If you go into C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Google SketchUp 8 I'd transfer over the Exporters, Importers, Materials, Plugins, Resources, and Tools folders. -Brodie

Hi folks. What I would try is to use components containing a simple edge for the posts. Then, when done, I would reload with the final post component. If you prefer to use the final posts, don't forget that using X-Ray mode will allow you to snap to inner geometries inside the posts, providede that you have such geometries. This inner geometry could be a central vertical axis, for example. Just ideas.

@ralf_ct said: ..the window is facing East at 09h00.. but in the north pole on december 25th could make the difference...

@eadoll said: ....... or are the "textured" aerial imagery on the location snapshots unable to display shadows? Both the terrain and the snapshot can display shadows. Open the 'Shadows' window and see if display: on faces is checked. Also play with both available sliders, light and dark. The contrast might be too low to even see the shadows.

In fat, you can press the arrow key any time - even after you started the move. First it does not seem to take effect but when you move your mouse a bit again, it will "jump" to that direction. So there is no problem if you forget first.

There must have been an imported component/group with some surreal bounding box (because its component/group origin was very far away). This often happens when people import stuff from CAD and preserve the drawing origin (and then later move things to the origin but the original CAD block had its own origin at the World origin). You said you imported some SU models (components). I bet one of those was somehow made this way. When you explode such a thing and re-group it, SU will place the group (component) origin as close to the geometry as possible (ideally the geometry would be aligned to the current World axes and then the bounding box "fits" nicely to the geometry).