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United States24796 Posts
http://sketchup.google.com/
For those of you that don't know, Sketchup is a 3D modeling program that you can easily download for free (there is a paid pro version also). My sister showed it to me a couple of years ago and I played around with it a bit before moving on to other things.
Yesterday I had a sudden urge to create some 3d models on my computer, and I was trying to think of what software I could do this on that was...
A) Free
B) Easy to get started with
...and it occurred to me: Google Sketchup! After watching the first couple of ten minute tutorial videos you can make some pretty cool things. I still vaguely remembered how to use it from last time, so I got right to work on the idea I had floating around my head (for some reason playing World of Warcraft makes me want to build wooden structures). Using wood as the building material, design a structure that allows you to get up to a large height using as little surface area on the ground as possible, and only requiring the person to go up moderate steps (say, eight inches / 20.3 cm). No ladders, elevators, or anything special. Of course, the structure needs to be reasonably stable and safe to climb. Here is what I came up with:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/aAJm3.png)
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/23621890/staircase to heaven.skp (so you can load the model in sketchup if you like)
It was actually a pain and a half to make that, but I probably did it very inefficiently due to my lack of familiarity with Sketchup (as well as 3d modeling in general... I'm no artist). I'm curious if anyone has any feedback to offer regarding the structural integrity of such a design.
On to the fun part. What are some cool ideas for things to make in Sketchup? (houses/buildings are an obvious choice). Would anyone like to share there sketchup masterpieces? Is there enough interest to make a thread dedicated to sketchup, or is there a superior alternative piece of software?
I'm currently working on a simple building, but attempting to 'construct' it similarly to how a real building is constructed. Here it is:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/Oi79g.png)
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lol get out. it's everything that is awesome about AutoCAD but not as difficult and twice as rewarding to look at  Awesome.
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I expected sketches made out of ketchup 
But yeah google sketchup is a pretty neat tool.
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Hey pretty cool. In highschool my friends and I used sketchup to create giant star wars ships and medieval castles. The castle was probably the most fun thing to make of all. Perhaps you should make one too!
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United States24796 Posts
On June 27 2012 09:11 CecilSunkure wrote:
Hey pretty cool. In highschool my friends and I used sketchup to create giant star wars ships and medieval castles. The castle was probably the most fun thing to make of all. Perhaps you should make one too!
How did you decide what it should look like? So far, I haven't found it that difficult to turn my idea into a model, but having the idea isn't so easy...
Did you just work on it randomly piece by piece, or sketch on paper an actual layout, or what?
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On June 27 2012 09:14 micronesia wrote:Show nested quote +On June 27 2012 09:11 CecilSunkure wrote:
Hey pretty cool. In highschool my friends and I used sketchup to create giant star wars ships and medieval castles. The castle was probably the most fun thing to make of all. Perhaps you should make one too! How did you decide what it should look like? So far, I haven't found it that difficult to turn my idea into a model, but having the idea isn't so easy... Did you just work on it randomly piece by piece, or sketch on paper an actual layout, or what?
Well for the Star Wars stuff we just googled different star wars ships, like the one Darth Vader rode around in above the Death Star.
The castle was pretty easy as you can google various castles really fast. I just made 4 pillars, one for each corner of a square. I put a single keep in the middle, made flags and a drawbridge/moat. Was very fun!
So I just googled image references and added on piece by piece, starting with a large square walls for the frame of the castle.
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I made a bus stop back in college and put some posters up on the panels. Was an interesting project.
The one beef I have with sketchup is the controls are a little basic. It sometimes gets finicky when trying to fix one thing and then it warps something else entirely. That was several years ago though, so maybe they've streamlined it since then. I use it to plan out projects around the house and little renovations that I've done.
As for some cool things, I dunno. It's really really easy to make simple objects and then texture them with your own custom artwork. So there's a lot of utility around that function and some potential to make some really cool stuff.
I think your comment about inefficiencies in your process is just something inherent to sketchup. I mean it's freeware for a reason. It's not going to be as refined or have as much potential as some of the licensed 3d software out there that you pay an arm and a leg for. I found despite using it over the course of an entire term I didn't get that much more efficient or adept at creating objects with it. It seems finicky by nature.
But still it's a nice little simple tool for simple little things. I think if you want to make some 'badassed cool' 3d modeled stuff than you have to bust out the 'badassed cool' 3d modelling software.
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17078 Posts
Don't you mean Scatsup?
Also this is really cool.
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Hmm looks like fun. Your ladder thing looks a little top heavy without much cross support. I would imagine the very long supports holding up the top piece would need some cross-bracing at least.
Disclaimer: Not a designer/architect or generally knowledgable. Just regularly involved in renovations
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I do industrial design and I hate sketchup =(. I think the way it works is really funky.
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Does someone know how I can import more complex structures to my drawing?
I'm working on making a sketch for my PC mod, and want something like the back I/O panel, a zerg/terran logo for my window etc.
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I've probably spent more hours in Sketchup during my school years than playing WoW.
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I tried using sketchup but it's just way to funky. ended up getting mad. Using propper CAD programs at school and managed to pickup a student license for Inventor atleast. I really feel for those stuck with sketchup tho.
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I've probably spent more hours in Sketchup during my school years than playing WoW.
On June 27 2012 12:55 fire_brand wrote:But still it's a nice little simple tool for simple little things. I think if you want to make some 'badassed cool' 3d modeled stuff than you have to bust out the 'badassed cool' 3d modelling software.
Not necessarily. Sketchup models make extremely good concept models for clients. They're fast to build and easy to export/print out.
On August 06 2012 20:47 Pusekatten wrote:
Does someone know how I can import more complex structures to my drawing?
I'm working on making a sketch for my PC mod, and want something like the back I/O panel, a zerg/terran logo for my window etc.
You can definitely model the back panel yourself. It'll be a good learning experience. You can also look for one already made in the 3D Warehouse. As for the logos, you can import pictures of them and use them as materials.
The first model was a concept model for a client during my internship. The last two are from a project I did at school.
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EPT![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/3f5fA.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/c0Tk8.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/mUCWE.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/eWxxW.jpg)
