users. With the end result of it somehow being our responsibility to make SketchUp better for them... and even pay extra for that "privilege". As in: "It's not "darlings" fault SketchUp 9 sucks -- I'm just demanding too much" -- or some such whiny drivel.
Best,
Jason. -
@arail1 said:
To charge for reducing the likelihood of crashes is like a roofer charging you to fix leaks after he's charged you for the cost of a new roof.
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I have to admit that I - like many others - are very dissatisfied about the way Trimble have handled this release...
I don't understand why new features a lacking (except a few in LayOut) and I certainly don't understand the completely redesigned license program...
It seem as if no-one have been listening to any of the many wishes being listed...
As a user since ver. 5, I personally feel that they don't care too much about existing customer base...
From a business perspective this is a huge mistake...!
As a mandatory rule of thumbs, companies need to listen to the customers - in particular the old users/customers, cause without customers they will soon be out of business...I'm certain Trimbel and SU is far from being ruled out of business, but as competition get stronger, they do need to listen to some of the requests and demands from the customer base, especially if they want the customer base to grow...
@jason_maranto said:
I've been a bit more theatrical in my approach to protesting this "update", mostly because it is so hard to break through the "Oh, well that's just the way it is... no use in complaining." apathetic mindset that SketchUp seems to have successfully cultivated amongst a large portion of the user base.
Just remember, overdosing on negativity isn't particularly helpful...
Having spend many years with you in this community, it's as if you're a completely different person, compared to the one I used to know...
Usually you're far smarter than this...@jason_maranto said:
You can call them fanboys, but I actually think of them more as battered wives -- as in battered wife syndrome. The violence in this case being the perpetration of "darling" style SketchUp development upon the users. With the end result of it somehow being our responsibility to make SketchUp better for them... and even pay extra for that "privilege". As in: "It's not "darlings" fault SketchUp 9 sucks -- I'm just demanding too much" -- or some such whiny drivel.
Although I'm not convinced of the advisability of actually charging for this release, I'm one of the "fanboys"...
I've ordered the upgrade, but that's simply because I use LayOut on a daily basis together with SU and since there are some great new features in LO, I decided to go for the upgrade...
However, I can assure you that I will soon start a list with wishes for new features as well as a list of all the bugs that still haven't been ironed...It's my understanding that Trimble are leaders in the area of construction thus let's see where this leads...
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@frederik said:
Just remember, overdosing on negativity isn't particularly helpful...
Having spend many years with you in this community, it's as if you're a completely different person, compared to the one I used to know...
Usually you're far smarter than this...Being negative is not usually my thing. I much prefer being helpful and building up, rather than tearing down. However, I've already tried making my voice heard via friendly participation in the last rounds of voting and wish-listing, as well as discussions here and elsewhere. Now I've tried being a (hopefully somewhat entertaining) pain in the butt... with the pure intention of getting attention for my issues with how things are being run.
But no matter the approach, I've always tried to participate in good faith. As other people have intimated, if I wasn't here at all then you would know how I really feel. There is some small hope left in me for SketchUp... but I'm certainly going to have to be convinced that things are different before coming back into the fold.
This gripefest only has a limited time window of opportunity -- after all they should be setting up for SketchUp 10 in twelve months... and I'd like to be able to recommend the next update.
Whatever the outcome, I can at least say I gave my best effort towards making my concerns heard, and I tried everything I could think of.
As a side note -- there was another software package I used (and taught) for a very long time, that was going down the tubes for several consecutive versions -- and I thought for sure it was done for good. But they brought on all new blood in the development dept, and started paying more attention to the user feedback, and today I am happy to say it is a totally worthwhile software once more. The same could happen with SketchUp...
Best,
Jason. -
Introducing SketchUp 2013
Wednesday, May 22, 2013 9:35 AM
http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/With regard to the above, by John Bacus, I was a little perplexed on reading some of what has been stated, particularly in relation to Trimble SketchUp's 'take' on plugins (pun intended
)I'll try to explain my reasoning.
Quote:JB
.*........ we focused on two things: building an ecosystem that makes it easier for millions of SketchUp modelers to find and use the plugins and extensions they need, .........Extension Warehouse: A smarter approach to SketchUp plugins
Over the years, our beloved plugin developersāthe folks who use our Ruby scripting tools to build add-ons for SketchUpāhave created some truly amazing features. Historically, these extensions have been crazy useful, laughably affordable, and (for the most part) incredibly difficult to find. No more.
For 2013, we built a repository of extensionsāan Extension Warehouse, in our parlanceāthat provides a one-stop shop for anyone looking to customize their copy of SketchUp. This one new feature is actually dozens (eventually hundreds) of new features, all ready and waiting for you to discover. Using the Extension Warehouse to find, install and update plugins is a simple operation. And best of all, it all happens right inside SketchUp.
When you visit the Extension Warehouse, youāll notice itās every bit a modern app store: most-popular lists, user reviews, download statistics, introductory videos and more. Clicking a pluginās āInstallā button takes care of just about everything that used to make Ruby scripts so cumbersome to use. No more digging around for your plugins directory. No more unpacking files and folders into precise locations in your file system. No more wondering why this canāt all be easier. Because now it is.
LayOut in SketchUp Pro 2013: More tools for turning your models into drawings.*
End Quote.Regardless of whether or not I regard SU Make and Pro 2013 a significant step forward, I do find this announcement of achievements not accurate or at the very least misguided from a business perspective.
I thing that there may have been an 'aim' rather than 'focus' in relation to making life easier for SU users when it came to locating and loading 3rd party plugins, particularly the utility type plugins that have been incubated and hosted here on SketchUcation.
I find this particular comment very unsavory from SketchUcation's point of view! ..... 'Historically, these extensions have been crazy useful, laughably affordable, and (for the most part) incredibly difficult to find. No more'.
The plugins hosted on SketchUcation have never 'been difficult to find' once the seeker knew where to look! All that was required by Google and over the past year, Trimble SketchUp, to make life easier for SU Users in this regard was to predominantly link to SketchUcation. Efforts in this regard were sadly virtually non existent, As to why this was not done, when we now see descriptions like, 'our beloved plugin developers', being used, I fail to understand. If these developers where 'beloved', why were they not promoted over the past year and the previous 6 years?
As far as this being the situation 'no more', I don't see this in the launched SU 2013 applications! There obviously has been resistance from many of the prime ruby developers that regard SketchUcation as the 'home' of SketchUp Ruby development. The number of plugins showing on the Extension Warehouse, to me, would be an embarrassment at a little over 100 plugins when there is far in access of 600+ such plugins on the SketchUcation Plugin Store!, which, I would add is not being allowed into the Extension Warehouse!
Sensibly allowing the SketchUcation Plugin Store into the Extension Warehouse would at least immediately bring an additional 500 or so plugins the the 'millions' of SU users that TSU now wish to make life easier for when it comes to plugins!
More proper business planning and co-operation with 3rd parties should have been exercised prior to launch of Make and SU Pro 2013 because there now appears to be situation whereby SketchUp v8 could well be regarded, with SketchUcation's Plugin Store, to be quite satisfactory for requirements ...... and this is not the ideal situation for anyone wishing to see SketchUp progress to what it should be, hopefully at some future date.
Mike
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@mike said:
situation whereby SketchUp v8 could well be regarded, with SketcHucation's Plugin Shop, to be quite satisfactory for requirements
And as for my recent experiences, SU8 has less Ruby bugs and the exactly same Ruby API features. Thus the superior platform for running plugins (if we leave the huge performance optimizations aside).
@unknownuser said:
This one new feature is actually dozens (eventually hundreds) of new features
What impresses me is this fatal dependency. They depend on us and we depend on them: We are strong in working with the API, we are able to create almost thousand plugins, but are unable to push the core of the platform forward or fork it.
We simply lack experience in the core technologies, native code, graphics pipeline and OpenGL stuff.
Calling SketchUp a platform is tough, it neither supports more than two OS (don't mention mobile) nor a near bug-free API. As an open core platform and written from scratch with modern technologies, SketchUp could give its users freedoms that other opensource software has: hardware and OS support spanning from ARM to x86 64bit, with a transparent roadmap and progress that we can influence. But it would require more expertise, a common goal and leadership that simply is hard to achieve in a heterogenous community of free time programmers vs. a proprietary company.
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