SketchUp 15 uses a much different kind of licensing scheme than ol’ version 8.
Just for tickles…
See the instructions here:
Installing SketchUp: http://help.sketchup.com/en/article/56085
Did you follow these instructions ?
When I said:
I meant to try installing again.
Anyway, in another thread, a team member posted a link to a good knowledgebase article, and other troubleshooting steps:
http://forums.sketchup.com/t/loss-of-webdialog-functionality-in-all-extensions-3dw-and-ew/12151/8
Solid tools are not allowed in the “free” Make version, making this tool totally useless for hobbyist/non-commercial 3D printing. They should remove it from all the lists on 3D printer sites where it is commonly under “free software”. I wasted my time with the trial version fixing models and adjusting to 3D print them, now I’m stuck. No way I’m paying after that trick! Off to another more honest product…
Do I have to destroy all my printed models which I have created with MAKE now?
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Solid tools are a convenience but they are not required for making models for 3D printing. There was no trick played on you. It is clearly spell out in a number of places that the Solid Tools are a feature of the pro version and are not included in Make.
This flame finial was drawn in SketchUp without using any of the Solid Tools. It is solid and printable. I always make components solid when I’m modeling and rarely ever need use the Solid Tools even for very complex ones…
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The most common action with a hobbyist 3D model customization is to join or cut holes in existing objects. For that we need solid tools!
For those who agree I suggest people go check-out TinkerCAD, it even has a direct Thingiverse link 
There is nothing you can do using solid tools that you can not do using Intersect Faces With… followed by some cleanup in Make. The advantages of the Pro solid tools are one-button convenience and automation of the (sometimes tedious) cleanup.
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As explained by Dave, this isn’t correct. If you don’t want to learn other ways, you should stop to complain about SketchUp.
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Well I’m just an average hobbyist and I don’t want to do a 1000 clicks for my simple requirements. The other tools do it for free with less marketing nags.
If the goal is to get license for people who want advanced stuff then locking out the simple addition and subtraction of objects is going too far in my opinion. Google should go re-evaluate their competitor products.
Alternatively how about a 40 euro version with such features. It’s not that I don’t want to pay for hard work, but I don’t want to pay 100s for professional software I don’t need. There should be a lite version not just free and pro.
Google? Trimble since 2012…
Thanks that restores my confidence in Google R&D. This is just user feedback. Good there are lots of fanboys for this product. I did actually like it’s ease of use. Just not the professional price.
then why not just use another of the much free tools doing all of what you want without marketing nags?
Marketing nags were not the issue. I already found another tool. TinkerCAD is even easier than SketchUp and their concept of “professional solid model editing” is simply grouping shapes together and changing their material from a colour to “hole” type to get an add or subtract, what geniuses!. Now I don’t have to worry about what is solid or not. The basic primitives work well and none of my objects show errors with my 3D slicer software 
As I said, “the developers” need to check their competitors. I would consider SketchUp if a good deal of the functionality were available in a “lite” version max 50 euros, and they integrate STL export/import without installing add-ons.
Installing a free plugin for the free MAKE version is really an impertinence. The program should be ashamed.
We have suggested a single-person “Craftsman” license, that would be more affordable for hobbyists.
Another option would be release of a paid Solids extension which could run under Make editions.
Of course that is not an issue. It’s just a tip for somebody (at the company) who might consider a hobbyist/maker edition. In that case, bundling a common set of add-ins/default templates would make it more appealing to new users.
SketchUp is a direct 3D polygon modeler which allows to model freely with the full perfomance of the system whereas web apps like Tinkercad or 3DTin are typically limited in putting simpel shapes together mainly for 3D printing purposes and therefore not really competing with SketchUp.
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It’s best not to bother with these discussions as each side has a strong opinion while only one side is speaking from experience.
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For 2016 I was able to get back to Make after the Pro trial by running RegEdit and modifying this one value
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\SketchUp\SketchUp 2016\ ProductFamily = Make
no idea what the Windows registry is and how to tinker with?
in attached ZIP archive 2 registry files for SU v2016/2015 with the according keys set to “Make” and which can be imported to the registry by simply double-clicking the appropriate REG file. At least if the user rights do allow it, if not launch by right-clicking and “Run as Admin…”.
Download: SketchUp - Make Product Family Key.zip (660 Bytes)