ViewportBuster - my first SketchUp Plugin
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Hi all
Yesterday I actually managed to release my very first SketchUp plugin
"ViewportBuster".
Eventually it became what I wanted, what I needed and what I was able to achieve at all
it passed the guidelines of the SketchUp Extension Store and especially I am happy to share my tool as one possible PNG-exporting solution with this community, especially because my previous used plugin solution came from this place here!https://sketchucation.com/plugin/2902-viewportbuster
ViewportBuster is available as a free plugin.The target group for this Plugin are those who rely, like me, on a cross-team but nevertheless synchronised image data export out from native SketchUp.
ViewportBuster is the small PNG exporter tool that can support all those across workplaces of different people and their individual UI setups and the correspondingly always different viewports to ensure an always predictable and consistent identical PNG export result which can even be automated to a certain extent by using individually editable presets.
Such a standardisation and synchronisation of export image data can be advantageous for everyone, but especially for those who work in larger teams and feed their image data into any downstream and equally automated production process. This could be pre-configured layout tools (e.g. InDesign) or web applications etc...
(I have released ViewportBuster for Windows versions only - simply for lack of any Mac test environment)
For me this was a pretty long, exhausting but also interesting and inspiring journey and I have not only learned a lot but above all had a lot of fun!
never trust a skinny cook
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why not add it here too?
Download the free D'oh Book for SketchUp 📖
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@Rich-O-Brien
because I don't know how to do it -
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sorry, I have really no idea what or how to do there. Just saw this page for the first time
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Give it a name aka Plugin Identifier in this instance ViewportBuster
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@HornOxx Congratulations on your plugin, I wanted to ask you something though. I have a widescreen monitor and I would like to understand if I can capture the images I see on the monitor, but when I try to increase the length of the capture, it still doesn't go beyond 16:9. Is there a solution? That would be even more fantastic.! Sketchup 2025
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...Hi alexpacio2013 and thanks for the congratulations.
Yes, of course, there is a solution, and obviously I didn't make that clear enough
No one has to work with my default settings; you can set your own prefered Preset-settings as you like.
I assume you exported the image using one of my preset settings, all of which are actually in HD aspect ratio These are the settings I always prefer.
Now I've imitated your viewport proportions. Let's say you have approx. 2100px x 730px (you can see this when you use SkUp's native exporter).
You can now use these aspect-ratio-values from your given viewport in my plugin, for example as Preset 1 and Preset 2, and also save them so that they remain as consistent exortsettings for you.
And just to check – ViewportBuster exports Preset 2 exactly as it should and even with the correct automated PNG naming :
I hope I have understood your question correctly and that my answer is helpful to you.Best
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@HornOxx "I can't do it, look, I tried to put in module 4 the total dimensions of the monitor which are the same ones also reported by V-Ray, but it keeps saving in 16:9 format."
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@alexpacio2013
Hi
I am sorry to hear that you are having difficulties using the plugin.
I am still unable to reproduce your issue – please see the screenshot of my retest with your values. The Viewportbuster is doing exactly what it should.
Let's check whether Viewportbuster is saving your desired values correctly. In the plugin directory of your SketchUp, you will find this TXT file (screenshot). This TXT file saves your desired ViewportBuster-settings and actuality your txt file must also display these values now.
Please check whether your TXT file looks like the one in my screenshot.
I'm sure we'll figure out what the problem is!(A silly question from me – why are you trying to export your randomly given viewport size of 5189 x 1750? Imagine you change your SkUp setting with any new plugin toolbars. The result would be that your viewport would change again and again and you would then export any different image ratio than today. - The purpose of the ViewportBuster plugin is to overcome these random factors and to replace them with your desired ‘standard’ values that remain constant, so to speak)
Best
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@HornOxx Thank you, you've been extremely helpful. I practically discovered that if I don't save the parameters, even if I go and change them manually and then export the image, it doesn't save the image with the correct parameters. If I save the parameters instead, it works. Anyway, I want to compliment you again because the utility is small but very, very useful, at least for me.
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@alexpacio2013 thanks for the nice compliment!
Yes, saving your own needed presets for having them available further on is the essential benefit from this tool
and was my intention for making this tool (in a much easier version) about a year ago.
By the way, having easy access to standardized export settings is an underestimated point because it makes live so much easier in any downstream workflow such as layouting or so. And you don't have to care about your own sketchup setup anymore. You or even anyone else will be able now to reproduce your own absolute identical export results again and again any time you want.Best, and I'm glad that everything is going well now.
Ps: don't forget to setup AND SAVE your remaining 7 possible presets
Hitting the Save button saves ALL your done settings, not only W x H.
When you close sketchup and reopen it any time later, your ViewportBuster will then open with YOUR own presets...
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