Sketchup Viewer was a useful tool to review a model in read-only mode, with all the features of Sketchup, i.e. Scenes, section planes, tags, etc….
Alternatives mentioned by Trimble imply to use Trimble Connect, which requires to save the file to Trimble Connect in a project and then display it in a browser. HOWEVER, Trimble Connect does NOT support scenes, section planes, tags, etc…. Same for the extension Trimble Connect Visualizer, which is more for rendering visualization. So, these alternatives are not relevant for a model review.
My use case is the following:
A script generates a model in a temporary directory. The model includes scenes, tags and section planes. Since it is going to be referenced by a Layout document, it does matter that the user can see the scenes, tags and section planes.
The user is invited to review this model. If OK, the temporary model will be validated and copied in a project directory on the computer. Having the review in read-only mode is a plus, as this prevents the user to make accidental changes while reviewing the model.
I can of course open the temporary model with Sketchup.
On Mac, with MDI, this is relatively fast, since it can be open in another model session, not requiring to close the current model.
On Windows, you either close the current model to open the temporary model to review in the current instance, or open it in a new Sketchup instance, which takes much longer, and make the script out of scope.
In any case, I lose the read-only mode, and the model switching is more cumbersome from a user perspective, and more tricky to develop in Ruby.
Has anyone a better idea to implement a viewer function with scenes, tags and section plane?
I’m afraid that Trimble is trying us to use Trimble Connect for reviewing. In Trimble connect you can use SketchUp Tags and you can make your own Section planes. After that you can save the view Similar to a SketchUp scene.
I know is not the same but Trimble Connect is powerful to share models with your team. Here is a small video with an alternative workflow (that requires creating sections and scenes in Trimble Connect and not in SketchUp).
Well, the API refers to ‘Views’ and ‘Grouped views’ and theoretically, one can map the current scene’s in a model to such views. Albeit, While you can have multiple section cuts in the TC viewer (up to 8) the number is restricted inside SketchUp in one in the current context. Further more, the trick for visibility to have nested objects with different tags will not stand in the viewer, Layers (yes, still called layers in TC) won’t adhere that.
The most outstanding feature that is not in that viewer, however, is the Style. Textures may come in correct, but there are only a few style settings in that API (Background, section cut settings).
While you now have the button to ‘Edit in SketchUp’, It should only be in editing mode depending on the permissions of the logged or not logged in user, I think.
Currently in the phase of creating views inside my ‘File converter’ extension’ because the standard thumbnail view is not big enough:)
Obviously, Trimble Connect has some good capability, noting that they can be applied to non-Sketchup content.
However, as said, Trimble Connect cannot fulfill the purpose of my script, which precisely creates a model with hundreds of scenes and section planes, which are all lost in Trimble Connect. Not to mention the cumbersome process of uploading to Trimble connect, then converting the model (which takes at least 2 minutes on a very simple model).
By retiring the Sketchup Viewer so early without an equivalent replacement, it seems that Trimble made a functional regression. After all, sharing pre-made scenes and section planes is certainly a high-demanded feature in architecture, in particular for 2D plans and elevations.
well there is a replacement, the share a link feature, isn’t it ?
instead of sending a file to your client (file that, with SU free, they could technically alter and use), you upload the file to your TC storage and it’ll generate a web viewer link.
I think it’s a pretty good solution because A) the client doesn’t get the actual file (they can’t go behind your back) and B) they don’t need to install anything, it’s all browser. and C) it retains all the things TC viewer looses, the scenes, styles, sections… (all but the photorealistic, for now)
I am aware of the Share Link feature, but as described, this would not fit my automated workflow which is better if local to the computer. Anyway, I’ll manage the workflow another way.
By the way, I noticed some apporximative display with section planes.
I see! the web version doesn’t support the ambient occlusion - but if you open a file with it turned on, any partial support that it does have shows up (counterintuitively on transparencies)
I’ve turned it off here (it will turn on again if you change the scene)
Do you know of any tools built specifcally for viewing SketchUp models! We need to share our SketchUp models with builders, and Trimble Connect is WAY to clunky for the average Joe!
There is a thread on the SketchUcation forum where someone has developed an extension for presenting SketchUp models on a web page. You might want to take a look at it. HTML3D Exporter – Free SketchUp extension
This is super cool! Huge thanks, mate! I’m on to it! What I find with both Trimble and the share link is that we have a LOT of tags needed for documentation development, and there is no control on what is shared! It would be cool if tags could be locked so they are not manageable!
Since we are on the topic of sharing SketchUp models with clients without requiring software downloads or dealing with cluttered native tag lists, I wanted to share a workflow I’ve been developing.
It’s called Smart Web Export (available on the Extension Warehouse), designed specifically to streamline client presentations and model management.
Here is how it handles the main presentation bottlenecks:
— Tag & Layer Filtering: Select up to 6 togglable tags for design variants or structural options, keeping all your internal documentation tags hidden from the client.
— Interactive Client Tools: Integrated distance measurement tool (in project units) and locked camera framing.
— Preset AR Scale: Define whether the model opens in Augmented Reality at 1:1 scale on site or scaled down on a meeting table.
— Online Management Dashboard: Clean workspace to organize models into folders, edit display options, and generate short links or QR codes.
— Zero Friction: The end-user opens the model directly in their web browser via link or QR code, no account or app required.
— Free Plan:
No credit card required to start
Keep up to 3 active models online for 7 days with full feature access (layers, measurements, AR).
Paid plans (from €9/mo) expand model capacity (from 10 up to 500 models), unlock permanent links, custom branding, and view analytics.
Here is a live example of the client-facing view:
Would love to get your thoughts or feedback from the community.
