A big thankyou to all here who have taken the time to help. As it turns out, Hebrides has some influence at Google, got my message up the chain of command and Google has been in touch with miracle in hand... Many thanks to all those that have gone out of their way to help me in private and most of all -- THANK YOU GOOGLE. Theres still the question of what i am going to do about control - but i think im going to leave that up to a logitech SpaceNavigator for Notebooks and a logitech trackball... I may have to dual boot windows to get the right controller. Im also going to try it with my tablet.

once again, thanks to those with the warm kind hearts and selfless guidance. Most of all thank you to my sources google based and those ive spoken with in private alike! My humblest apologies to those I offended, past and present. This forum appears to have thenicest people the internet has to offer... I'll be leaning o you when it gets rough to get the results i want. NO DOUBT THERE.

Peace:

...now on to training

-C.R.

@double espresso said:

@shadeofgrey said:

Again, if proof of ANYTHING i claim is true is required it can be provided at a moments notice.

I'd love to see some...

You got it!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL6svX577Bw

See the blonde haired kid typing one handed - and rolling around by pushing one handed on a straight back wheelchair? Thats me. That blog never made a dime so i killed it. My real name is Christopher Ryan Kelly - I choose to use Christopher Ryan because adding my last name is dangerous - but sometimes I don't manage to keep my last name out of things, nor do i bother with spell check because after writing really long posts with one hand the last thing you want to do is go back and use a trackpad one handed to change all the typos. I dont care if I spell spastic quadriplegic wrong when Ive written two very long posts that took avery long time to complete. I dont drive, mass transportation in my state for the disabled has to be booked in advance, which makes advertising a small business in my area very difficult. I joined these forums because I figured - hell - if phootshop cant make me any money working from home maybe 3D modeling will. As far as buying new equipment obviously thats entirely up to me, pardon me for asking about whats most important, because I DONT KNOW -ANYTHING- about what hardware best serves a mac enthusiast that builds 3D models working from home. I didnt ask wacom for a free drawing tablet (can I use that with sketchup?), I didnt ask unicomp for a free keyboard and i didnt ask for a free copy of CS3 Design Premium or all the other software Ive bought along the way - but after you've spent over 4k on equipment and training and haven't managed to get off welfare and are still paying that total bill off in $400 increments and your first gen macbookpro is starting to show its age and your still not making any money on your own you start to get desperate. I DIDNT know the free version was all that was needed until someone said something to the contrary but Im not going to apologize for asking a corporation worth billions of dollars to cut me a break because its just not financially feasible for me to throw down another half a grand on software that I now know I don't need to be successful. I'd rather be respectfully denied than miss an oportunity to simply ask for help - the worst they can say is no, and thus far they haven't said anything. I could still use a hand figuring out how to best control sketchup one handed - but after the reception Ive gotten - being called a fraud a liar and other profane things -- having to prove I am what I say I am - which you probably wont believe regardless of the proof I provided above, I think its in my best interest to leave the self righteous to their own devices and move on. I'll figure out sketchup on my own. Just like I have with everything else, and figure out controlling it by trial and error. I'm also not going to apologize for asking for a push in the right direction as far as thats concerned either. I'm a positive person attempting to do the best with what Ive got, and there have been several kind hearted folk that have PM'ed me with information I couldn't get from the forum itself, so take a deep breath and forget I exist. I certainly wont be posting there again - except for the kick ass models i come up with without help... I'll rely on the kind hearted folks that have approached me in private and call it a day. If the link I provided isn't good enough for you - nothing ever will be. And as for the rest of you - there was a day when you didnt know a thing about sketchup and I'm betting even money that you posted here with questions just like me, and made assumptions that were corrected just like me, the only difference being - I posted a request of Google in the wrong place because they didnt provide or I simply didnt find an email address where my requests and control questions could be answered by the folks that put all the goodies together thus I took a chance and posted it on the forums. I wont be making that mistake ever again.

Okay - okay ... Chaulk one up for ignorance and call it a night. As a wacom tablet user I assumed that skipping from free to pro would guarantee I had everrythihng needed and that there would be no time limit to its functionality. NOW my only problem is that the only rendering peripheral by logitech thats got good mac support is the space navigator for notebooks. It'll max out my "miscellaneous" purchases for two months securing one because i need to start getting my credit card dw to zero (less than a grand to go and ive got a Fico of 810 out of 850 -- ill eassily be able to get whatever limit i ask for) so whats the general consensus for the best control system for sketchup that negates the need for multiple hands? Ive already got the top of the line wacom tablet - can those be used in conjunction with the above logitech peripheral or should i spend money on a wizbang mouse like the logitech MX revolution? Im asking because my first generation macbookpro is almost 42 months old. Its time to buy a new system and if Im going to get into rendering I need to know what kind of horsepower graphics cards and controllers are best suited to single handed use? I found sketchup on lynda.com so learning the program is a matter of slogging through 15 hours of online video that i have full access to until my membership runs out in mid 2010. Nobody hires cripples without a miracle regardless of ourcredentals so ill be going into business fir myself and ifIm going to take the plunge Imay as well get myself a new machine... Im already certain of what i want to do during the day as my job from home - because Ive already proved to be good at it. Im going to offer photo-cleanup, full digital remastering of huge collections of 3x5's, negatives, and even slides from old slide projectors, as well as custom written poetry addeed into the negative space of an image that hs major signifigance for a given client should it be requested. My original plan was to go with a 17" macbookpro and a single 30" display with dsplay port functionality (my current pick is the dell 3008wfp ultrasharp) -- but going with the mobile plaform means only on dual DVI connector and thus a macpro with 12 gigs of ram, a 15,000 rpm SATA boot drive with all my apps and my boot partition, and a secondary terrabyte storage drive for all my data plus 2 nvidia 150 graphics cards so i dont have tokeep messing with cables when i want my to use my tablet and my 30" display at the same time is well ithin my buying power.

SO:
If I want to do everything i do now PLUS my photo business AND sketchup rendering whats the general consensus:
17" macbookpro w/ 30" dell display and my wacom tablet plus a space navigator for notebooks and an MX revolution mouse along with a custom unicomp keyboard w/ apple standard function keys rather than windows keys...

OR

An eight core macpro with 12-16 ig of ram, the same harddrive configuration, plus two Nvidia 150 graphics cards so i dont have to mess with cables when wanting to switch between wacom tablet and dell 30" display plus all the peripherals listed above? It'll take me a lot longer o pay for but guarantees 4-7 years of use because they finally refreshed it with the new really fast intel processors that are actually the same guts as the macbookpro - i simply gain a graphics card and convenience if i go with a desktop. Switching out DVI cables may seem trivial to you but done correctly and safely it currently takes me 35 minutes to complete.

It my sound dumb to want so much computing equipment, but its the only thing i have to spend money on besides a new wheelchair and my insurance graciously paid dearly 6 months ago for a 41k set of wheels that replaces the decade old unpowered chariot I trusted with my life for a decade. My new one will recline me so im comfortable at my desk 10-15 hours at a time, and when i feel like it i can make it stand me up on two wheels and be able to look people in the eye during conversations. And no Im not kidding. Good electric chairs cost more than BMW's becauser they are regulated by the FDA and are classified under the same blanket as pharmesudical medication -- so the manufacturers can charge whatever they want.

Bottom line - Im looking to you for guidance so I buy a machine capable of doing everything i donow plus handle sketchup without a problem. The only requirements are the two dual DVI connections and 30" display plus the unicomp keyboard (typing one handed is easiest on a buckle spring keyboard and they make variations of the oldschool IBM M monster of days long gone) Im looking to you for guidance on peripherals and controllers for sketchup that minimize the absence of two hands for control. THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART FOR YOUR GUIDAANCE.

And just for the record - I wasnt asking for a free ride with pro simply on the merits that im a cripple, and Im unthinkably offended by those that have suggested otherwise. True, I was ignorant in assuming that pro was necessary to b productive but you wont catch me asking wacom for my tablet which im still paying for or logitech and unicomp for the keyboard and controllers necessary to render properly. I've made $600 a month for over a decade because social security hasnt adjusted the cost of living variables since FDR signed the program into law in the 1940's and social stigma of modern day america dictates that cripples dont get jobs in todays job market. Those that dismiss what I know is true should go to their local mall, borrow a wheelchair at the recerption desk - then go into any store you like and try to get a fair chance at even an interview and application. Roll around and watch people stare at you like your ruining their day simply by being there, and watch parents yank their kids out of your path like you have Ebola. Spend the day pushing yourself around on two arms bearing in mind that I only have one that does anything - then when the day is over and you return the chair and walk to your car - look to the sky and thank God over and over that you gt into a wheelchair and had the luxury of being able to get back out of one whenever you chose. THEN come back here and tell me i was leaning on my circumstances. Ive been stuck to a wheelchair for all 28 years of my life and every single best friend ive got will verify that i keep it real regardless of what it takes or where we go. Thats because I have genuine courage and dignity -- and both were paid for in blood sweat and circumstances I didn't ask for and made the best of regardless!

Sincerely,
C.R.

Hi! My name is Christopher Kelly and I'm a physically disabled individual that simply doesnt make the kind of money that empowerws me to pay the standard $500 price tag that you've put on the pro version which is honestly the only way to go if your serious about using it. If you need proof I am as disabled and destitute as I claim I can provide it but as I said Im a disabled individual - a spassdic quadreplegic that only has two talents -- writing poetry and use of a wacom tablet to being things that i see behind my eyes to life. Im nearly 28 years old and I make exactly $600 a month in SSI benefits. I was wondering if you guys would be gracious enough to sponsor me and in return id plaster my wheelchair with Google stickers and advertisements in
exchange for a never ending pro licensee or if your not in a sponsorship state of mind perhaps you'd give me the opportunity to buy a student license of the product - which i could afford. I don't officially attend any online degree seeking program but im an avid user of lynda.com which is a training website meant to teach people programs that they need to learn at the level necessary to pass certification exams... They don't call themselves a school but they have been gracious and bent over backwards to give me their top level account class at a discount. Id be able to pay the revolving price of the educational account class without problems and would be willing to buy into it at the pro level immediately... otherwise all the high-end control systems Ive come up with for driving cars for disabled folks that only have one good arm are never going to see the light of day as 3D models, which is the only format all the american car companies are interested in... i know because I've written all of them, just as I'm writing you... You haven't the slightest idea what a truly viable one handed control system complete with a full time on-dash HUD display would do for a cross section of the disabled community that has never and probably will never know the thrill, rush, and the closest thing to freedom we wheelchair bound folk will ever get even partially close to through the sensation of driving a vehicle. I've wanted to be a test driver for audi and lexus ever since i was a little kid, because they wont let cripples get close to an indy car no matter how well we drive our chairs. When your as disabled as I am your electric wheelchair becomes an extension of your body and if anybody deserves the right to the freedom of driving a car its me. Whether or not it'll actually happen begins with the compassion from the top technology companies in this country, and their willingness to prove that we can make a car an extension of our very bodies with all the possibilities I have in my head... But getting them from my head into a 3D model is entirely up to folks like you. You wouldn't believe me if I told you how excited I am for your reply. At the same time, I realize if you make an exception for a peon like me and somebody finds out about it everybody is going to want a break, but I've been waiting to drive my whole life - and folks with my circumstances don't usually make it past high school before they die, and I'll be thirty in less than three years. That means I have two things - the courage that only manifests in a true warrior spirit, and the strength to endure simply because that same SpiritFire simply demands that I must. Heck - if you have to, look at it like this -- it'd be one of the greatest underdog success stories of the decade, and it will have started with the company that started with two college kids with the brains and a dream. I may not have their brains but I've got more heart than a majority of the disabled population combined, and my beliefs and record back that up in spades. The ability to change the future is nothing - the will to act in the name of changing the future into the present is everything. (And the press opportunities are greater than your fight to trump Microsoft - easily).

Most Respectfully,
Christopher Kelly
Boca Raton FL. USA
shadeofgrey@gmail.com

p.s. REGARDLESS of your decision, bravo creating google. Its my home page on all 5 of the browsers I use, and am a master at finding stuff online because of it. And if I could afford to drop At&T and go with the android cell, I would in a heartbeat. Im a mac man to the core but the Iphone is over rated - I know - Im stuck with one, and disappointed as well as unable to afford the price and the monthly bill associated with the 3G version, which STILL fails to impress me...)

p.p.s. I may have put this in the wrong place but the email google about sketchup purchasing form wouldnt accept my contribution because it was too long. If I am indeed barking up the wrong tree - if the powers that control this forum would please forward this request made in desperation I'd certainly appreciate it. I can only type with a single hand and 3 fingers on that single hand at that - meaning that i put a hell of a lo of time into making this request what it is. Again, if proof of ANYTHING i claim is true is required it can be provided at a moments notice.