@dave r said:

I see where you're coming from although I would think that if a file was included there wouldn't be a need to provide a link to it.

i agree with you. I am not saying this was not my fault, i am merely adding a note, so that others would not get frustrated and give up on this useful plugin. I am stubborn and would not quit till i got it to work. This was clearly me not reading between the lines. I know now, how some of these programs work.

My thought was that if i needed a new car, i would not have to go look for an engine, even if the dealer made a mention that cars needed a certain engine to work. I would have thought that was included in the price.

Again, i am not trying to be difficult. I apologize if it appears like i am. Not my intention at all.

@dave r said:

@dark phoenix said:

Chris if you are reading this, I might suggest stating that people need to grab these before installing the plug in.

Do you need more than this?
[attachment=0:38bd3kh5]<!-- ia0 -->bender.png<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment:38bd3kh5]

Clarification for those people that are VERY new to this might help them. I noticed that initially but i assumed that if it was "needed" it would have been in the zip file somewhere. I was stating that if the notation had noted that WAS NOT in the zip and that the person would have to find it, they would be able to save some frustration. It was just a suggestion. The thing to remember when dealing with new people, is that they may not share our savvy when installations are concerned. I know for me, personally, forums are new to me.

I thank Chris, yet again, for his tireless hard work.

I figured it out! I am so sorry everyone. I thought the files i was missing were in the zip files. I was wrong. Chris if you are reading this, I might suggest stating that people need to grab these before installing the plug in. I am insanely new, and knew i had to have these, but didn't know how to properly read the "error" message i was getting. I thank you for creating these, i apologize if this comes across as if i blame you (i certainly do not), I suggested the disclaimer for others to not get frustrated trying to get this program to work properly.

Thank you, and again, SU Universe, i apologize for wasting your time.

OK, I am sooooo sorry. I missed that i needed progress-bar and other things to make this work. I feel ridiculous now.I saw that they needed these items but thought they were included in the zip files.

@dave r said:

How did you miss the original thread? That's where the plugin is located for download.

I did a search for the best sketchup plugins and then linked back to the thread to get them. I have done searches in the forum areas and i normally get either "no results" or too generic results, in the end, i leave empty handed. Please do not take this as me being ungrateful. I am just trying to navigate the site.

@dave r said:

Did you go through the Shape Bender thread? Have you tried posting a screen shot of your Plugins directory so someone might be able to help? I am sure the plugin will work for you once you've installed it correctly.

I looked but most of the posts were positive "thank you's". I am trying to figure a lot of this out on my own, and not bother people too much. I don't know how to do a screen shot. I have looked at the plugin directory. the bender loader, this is the file it is telling me is not loading. this is the name, i believe. it is in the main directory and not the folder. I added a copy to the folder as well, and still no luck.

@unknownuser said:

Yopu need to decide what kind of modeling you are going to mostly do and choose your Plugins accordingly. For example. . .Organics? Artisan!
Bendy Things? Shape-Bender!
Architecture? Tons of em. . .Profile Builder. . .1001 Bit tools are 2 that I use a lot. . .and gladly paid for.
Good luck.

D

I totally agree. I have tried to get the "bendy" ones as well as ones that round edges. For some reason, can not get them to work!

I am currently trying to make chris fullmers work, but unlike most people, i have had no success. It won't load a file, that is in the plugin directory. ARGH!

@dave r said:

Why are you installing all these plugins? Just because they are there?

No, I only install the ones that i think will help me achieve things i have wanted to create. For example: I wanted to make a chain and someone showed me a plugin that would help with this. I installed it and then tried it, nothing worked.

I was hoping to create better objects, but have failed miserably.

Am i alone in being MORE confused after trying to add plugins?

I was making decent models before the plug ins (nothing spectacular) but they were working. Now i spend hours each day installing and trying to make heads or tales from the tutorials. Am i the only person digging deep into the forum threads and STILL wind up confused?

@hellnbak said:

Lenny, just a suggestion -- if you could include the subject of your post in it's title it would be helpful to others who might be searching for a solution to the same problem, rather than just a generic "help".

Very good point! probably why i was so lost myself. Will do in the future. Thanks.

@dave r said:

Go back and read through the Shape Bender thread. It has been addressed ad nauseum there.

In a nutshell the problems is either you installed it incorrectly despite what you think you did or you haven't got admin rights to install files into the Plugins directory.

lol, ok sorry for this. I must have missed the original thread. Thank you.

I tried installing chris fullmer's shape bender as the directions stated, yet i can still not use it. It won't even load in my plug ins. Does anyone know how to fix this problem? Has there been a thread explaining how to fix this (that i missed)?

@gilles said:

@unknownuser said:

Ok, I would like to know how to make "chains"..i am trying to make a lamp with a "hook" on top and that hangs the "lantern" by chains.

http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?t=23616

@unknownuser said:

Oh, and learning on how to bend a shaft to make a hook was be awesome too.

http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?t=18210

@unknownuser said:

Also, i know about the fillet feature, but is there a way to "round" a side angle? For example, if i am trying to make the sides of a mattress, i want that to be round and not at a 90 degree angle.

http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?t=20485

Have a good day.

You my friend, are now my best friend. Please do not be alarmed when i name my first child after you! Thank you. This was insanely helpful!!!!! Thank you for taking the time to answer my post!

Ok, I apologize if i ask something that has been answered somewhere else, i swear i looked all around the threads first.

Ok, I would like to know how to make "chains"..i am trying to make a lamp with a "hook" on top and that hangs the "lantern" by chains. Oh, and learning on how to bend a shaft to make a hook was be awesome too.

Also, i know about the fillet feature, but is there a way to "round" a side angle? For example, if i am trying to make the sides of a mattress, i want that to be round and not at a 90 degree angle. Anyone know how to accomplish this?

If anyone else has useful advise, please feel free to add anything that you think might help me out.

I have also watched countless tutorials and still not found this advice (I could be watching the wrong things as well).

Thanks for your time!

@hfm said:

My tip:

While selecting different kind of materials for your model to try out looks, don't forget to delete them afterward since SketchUp will remember every single material you've selected, clogging op your model's file size in the process.

Thank you! I was just adding layer after layer, not deleting the old materials. That must be why the program lagged really bad after a while.

@ross macintosh said:

Tip: Orbit, Pan & Zoom using the middle mouse button / scroll wheel.

middle mouse button to orbit
middle mouse button + shift to pan
and the scroll wheel to zoom

The tool buttons for orbiting, panning and zooming almost never need to be used.

I had been using this program for about a week, and JUST found out this tip when you mentioned it! AWESOME! Thank you!