Hi All
For some time I tried to model a chain. I always added one chain link to the other by hand and it soon exceeded my skills, adjusting all the chain links correctly and with a good randomly look.
So I started playing with Sketchy Physics. A good video tutorial on YouTube helped me. Very quickly I found the desired arrangement of the chain links. But instead of working with the in this video-tutorial recommended groups, I used components. So I was able to replace the used simple basic geometry by a little more complex and already textured chain link geometry.
There is still a hurdle, for which I have not found a solution yet: How do I freeze a finished Sketchy Physics-state? Once Sketchy Physics has finished it´s work, I could not edit my chain links, because the entire arrangement jumped back to the starting position, as soon as I used the selection tool.
I run Sketchy Physics on a Skup 8 free version. I chose everything and copied it into my SkUp 13 Pro version, on which Sketchy Physics is not installed - This (workaround-)method worked fine and that´s the result

If you're interested, here you can find the model:
https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model.html?id=u68f43da3-19e7-4688-a53a-69700039bd70

@kaas said:

I think I may have found a solution (at least for the problem I experienced):

disable 'redefine thumbnail on save' in 'model info - file'.
Saving is instantly again in any display mode.

greetings

Great!!! Thank You !

if anyone understands dealing with wood materials here, that's you Cotty !!!

again a successful exercise - I am looking forward to your next one!

Hi Oli
Today I have seen your excellent example - a great and very accurate work and thank you for showing your "Making Of". The location of your building is great (the building itself as well of course!). This Medieval bridge (?) must be a great view for users of your building.
Since this surrounding is so interesting, it is not only correct but even necessary to use Photo Match here!

Since I've done a similar Making Of example a few days ago, I think your thread might be a good place for adding it here and I hope that´s ok? (In my case I used Shaderlight for rendering but the working principle is the same as using Twilight or Podium etc.)

Using a simple dummy scene, the attached pictures will show the steps which are necessary to make a simple interior exhibition simulation by using SketchUps “Photo Match”.
An added bonus of this example is, that the exhibition design should be reflected in the glossy reflecting floor of the exhibition hall.
For the result shown here, I have only used SketchUp and Shaderlight, no postprocessing in Photoshop - but only because this scenario was so simple of course.
I hope this Photo Match mini-tutorial is useful as well ...

![Adding and "Photo Match"-Texturing of a Floor segment](/uploads/imported_attachments/tMkv_02.jpg "Adding and "Photo Match"-Texturing of a Floor segment")

@pbacot said:

Hornoxx to quote another post, hit the " " " quotation mark icon in the upper right of that post. It will place the post text and pictures in that format into your reply window.

pbacot - thank you !
(please don´t tell it anyone)

Hi Tig and Hi Gaieus,
meanwhile I try to switch my SkUp-working style to the "Layer 0" method and yes, absolute beginners will certainly use this method.
Other users (like me and certainly all of you) who have a long-standing CAD background will understand why I have given this (wrong) advice above. For example, not only for AutoCAD or Revit the "Layer 0" discussions fill hundreds of webpages as you can imagine

Luckily the layer visibility per scene worked well so far over years and luckily there was no disaster or confusion so far. I still do not know why but fortune favors fools! Anyway, I am now getting used to the here recommended method. I have already even changed my origin template

I would like to follow and learn your "Explode Group to Layers" advice (thanks for that), but unfortunately I do not understand how to do it - I do not have any experience working with the Console - unfortunately. Maybe you or another member here might post a screenshot on this method? Or maybe someone can recommend any YouTube video tutorial on this topic or maybe there is already a thread on this topic here? Any help to learn that would be great!

Finally I have a very stupid question: how do you (all) do these screenshots here to show content of any other posts on which you refer in your own answer, as Gaieus has done it above? - I am really embarrassed to ask that

Hi, Thank you (Both) for this interesting contribution!
I export almost daily SkUp material to Adobe CS, especially Adobe Illustrator.
Although I am not a PDF expert, I would like to add one little piece of "Learning by Doing"-advice:
If I export a PDF out of SketchUp, the window (below) appears. I will always provide to adjust the maximum possible export size here in order to avoid that line- or polygon segments get below the fixed SkUp-Size Tolerance.
The bigger the better

@ Pete: I would be interested, if your export will work better, if you resize your model up 10 times or 100 times before exporting? (just for a testing)

@ Dave: Thank you! - I never thought about the Open GL settings in this context

A masterpiece !! - Your modeling, renderwork and also the chair itself

Hi Tig, Cotty, David ...

Sorry and thanks a lot for your Comments!
I do not want to confuse anyone - certainly not beginners

Obviously, my workflow is too much influenced by other less flexible CAD tools, which I've used for many years...

Dear beginners, as you can see, there is always something to learn

Hi, here are my German proposals
This type of facade is called "Pfosten Riegel Fassade" here.
The elements which are not transparent, are called:
Blindelement (for google search: Fassaden Blindelement)
Blind Paneel (for google search: Fassaden Blind Paneel)
Füllung (for google search: Fassaden Füllung)

I hope I have understood your question correctly

Hi David

"...I dunno. I use layer 0 exclusively for drawing..."

Why I recommend to avoid Layer 0? When I download (for example) a 3D-tree component from the warehouse, this is (mostly) drawn on Layer 0. Of course, I can assign this component to another layer "Tree". But the "content" of that component - often many subcomponents and subgroups - still remains on Layer 0. Within SketchUp that's usually not a problem, but if you often export to other CAD software, this layer-, component-, and group assignment often gets lost. So I'm always happy when a model avoids Layer 0 in principle - as well as in other CADs ...
So my SketchUp-template even starts with the active layer 1, extended by the layers "010 Walls", "020 Windows" etc ... (some standards, which I always need) and Layer 0 is always inactive and never visible...

I like that "out of SketchUp look" very much!
One criticism: Where are your soundsamples ?!?

CaplsLock Goodbye

many of you know, how annoying it can be if you give any numerical input, but only nonsense appears in the VCB, because the CaplsLock key is pressed by mistake.
With CaplsLock Goodbye (Freeware), you can disable this key with ease without getting lost in the deep Windows menu space. You can also change the settings for some other Win-standard keys, which I have not done, nor recommend.
All changes can be made undone with one click also.
CaplsLock Goodbye is just an EXE-file, which does not have to be installed.

http://www.melk.de/melk_software.htm

Hi Mike
What a view out of the window!!! - If this is your office, I am really very envious!

Since the background image is a nighttime picture, it would be good if you could reduce your global illumination for a lower and less uniform lighting and add some spotlights for example. Also the monitor screen could be used as a light source, in order to emphasize your "Deadlines and a cup of coffee" concept, which is a good setting idea! A nightly light mood would support this idea even better...

PS: the aircraft on the left picture is the DO X - a childhood memory, this thing I have glued together as a kit from Revell lightyears ago

next playing around and having fun:
if you make a model, never use Layer 0 !!!

Hi Todd,
certainly this bug is not normal and unfortunately I have no idea why this happened.
For sure you know that you can save your shortcut settings by exporting them for importing
them later again in case of a crash like yours for example or for sharing them with other users?

Regards

@ baz :
...not necessarily pedantic - but very philosophical in any case

Hi Cotty,
I tried to achieve the same or at least a similar warm wood-look - as you always get it to the point. I had a long tinkering with the lighting until it worked.
Very good is your trick to hover the model a little above the ground, so that the model does not look like glued there. Thanks for sharing!

light, environment, plants, background... - everything fits perfectly!
(even the car is well chosen )

@ leedeetee "...Would love to see the raw SU output for this!..." - me too!

HornOxx

Great - everything fits together so well!
I can not figure out where your model ends and your used wallpaper begins.

I look forward to more work from you