I see importing from GE will never work for me. Then it's time for making screenshots...

But I must think up how to solve the Mash. I must make new mash and project topographic map to create new one.

@unknownuser said:

If you make a component of one sphere and copy it that's run speed!
With 24 segments you have yet a very cool sphere!

I tried 2 spheres with 60 segments (one bigger, second one smaller and intersected) and made some component joining with Follow edges from LSS toolbar. But that was unable to finish that task (it stucked at 7%). Then I took only the little sphere and joined with some objects and it was faster, but still took few minutes. I cannot to send file because the att. is 4 MB.

@gaieus said:

Because that screenshot was made of SU version 6 and you have 8. Use the "Add location" button (and you do not need GE for it either any more)

[attachment=0:a0ojlzo7]<!-- ia0 -->add-location.png<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment:a0ojlzo7]

Maybe if you will show me the trick how to change imaginary source in that "Add loctation" window. But for me it is unusable now, because, and I repeat it again, the source from Google Maps is blured and low quality. So that is the reason why I don't use Google Maps for making screenshots. But I could install SU version 6 because that should solve my problem. I wonder, why developers of SU degraded the SU8 with removing this feature...

As I have look for how to capture current view in GE, I looked to this locations:

1. http://support.google.com/sketchup/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=95068
2. http://www.arch.virginia.edu/computing/training/online/faculty/stiles/pages/sketchup%20new/sketchup_google_earth.html

See "Capturing Google Earth images to use as base maps in SketchUp"

I see there is icon which I don't have in my G. toolbar.

That's frustrating I cannot capture the view from GE.

As noted on the location 2) I should be able to import current view from GE when I click on Add Location, but this offers only GoogleMaps data source (which is older and less quality than imaginary in GE).

Of sure, that if you want to have a good look of sphere you need to increase segments number. But the more segments, the more faces, and program then runs slowly... depending on what you do.

I had the same question on spheres recently in thread "Curves". I also had problem to do a sphere, but as Pilou helped, it is important to start your circle in the center of blue axis. Otherwise it will not work.

You also need know how to increase number of sides of the circle, standard one has 24 sides. Before you start drawing you time e.g. 60 and press enter. In Measurements box you will see the new number of sides for circle tool.

As a proof that units and correct scale on the start of Match photo, I attach scaled beginner file. As I measured distances on GoogleEarth, so have almost exact data. This is almost the scale where the bridge should fit.

Measured Distance according GE photo (top down view) is 6734 cm, distance from first pylon base to bush. In my model I have 7025 and I scaled the beginners model to cca 68m.

See the attachment how the scale model looks and "fits".

moat_beginner2_scaled.skp

Is there any plug-in that can reposition textures in whole object? I mean, if I cut the texture in external editor, the positions for textures changes. And I would like to move them back on correct positions. Because the model is made from many faces it would be crazy to do it side by side. Otherwise I could request such plug-in in request section.

Great plugin. I look forward to create some terrain with it. But I have to confess I have some problems when I try to move the control power ... it is hard to me to focus the control point and it costs a lot of waiting till the red frame appears there. Sometimes I click, but it is too late, and the red frame disappeared so I have to remove the point. It looks slow for my computer even that my comp is not so bad on performance. I cannot to do it so fast as you do in demo video. Some key to remove node, for example backspace, would be very practical. I do it with context menu, which is slow. One more idea. It would be great if I could enter the power immediately whey I click on the terrain. I think that if I write the number in Measurement box, it does nothing... Also confider that that maps are done in different numbers. You have some terrain, for example altitude 700 and above. But if you add the power number to nodes like 700 or 725 and so on, so it will be too much for the terrain. To save the calculation for human, you could make one extra box, where user will write his base altitude like 700. Then he could write the number from a map and you would subtract the 700 from his number to get the correct number. So for example. I need to get these altitudes from the map to the terrain model: 712, 745, 765, 815, 922. I will enter value 700 as the base value. Then I create control points and I write to the Measurements box: 712 for first node, 745 for second node, 765 for 3rd node and so on. In the meantime the program will count: 712-700=12, 745-700=45, 765-700=65, 815-700=115, 922-700=222... And here are the correct sizes for my model... This is practical issue. Never mind if you would keep both values in the node...

Do you know how to bend her hand with fredo scale tools
so it would looked naturally bended?

@pbacot said:

Group (or make component) for geometry you've finished to separate it and protect it from damage by your next actions. Back up work. Save an extra file now and then.

These are just funny tries no need for components here or backing up. But in the future work sure. Bending the tubes is very funny

I something did wrong because around the sphere of mine, there is a circle in the middle. I wanted to delete the circle but the circle is exploded. I think I could just to rotate the sphere in good position (circle to be horizontal)... select, and then I found that ... oh no there are also other edges selected not only the circle... So is there a way how to select the whole cicle? I use selection tools but did not find a way. And the second problem, is that if I delete the circle, so it deletes some surface under it. Probably I had made some mistake when creating the sphere.

Well, nice plug-ins you recommend to me. Nice tricks. I have seen one more plugin in the video here:
http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?t=18963
he bended a "pipe". Do you know what plugin it is? It also looks very cool.

There is a hole in top and a stair. I had these problems. When I wanted to draw a circle inside circle:

1. I could not find the center point
2. I had to start upward so when I wanted to move it back, I could not to find centerpoint again
3. I had problem to draw the circle on different axis even that I hold arrow right or left.

my_sphere.skp

Very nice sphere. How to complete? I never succeed to close it with Follow me. I remember there was some truck in tutorial, but that one never worked for me.

Edit:
Now I succeed to close it. But if I would have bigger object, how to follow whole the path? I know there is some trick like double click or triple click.

When I will add a texture to the sphere, how can I resize size of the texture. I know how to do it with one face, but with more faces, it looks like imposible.

This is my result

Thanks for great plug-in.

I have tested your LLS toolbar and have few questions and suggestions.

Sometimes when I partially configure a tool settings, then I abort it because I need to select group or to make group, then I select the group, and then I select the tool - and in this moment it suddenly starts performing actions (calculations), so I must wait some time... but I wanted to configure and then to apply. It would be good to prevent this, but I don't remember which tool it were, but it sometimes happens with different tools.

Voxelate tool - did not work to me. I did not succeed to change the object when I have selected group or defined voxel.

Make recursive tool– I do not understand sense too much of this tool. If I can create groups recursivly, what is it good for? I should have posibility to regroup all groups into one level or explode them all (don’t know if SU or any plug-in supports this).

LSS Matrix observer
This one did not work to me. I created group, created clones with recursive tool and then copied the group. Then I enabled observer and made changes to one group. But the changes did not appear on the instances... Probably I did something wrong...

Chaining - idea
I did a test with a simple circle shape (3D circle). I had made a structure with recursive tool which looks like chain. And my idea is, this. I would delete the faces of the chain and now what I would like to see: to have a tool, which can find intersection points, and use these points as joins of chain. Move with the chain, like it is real chain, which you can drag in any direction, you can twist with it or turn around, and so on. Maybe just to define several ways what you want to do with the model/object and where you want to go in the space. With dragging control point or mouse cursor, the chain will follow mouse cursor like a snake. It will twist, and so on… So you could create interesting structures from objects, which are connected like chain. You could probably create more wide chains (multiple chains) and then to form them into “linen” or “iron coat”…
This is the structure what I mean:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2352/2253469472_883ed1e28f.jpg
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5260/5451334833_a0b40f665e.jpg
Just one more thing this would need: the object must not create new intersections, because if it would join somewhere, you could not move it like before. Then if one will finish his object, he can coat it to any surface, so maybe he will create a snake from this shape, or some cloths, armour or some different things? If you would like to deform the linen maid from chains, than you would use wider circular shape to tell it where the part should be deformed.

Other tools:
“Click to activate 2 faces + path”:
You could add here these features:

• color gradient
• color gradient position
• color gradient type
• color gradient curve
  (similar like in Photoshop you can define type of gradient, which is linear, radial, angle, reflected and diamond)
• shape curve - this curve should define the transition, the way how the transition from one shape to another will apply on model. For example - you probably use linear “curve” now. But I am not sure, because when I tested the tool, so the result seemed unbalanced to me so this curve should keep a balance to transition. So one could make a curve which top (vertex?) should be in the middle. Then the transition would be most visible in the middle of transition.
  Something like this:
  http://www.civitas.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Laffer-curve.JPG
  There is a lot of different curves. So for example with this one:
  http://etc.usf.edu/clipart/35200/35204/sine_curves_35204_lg.gif
  you could reverse the object to different side, and then back.
  Or like this curve:
  http://www.weibull.com/hotwire/issue21/ht21_1.gif
  So if you would have triangle on a start, and rectangle on end, when according this curve, there would be triangle on start, rectangle in middle and triangle on end.

This is the base idea, but I did not see all tools yet, so I will write here some other ideas later. Good luck.

Coating - idea
Or maybe you could make a tool (if that one is not in your toolbar yet), which could make some object get close to another object (as close as possible) but did not join with it. It would copy shape of the object. For example. If you have 3D person, and would you like to put real clothes on him/her, which you did, then you would like the font part of clothes to copy shape of the body. Similarly, if you would have some object like a jar and you would like to put some decoration to it, so you would create the doze, create the decoration separately on a flat surface, and then you would just send/project the decoration onto the surface of the jar. By the way, why not to make tools like this, which could deform surface with an object? But this idea is maybe more related to Control points... that you could use a jar to deform surface... and possibly to leave print in the surface.

Is it possible to Photo match photos from Google Street View?

I meant sketchup tutorial
http://www.sketchup.com/intl/en/training/videos/familiar_with_gsu.html#

@unknownuser said:

Thx for the V6
Seems you have successed to kill the intersection's faces

No me. I have done some action with LSS tools. As I remember that was Follow edges... There was not this kind of sphere in original modul. The original sphere was from 3D Warehouse: Geodesic sphere 02.

I tried to destroy the faces again, but did not succeed to get same result as before. The sphere looked more bizarre on previous try. The image from now:

You can see the 3D join component was the ovalish 3D object and face was a triangle just by purple dot.

ttp://i45.tinypic.com/5d84f7.png

Yet one thing I am interested how to make the sphere looking more smooth, more rounded. I have some tools like BZ toolbar or blend but this one does not seem to do the job. I can add more details with sandbox but this will not make it look like real sphere.