@gaieus said:

Do you still have the model in GE? It should be in "your places" in the sidebar. If so, you can right click > "Save place as..." and give it a location you can easily find. With the latest version of SU you can even import it and re-save as an skp file.

Otherwise that *.dae file is the 3D model (in Collada format). KMZ files are actually ZIP files so if you rename the extension to ZIP, you can open it and put anything you want inside - then just rename it back to KMZ.

Thanks for the tip. I opened my kmz as a zip file and found the dae and the textures seem to be there. (When the kmz is imported into sketchup it will display the lines but not the textures.)

I've shared the kmz with two other people who say the models don't appear in google earth. When I download the file everything seems to display. Here is the KMZ http://www.thumbpower.net/kmz/Pentwater/Pentwater%20wind%20farm2.kmz

If you download and display in google earth you'll be looking at a 100 square mile polygon in Lake Michigan that defines a proposed offshore wind farm. There should be 200 450' tall wind turbines in that area. It's necessary to zoom in close before the turbines come into view-- assuming they are there. Also in the kmz file are some map overlays that should be turned off. Here is a screen shot of the sun setting over the lake, behind the wind farm. http://www.thumbpower.net/kmz/Pentwater/Silver%20Lake%20Dunes%20July%20sunset.jpg

Thanks again for any assistance.

Charlie

I placed a model from sketchup into google earth then lost the skp file with the model. The model used by the kmz file is apparently located in /files/untitled.dae. Is there a way I can retrieve that file? I can't find a location in windows file structure corresponding to that path.

The broader issue is I'm trying to share the kmz plus the 3D model. Is there a way to embed the model in the kmz so when I email the kmz the model is included? So far it appears a kmz file can contain 2D items like placemarks and photo overlays but perhaps the 3D models have to be served from a network location or google warehouse? I haven't been able to find clear documentation about the relationship between kmz files and 3D models. In a perfect world I would bundle everything in the kmz file. What am I missing here?

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Charlie

Thanks for taking an interest.

This morning I laid out a small wind farm called High Praire, with 67 turbines, in Minnesota. I'm not sure if it's been built yet. The turbines were placed by overlaying the site map from the site application form.

Here is the skp file.
http://www.thumbpower.net/kmz/High%20Praire%20Turbines%20in%20place.skp 7MB

Here is the KMZ file created by using "Place" into GE, then saving to kmz in GE. http://www.thumbpower.net/kmz/High%20Praire%20Wind%20Farm%20placed%20and%20saved%20in%20GE.kmz 3.78 MB

Here is the KMZ file created with the export function of sketchup.
http://www.thumbpower.net/kmz/High%20Praire%20Turbines%20in%20place.kmz 11.9 MB

The KMZ file created by sketchup is big, slow to load, and choppy to navigate. It's only virtue is all the models are clamped to the earth. The KMZ file created by GE is smaller, and navigates much better, but as the models get farther from the origin they float higher off the ground. To see that in this model, which only stretches about 10 miles you have to navigate close to a tower and look from ground level.

Trying to save the kmz created by sketchup from GE causes GE to crash in the attempt.

Why does sketchup create a more complicated larger KMZ than google earth? Shouldn't they both create the same size KMZ? Every turbine is identical and has the identical orientation so the KMZ file only needs to be the geometry of one turbine plus the 67 locations where they will be placed. It should be a reletively small kmz. The size of both KMZ files suggests the model is being saved multple times.

Thanks again for taking an interest

Charlie

I'm trying to model very large wind farms that have been proposed for my area in Michigan. This means putting hundreds of wind turbines over dozens of square miles, a reletively easy job to do in Sketchup but...

If the models are put in Google Earth via the Sketchup "Place" function they export fast, navigation is reletively smooth and the kmz created by google earth is small--BUT the turbines float in the air and google earth clamping option, under properties, doesn't help.

If the model is exported directly from sketchup to a kmz file the file size is huge, the navigation is slow and often the export to kmz simply doesn't work, but the models are all clamped to the earth.

Does anyone here know how to get the good navigation and small file size by exporting via the Place function and have all the models clamped to the surface as they are when the kmz is created by the export function in sketchup?

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Charlie

P.S. Here are some screen captures of what i'm trying to do. When there is good navigation with all the windmills clamped to the earth I'll make kmz files available to the local community so they can explore and see what is coming.
http://www.thumbpower.net/wind%20farm%20resort.htm