OSX Lion: Should you upgrade?

I love upgrades.  I am usually the first one to get a new operating system, an app update, or the latest beta version of a software.  Half of the software that I run on my various devices is in beta.  I love being on the cutting edge.  Sometimes this means you get the latest features, and sometimes you get some broken stuff.

Apple on Wednesday released "Lion" the latest and greatest update to what it calls "The best OS we've ever made".  I've checked out the reviews, watched the videos, and I think it looks fabulous.  Take a look for yourself:

With every major upgrade, there is the potential for stuff to get broken.  I almost updated right away, and then I thought I should do a little research.  A few Google searches later and I came up to this post by a Google employee on the Sketchup help forum:

On behalf of the SketchUp team, I want to give everybody a heads-up that we've encountered a few issues using SketchUp on the new Mac Lion OS. You can check them out below (along with suggested workarounds); we are working on improving/fixing these -- thanks in advance for replying here with any other issues you find using SketchUp on the new Mac OS!

Issue: SU freezes when generating scene thumbnails for models with background images (ie, those with Match Photo scenes).
Workaround: Keep the Scenes dialog box closed when working with models with background images.

Issue: In a model with 1 match photo scene, the camera is no longer synced back to the scene when clicking on the scene.
Workaround: Add a second scene via some method other than using the Scenes dialog - e.g. right click on the Scene tab and select “Add”. Adding a scene via the Scenes dialog is not possible given the first issue.

Issue: When trying to login to the 3D Warehouse from within SketchUp, you see the message “Service not available. Try again later”.
Workaround: You can still login to the 3D Warehouse outside of SketchUp by going directly to the site: http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/ From there, it is possible to then upload KMZ files which means you need to export your SketchUp model to the KMZ format before uploading.

Issue: When selecting a region using the “Photo Textures” dialog, only one pin is visible which makes it hard to accurately grab a photo texture. You can still grab photo textures - it is just that grabbing the exact region you want is now more difficult as you can’t see all the pins.

Workaround: By left clicking on the photo region and moving the mouse, you can somewhat manipulate the region you want to capture.

Issue: With the new Lion OSX, there is a new Mouse option (“Move content in the direction of finger movement when scrolling or navigating”) which is checked by default. When this option is checked, scrolling forward with the mouse wheel causes the SU model to zoom out and scrolling backwards causes the model to zoom in.
Workaround: In Lion, go to System Preferences > Mouse and uncheck “Move content in the direction of finger movement when scrolling or navigating”. Note: in a future release, unchecking this option should no longer be necessary.

Issue: Stacked Snappy dialogs can now break apart after resizing one of the dialogs in the stack.
Workaround: Re-snap the dialogs together if they break apart after a resize.

Issue: With Lion, SketchUp now remembers whatever models you had open in a previous SketchUp session and, on re-launch, opens those same models. This means that models can now show up behind the Welcome dialog, which is a change of behavior. It may also mean that SketchUp can take longer to launch and may potentially re-open a problem model from a previous session.
Workaround: Close your models prior to exiting SketchUp if you do not like this behavior.

So, I suppose not an entirely bad list, but there are a few alarming ones in there, particularly with the 3D warehouse.  No official word from Google on when we will see some updates.  So those out there itching to upgrade, you probably should let Snow Leopard purr a little longer.  Have you upgraded?  Tell us your experience in the comments!

Here is the link to the post on the Sketchup help forum.

Guest Post: Tips from Arne Salvesen

Arne Salvesen is a CKD (Certified Kitchen Designer) from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  He writes the blog Useful Spaces that focusses on kitchen and bathroom design, and from time to time good things to eat and drink.  I had the pleasure of meeting Arne at KBIS, and he is such a nice guy.  In addition to his great design sense, he's also a Sketchup user. I asked him if he'd be interested in doing a post for my blog, and he jumped at the chance.  With one proviso:  He had to be able to use the Canadian spellings of words.  Of course I agreed!  You can follow Arne on Twitter [@arnesalvesen]

Eric has graciously asked me to do a guest post for Sketch This!  It's truly an honour since Eric has been one of my go-to guys for Sketchup for about a year now.  But after he asked me for a contribution, I wondered what could I possibly offer to someone who knows so much about this terrific piece of software.  Eric's advice:  go with what you find useful.

For me, Sketchup's benefit comes in the form of speed.  The functions contained within the programme duplicate tasks I would perform while hand-drafting, and do so with more accuracy.  Two of my favourites are the "divide" and "multiply" functions.  "Divide" is useful when you have a fixed amount of space you want to divide into an equal number of spaces.  To illustrate, I'm showing a bar back panel that I want to make into a door style with five, equally sized recessed panels.  I start by creating some guidelines around the outside of my panel, set 3" (the width of my rails and stiles) in from the edge.  There's also a guideline on the left edge.

To outline where my panels will be I simply select the first two guidelines and copy (not move) them being sure to select the left guideline as my starting point.  These guidelines are then placed so select point lines up with the guideline set in from the right edge.

To create my panels I simply type "/5".  This will make 5 copies of what I have just moved, and space them equally over the distance I have moved them.  Now I simply have to use the guidelines to draw in my panels knowing they are all exactly the same size.

The opposite function to this is "Multiply".  Multiply is used when the space between a group of items is the important part.  A very common example of this is framing.  Typically the framing member is a wall are spaced 16" apart.  Here, I show an object (representing a 2x4 framing member) being copied in line to a new location.  If I simply type in "16" while I'm moving the object, then hit the Return key, the object will be moved exactly 16" (This assumes you're working in inches.  If not, just add " after 16 and you're set!).

To repeat the move, simply type "*" followed by the number of times you'd like the move repeated, and voila!  Your wall is framed.

---

Memorial Day Re Run: Apps for Sketchup? Steve Jobs is NOT amused.

Due to the long weekend, I leave you with this re-run from several months ago.  This is an immensely useful plugin that I use every time I use Sketchup.  Its free, and definitely worth downloading.

Sketchup is as useful in the 3D world as a Swiss Army knife, but sometimes it just doesn't do exactly what you want it to do.

Just like you can put an app on your smartphone, you can add a plugin for Sketchup.  There is a great developer community out there, and just like the smartphone apps, a lot of the Sketchup plugins are free.

Plugins solve problems.  One problem that I have is that clients always love to change colors.  When you've got a Sketchup model full of materials it can be time consuming to swap them all out.

Thanks to a plugin by Thomas Thomassen I can now do this with just a couple of clicks.  Check out the video of his "Material Replacer" plugin below:

This fabulous plugin can be had for free by downloading it right here.  Thomas, or "ThomThom" on the forums works for cookies.  So please, if you like this plugin send him a cookie.

AIA 2010 Re Run: Mike builds kitchens from space!

This year unfortunately I won't be attending AIA, but my good friends Mike Tadros of Igloo Studios, Mark Johnson, and David Pillsbury will be!  The show starts today and I am sure that they are going to be doing all kinds of magical things with Sketchup, including but not limited to some Shaderlight renderings.  Check out what Mike did last year:  Also, follow the #AIA2011 hashtag on Twitter to keep up.  Each of the presenters names are linked above with their Twitter feed.  You can follow the AIA hashtag to the right with the Twitter Widget!  Here is a post I did about some of the "Movie Magic" that Mike did last year....

At the AIA show this year, Mike Tadros, president of the Sketchup training company, www.go-2-school.com did several presentations during the AIA show.  As with all of Mike's presentations, they are well thought out, and very informative.  Mike has a really fluid manner of teaching, and he's great at sensing what his class needs, and molding the presentation on the fly to accomodate everyone in the room.  Check out some of Mike's videos to get an idea of what I am talking about:

Of all Mike's presentations, there was one that really stuck out for me.  Mike started building a kitchen using the Kraftmaid models that are available in the 3D warehouse.  He went on to show how easy it is to create kitchens and living spaces with these models.  At one point, a lady asked if she could build her own kitchen with these tools.  Mike said "Sure!"  and then asked, "How about I build your kitchen for you?"  She agreed.  At this point, she, I, and I think everyone else was confused as to how Mike was going to accomplish this.  Remember, we're all on a trade show floor, and even though we were surrounded by architects, nobody had any idea what her kitchen looked like.

Without skipping a beat, Mike asked what her address was.  He pulled up Google Earth, and zoomed in on her location, and found the aerial photography of her house.

With just a few clicks, Mike had the aerial photography in Sketchup, where he began to trace the outside of the house.  He was quickly able to model up the walls.  The lady at the show was rather confused up until this point, because she had no idea how Mike was going to draw her house, without ever seeing it.  As soon as she saw the walls go up, she was able to easily describe where her kitchen was located.

After finishing the walls, Mike started to build a kitchen for her...

Right there on the screen, Mike put the cabinets where she wanted them.  There was no waiting, no render time, it all happened live, right there on the trade show floor.  Mike was using Merillat cabinets, which are available on the 3D warehouse in Sketchup

After Mike built her a kitchen, he even emailed her the Sketchup model.  She can now go home, download Sketchup Free, and view her dream kitchen herself, right in her own home.  When she decides its time to get it built, she's got a great 3D model to start with!  They say a picture is work a thousand words, but how many words is a 3D model worth?

KBIS 2011 Recap

KBIS in Las Vegas was certainly a great experience this year.  The show was smaller then it has been in past years.  Despite the small size, there was an air of optimism about.  People seem to be less nervous about the economy.

This year I presented in Kraftmaid's Knowedge Center.  This was in the technology area of the Masco Cabinetry.  I did presentations on how to use the iPad in a dealer showroom to be way more productive, and eliminate just about every piece of paper in sight.  I also did some Sketchup presentations.  Mark Johnson did wonderful presentations on social media.  Mike Tadros and the gang from Igloo studios launched a new plugin for Sketchup that will make ordering and specifying products lightyears easier.  There were even some live renderings using Shaderlight right on the show floor!

In the coming weeks I am going to get more in depth about each topic we presented.  For now, I will leave you with this YouTube clip that was recorded of Mark and myself on the show floor.

Stay tuned for more coverage!