I need to get this off my chest

pbacot

Thanks Kris. Just want to express my appreciation for everyone involved in this forum. Not only has it been a great way to learn the application and solve the everyday challenges of design production and business, it's been a decent place to check in on the general web conversation, and get to know people from around the world. Thanks guys.

And I'd feel just as diminished if productive and helpful people like Rob and Dan want to spend less time here, so I hope it's not all that bad... Enjoy "seeing" you around and reading your posts.

Aloha! Peter

db11

@krisidious said:

There is a tremendous amount of free labor going on around here and I find it ironic that labels like greed are tossed around. Rich, Tig, Dave, Box not to mention many others are constantly in the forums answering the same questions they've answered a million times all while working on projects and plugins to better the whole community.

Couldn't agree more. Always impresses me the ongoing willingness and generosity of the folks you mentioned (and others) to offer their time and experience to help strangers resolve their SketchUp issues — even when they've answered similar questions hundreds of times before. They are the glue that holds this community together and I can understand if any of them takes umbrage at offensiveness of the OP.

I don't qualify as an 'old faithful' here, having only joined in 2010 (and not been a particularly active member), so maybe I don't rate an opinion on this matter.

But I first started with 3D modelling with Virtus Walkthrough on a Powerbook 100 too many years ago to remember and was an early adopter of SU back in the @Last days. I've lurked on these forums (and their predecessor) since they started and I don't need to be one of the boys to know a dick move when I see one.

I suspect that Rob will come to seriously regret ever pressing send after drafting his late night rant. It's one thing to embarrass yourself over a mistaken opinion or an overly-thin skin: it's a whole other thing to attack people's efforts and intentions with the vehemence and general wrongness he did. Not the best marketing strategy for his book promotion it would seem.

Rich O Brien

@kris, pbacot and db11

Thanks for that.

Box

An excellent post Kris but I have to disagree with you on one point.
@krisidious said:

I see Rob's apology and accept it without reservation...

In my opinion he only made a qualified apology before taking his bat, ball, avatar and sig and stomping off to play with the cool kids.
But maybe that's just how I read it. Perhaps they have ball caps over there.

The whole thing is so childish it would be funny if it wasn't so offensive.

Rich O Brien

let's not get too caught on a simple misunderstanding.

people are free too express whatever opinion they wish here we don't police opinions.

people may not agree with it and they can either ignore it or raise an issue. any thread can be reported to mods/admins by anyone.

BTW...

Rob still wrote a good book that is of interest to SketchUp users. I, for one, highly recommend it if your interest is in ArchViz. He also mentions SketchUcation community in it so kudos for that!

He also gave members here a discount at the time of 20% so I thank him for that. And if he ever needs to spread the word in future we'll help out as best we can.

But can we at least now get back to business?

I still need modeling ideas for competition...

We got SpaceMouse devices, licences for software, and whatever else we can grab from those willing to supply...

Mike Amos

I have had problems with the program and after quite a while of banging my head on the wall decided to leave the forum and forget sketchup like a bad dream. It must have come across to those here like I was blaming them for the inadequacies of the program and they might have a point, even if it was a subconscious thing.

When I came back with a new start, I still had the same email address so the moderator's and management team will have known who I was and could have just blackballed me there and then, but they did not. I had a short spat with one of the folk here simply because he said something that made me FEEL stupid and looking back, it was a storm in a teacup but I apologised for my over reaction and no more has been said. Not exactly a fan of the look but you know what? Not something to get stressed about because the point of the forum still gets across. I also spent a lot of time not being able to organise finances to become a premium member but did not get given a second class member feeling and now I have got things organised am happy to contribute to the bottom line because these forums are not easy or cheap to run on the scale sketchucation has grown into.

I am not exactly at ease with emoticons so I have to just say what I mean and hope the intention of the words gets across. This place is run and populated by some of the finest people anyone could hope to meet, they share their time and experience to the betterment of others and as a Trekkie I cannot think of anything else that gives an example of where the human species can go to improve us ALL. So, I am sorry for my failures and I give my word that I will TRY to remember this whenever I post/reply.

Thanks sketchucation, made my world a much better place to be.

Mike Amos

Competition, I have recently begun to research/model the home I was born into. A part of the Falcon park estate designed by Alfred Heaver and built between 1880 and 1886 the houses are terraced and based on the footprint of the original c1700's mill workers homes with the same back to back layout based on the house and open sewage runs. No wonder roses grow so well there now. Perhaps a competition to showcase the first home we remember or were born into. Perhaps a little history like having to take a kettle of boiling water to the outside toilet because the toilet was frozen solid. Stuff of childhood. Just a thought.

otb designworks

I, too, have been here since before the Google acquisition. In fact, I believe Kris, Coen and I had a short live video conference on maybe day 2 of this forum starting to be our answer to the loss of the @last forums. And, believe me, the sense of loss when that forum was shut down was tangible and gutting.

I love this place; it is one of the friendliest, supportive, helpful, and informative sites I frequent and I appreciate the heck out of everyone who has contributed to making this our new Sketchup home. I give exactly zero f&^*s what it looks like. There are great people here and that is the important thing. And the negative Nancys can pretty much pound sand as far as I'm concerned

pbacot

I like the home for the Holidays idea that Mike mentions, going back to our first memories. An idea I had when Rich asked was "unity" where scenes might highlight different traditions sharing the holiday time, or people connecting and helping or simply appreciating each other.

Dan Rathbun

I will NOT apologize! I have a right to my own opinion!

Rich demanded to know, so I told him.

If you do not want to know... don't demand the details, or don't read the replies.

FYI.. I loved the old skin.

Some of you are acting like zealots at the alter of the Church of SketchUcation. It's just a website!

Box

How about a 3D pop up Christmas card, gives a nice basic theme for everyone to follow with room to model anything you want.

d12dozr

@dan rathbun said:

...It's just a website!

Dan...with all due respect, that statement really belittles the many hours of effort many folks have put into Sketchucation. I like to think of it as a community- a community that volunteered donations for you when you had a rough time. What other 'just a website' would do that for you?

I do think the padlock icons are misleading, now that I see them. The way I browse the forum, using a bookmarked link to "New posts", I never even noticed them before.

Krisidious

No one said you weren't entitled to your opinion... I just said you don't have to be an ass about it. And as for zealots... Someone would have to be fairly addicted to the site to have almost 5000 posts huh? But you wouldn't be here that much huh? You haven't spent hundreds and hundreds of hours here have you? If you don't like the church then why do you spend so much time in the pews? I guess it's not just a website huh? I do preach from the pulpit of SCF... I tell everyone I talk about sketchup to about it. It's the place to go to learn this software. No where else even compares... And if someone asked my advice as to where to learn sketchup I would be lying and misleading them if I sent them anywhere else.

Yeah... The old site was super kool and sooo innovative.

Rich O Brien

@box said:

How about a 3D pop up Christmas card, gives a nice basic theme for everyone to follow with room to model anything you want.

I think Xmas as a theme gives more scope for a wider range of entries.

I really should start a dedicated thread about it.

jeff hammond

didn't realize the thread was going to go this direction but I do have some opinions as well.
rich smells kinda funny and mike needs to dress a bit more modern.

Mike Amos

How do you know without an avatar? Mind you I sort of agree but 500 T shirts for a fiver sounded too good to miss, pity they were for action man but what the heck.......

Rich O Brien

@jeff

That's the smell of success.

Mike Lucey

@jeff hammond said:

didn't realize the thread was going to go this direction but I do have some opinions as well.
rich smells kinda funny and mike needs to dress a bit more modern.

And what wrong with the way I dress? Here is me in lumberjack country,

Lumberjack Country.jpg