December 7th, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp, Uncategorized
One of my new favorite sources of SketchUp inspiration and information (inspormation?) is Sketchup Ur Space. A virtual smorgasbord of articles, tips, forums and imagery, this website is sure to make you smile. There’s a monthly PDF magazine, too. The…
December 7th, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp, Uncategorized
In November, we launched the Make Ideas Real project with the goal of creating a showcase of the best SketchUp work from around the world. To build out this showcase, we asked you all to share stories of how SketchUp is helping you to turn your ideas i…
December 1st, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
In the world of software, the designation “M2” refers to “Maintenance Release #2”. Maintenance releases are mini-versions that come out between major updates. They aren’t really about flashy new features; they’re more like tune-ups for your…
December 1st, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp
Cross-posted from the Lat Long BlogWhether you know him as Père Noël, Weihnachtsmann, Babbo Natale, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas or Santa Claus, there’s a chance you’re anticipating a visit from the jolly old man this December 24. Although he…
November 30th, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
Back in architecture school, I once had to lay out a parking lot for a building I was designing. What a terrible, terrible exercise in nitpicky details and perpetual re-arrangement. The solution I came up with accommodated all of four Smart cars and a …
November 22nd, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
When you’re modeling a small room, it can be a pain to see what’s inside. The problem is that the walls and ceiling get in the way. One solution is to lop off the ceiling and work in a top view, dollhouse-style. Other folks set up scenes from the i…
November 10th, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp
Following the success of last year’s Google Model Your Town competition, today we’re launching the second Google Model Your Town Competition. Model Your Town is about geo-modeling – making photo-textured models of real-life buildings that appear in…
November 9th, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp
Among rendering die-hards, the name “Maxwell” has long been synonymous with jaw-dropping realism. Maxwell Render’s makers have offered a SketchUp-to-Maxwell solution for a few years, but it required modelers to have access to Maxwell Render Suite…
November 3rd, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
Our Official Training Videos have been responsible for teaching literally millions of people to use SketchUp. Concepts of SketchUp, the first video in the old series, has been viewed over 7 million times. Collectively, people have spent something like …
November 2nd, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp
Every week, two million people use SketchUp to breathe life into their ideas. The resulting 3D models get made into houses and schools, movie sets and aquariums, bridges, robots, and furniture. The sum total of all this work represents a larger, yet un…
October 31st, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
Lots of you entered the SketchUp Halloween Challenge, and the results are impressive. In no particular order, here are our favorite entries:Haunted HousesHaunted Chapel by Sebastian Sosnowski of Wrocław, PolandSketchUp and Twilight Render | Model | Mo…
October 27th, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
A quick reminder: The SketchUp Halloween Challenge deadline is only 13 hours from now. If you’re planning to submit a haunted house or a jack-o’-lantern, now’s the time.Posted by Aidan Chopra, SketchUp Evangelist
October 21st, 2011 | by aidanchopra | published in Google SketchUp
When it comes to using the Follow Me tool, most folks have it wrong. There are actually two different ways to use Follow Me, and for complex extrusions, one works way better than the other.Follow Me: The Hard WayIn most cases, the wrong way to use Foll…
October 21st, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp
[Cross-posted from the Google LatLong blog]This month’s update to 45° imagery in Google Maps includes U.S. and international imagery.Let’s just begin with Graz. It’s the second largest city of Austria (behind Vienna), located in Steiermark. It i…
October 19th, 2011 | by Gopal Shah | published in Google SketchUp
Odds are, you’ve encountered Harald Belker’s work before. As a leading Hollywood concept artist, Harald is the man behind several iconic movie vehicles. His vehicular creds include:The Batmobile from Batman & RobinThe Lightcycle from TRON: LegacyTh…