Can't even use it

Technical Problems SketchUp
41

First off, if you want to work in inches, ensure your world units are set to inches.

Next, like was earlier mentioned, just draw things and then type on the keyboard to get exact dimensioned entities, so draw a rectangle of any size, and then type the following keys: [2] [4] [,] [4] [8] [RETURN] to get it 24 inches by 48 inches

You cannot make any inference from how big something “looks” in sketchup - I’ve drawn an entire house and it’s about 6 inches big when I zoom out

If your dims have a ~ in front of them then either the scale of your model is so small that SU cannot represent it properly (like millionths of an inch or something - and you drew a line 24 millionths of an inch long), or you did not type the length in after you drew it but instead used the mouse and dragged to “somewhere near 24 inches”

Start really basic, watch the tutorial for drawing a house (draw a rectangle, pull it up, draw a line for the roof apex, move it up so it bends the roof planes etc)

Maybe most of all, use a screen recording program like bbflashback and record yourself using it, then post your video here. we can watch what you’re doing and instantly se what’s going wrong and not only correct the problem but also educate away whatever misconception is causing it

42

Thank you, Boarddumb, for taking the time to respond. Is replying to the
email I got OK or do I have to go into the forum?

Let me tell you what I’m trying to do. I have already selected Sketchup
for Woodworking and chosen inches. I am an experienced woodworker and
usually do my plans on paper. I am making a triangular end table to fit
between settees arranged in a semicircle.

You are speaking to a technology challenged old man here so that bit about
recording my activity has lost me.

43

Try using the template called Simple Template - Feet and Inches.
This give you a scale figure, a life size person in the model that helps you understand how big things are.
It sounds like you have simply zoomed out on your model.

44

I’ve tried all the templates, Box. The result is the same. I mark my start and end of a line. I enter 24" in the measurement box that already has that "squiggly line in front of a number representing something or other. I click enter and nothing happens. I purchased “Sketchup Guide for Woodworkers” from one of my woodworking supply dealers and that is what I am following. I downloaded Sketchup from a link on the DVD and got Sketchup 2015, Sketchup Make…whatever that is and a trial of Sketchup Pro. The Tutorial is given by Dave Richards. I know this is more than any of you wanted to know, but here I am again. I’m about to once again insert my DVD and see if I can pick up where I am doing whatever it is I am doing wrong.

45

The longest journey begins with a single step. Try this.
1.Select the line tool.
2.Click to start a line. (one click only)
3.Drag the cursor in any direction. (no clicking)
4. Type 24 and press enter. (still no clicking, especially in the measurement box)
5. See if your line is 24" long.

Shep

46

Ok, Shep…that worked. However it seems that once I have done that I start creating other lines that I don’t want. What I am trying to do is make a triangular table the top of which is 15" x 18" x 18" and is 22" tall. Is that too small of a scale to be using with Sketchup?

47

The scale shouldn’t be a problem, at least not yet.

With your new found line drawing skills, start with a tee shape 15" on the base and a longer leg say 30"

Now get the pie tool and click on one end of the 15" line.

Move the cursor up a bit and type 18 like you did with the line tool. This should give you an arc that you can swing over to the long leg of the tee. Look for the “intersection” inference and click there. Now you should be able to draw a line from this apex back down to the first end of the 15" line.

Finally, clean up the unwanted geometry with the eraser tool.

Shep

1 Like
48

Well, there is one problem. None of the tutorials that I have been working with ever mentioned that “pie” tool. One guy makes a normal table which has helped but he is using an old version and nothing seems to look the same. Another guy starts off by working on a complicated wall cabinet with a door, and all of them mumble, click on things before you are able to see what they are clicking on and generally just go too fast for me. Thanks for your time. I’ll get back to this as soon as I can.

49

Dave Richards videos assume a basic knowledge of sketchup, they even mention that on the label.
Have you worked through some of the more basic videos available?
Such as the one in the Learning Center and then Aidan Chopra’s Sketchup for Dummies on youtube, and many others.

50

I definitely think you’d be better off not starting by drawing the thing you want to draw; draw something simpler instead, to get used to the user interface

Go to WINDOW menu >> PREFERENCES. In there go to DRAWING and ensure hat “click-move-click” is enabled rather than autodetect or click-drag-release

Now, point to ANY icon that is a tool (like the arrow, paint bucket, hand etc) and right clic. Ensure LARGE TOOL SET is ticked. That gets you the Pie Tool and others

Now, let’s just start with a rectangle - choose the rectangle tool, click the mouse in the drawing area and release the mouse button. now move the mouse and see the rectangle appear. It doesn’t matter whether you click again to stop drawing or not, but just type on the keyboard the following keys: 2 4 , 4 8 RETURN
You’ll see 24,48 appear in the dims box in the bottom left as you type. When you press return, the rectangle snaps to be 2 ft by 4 ft
Now find the PushPull tool (cuboid with an up arrow, remember to hover your mouse over the tools to see the names until you are familiar with them - or push the P key), point your mouse at the rectangle, see that it goes blue indicating it is selected to be push/pulled… Click the mouse, move it some way and click again. You made a cuboid. Type 72 RETURN on the keyboard and now you have a 2ft x 4ft x 6ft cuboid
Draw a diagonal line from corner to corner on one face: choose LINE tool or push L, point the mouse at one corner, until a dot appears “stuck” to the corner - this indicates sketchup has snapped its attention to that corner. Cick and release. Move the mouse to the diagonally opposite corner, see the dot appear indicating SU attention has snapped to the opposite corner, and click-release again. Use the eraser tool to erase the line you just drew

This snapping thing is important. You should always try and draw things relative to something else because you’re using a 2D screen to play with a 3D world. You should always try to write the dimensions of everything into the dims box, then you don’t have any “approximately 24 inches” problems

Let’s turn your cuboid into an ordinary table. Select the pushpull tool. Press Ctrl-T (this ensures nothing is selected - so much to tell a newbie, even things like understanding how selection works is complex - some tools operate on already-selected things, some tools select things when you point to them. if ever it seems that you’re interacting with the wrong part of the model, press ESC [stops doing whatever you’re doing] followed by Ctrl-T [deselect all])
Now point at the cuboid face that is 4ftx6ft - it goes blue. Click and move the mouse to squash the cuboid down again. Remember that the direction you’re now pushing is the 24 inch direction, and suppose you want a table top 2 inches thick - so type 22 RETURN (24 inches already, squished down by 22 inches, is 2 inches thick cuboid)
Now grab your tape tool, point to the long edge of the table, click, move towards the middle of the table, type 2 RETURN. A guide line should appear, in dots, set in 2 inches from the table edge. Repeat the process for the remaining sides. Now with the rectangle tool, point in each corner where guide lines cross, click-move(towards the table centre)-click, type 4 , 4 RETURN . repeat for the other 3 corners
Grab the pushpull tool and pull one of these little squares out by 36 inches (click, move as to pull out, type 3 6 RETURN. Point to the other 3 squares in turn and double click. Pushpull will extrude the same distance as last time

You should now have a 4x6ft table, with 36 inch legs, 4x4 inches. I’ve linked a video of me doing this. In the video I also then group, rotate, and reposition what I drew. It doesn’t take as long as you think (certainly less time than it takes to read) when you know what you want to do and how to do it

Hopefully also you’ve learned the importance of: snapping, selecting, click-move-click, pushpull and typing exact dimensions in. Also in the vid, though not obvious is the importance of where you grab an object by, before you start moving it, because it’s that point that will “snap” to other things in the world. If you want to place a chair on a floor surface, grab it by the bottom most corner of one of the legs, don’t grab it by the seat otherwise it’ll sink into the floor! ALl these things and more are covered in the official SU tutorial videos - she speaks slowly and clearly and doesn’t do any magic

51

Thank you boardumb, but that was ages ago. The fact was that I was clicking
on the box of dimensions (as we do in any other drawing program) but. few
helpful and kind fellows correctly enlighted me and 26 hours later I was
able to draw my first project. Now, although far from beeing a master of
the subject, I am able to do what ever I need to do. Thanks anyway.
João

52

Hello,
I know that learning how to work in a 3D environment can be challenging.
Perhaps you might find some inspiration here:

Jay Bates does some great beginner SketchUp tutorials. Really great stuff here.
Most of the videos are less than 3 minutes too.

Hope that this helps.