Dynamic Components no longer Dynamic

Sometime in April or May I downloaded two dynamic components by Marvin Windows and Doors from the 3D Warehouse. They worked great. When I downloaded a component today and tried to customize it, I got this message: “There are no options to choose on this component.” I tried downloading the same components that I had success with back in April or May and got the ‘no options’ message for them as well.

The Marvin website contains a link to their SketchUp Dynamic Components, which is how I found the models originally:

I invite anyone to try one of these components. If you are getting options, then I’m doing something wrong and maybe somebody could help me figure out what that is.

Fortunately, the components I used in models previously are still dynamic so if I want to customize another double-hung or awning, I’m all set. But, if I want to customize some other window or door I seem to be out of luck.

Help would be appreciated.

If you open the downloaded Marvin model, you won’t see any user editable options in the parts inside. You are supposed to insert the whole downloaded file into your own model to see the options that are defined in the “outermost wrapper.”
A random example:

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Hi, Anssi–yes, what you are showing is exactly what I saw before! I could make changes, for instance, selecting a standard size or specifying a custom width. I don’t know what I am doing wrong now, I am only getting what cannellbd is showing in the comment above yours. When you say ‘insert the whole downloaded file’ could you be step-by-step specific? Right now, I have a Marvin skp that I downloaded to my destop–what is the proper way to insert it into my model?

Hi, I do get the screen you show, but I am looking for what Anssi is showing in the comment below yours.

If you’re viewing the warehouse in your browser, in SketchUp you’ll want to go to File → Import and select the SKP file downloaded from the 3D warehouse.

If you’re view the warehouse from inside SketchUp, you’ll be asked “Load this directly into your SketchUp Model?”, to which you would select Yes.

What I did was:

  • I downloaded the component into a folder in my computer.
  • I started a new empty model and made a “wall” in it.
  • I used File>Import, navigated to my folder and imported the file I downloaded and placed it on my wall.

I did not in any stage open the component for editing. You do not need to do that to modify the options.

Thank you both. To cannellbd, yes, downloading directly from the warehouse from within a SketchUp model produces dynamic component options. Thank you.

To Anssi, yes, it worked by importing the skp file that I first downloaded to my desktop. Thank you.

What does not work is going to the 3D Warehouse from a browser, hitting the download button, specifying which version of SketchUp (in my case 2021,) and then trying to access the dynamic component options in the skp file that opens up. That’s what I kept trying to do.

Thanks for the help.

It sounds like the DCs you were downloading may have been inside “model wrapper”. If you encounter this you should try exploding the component (one time) and then see if the Component Options panels displays the options.

I tried your suggestion, but it just resulted in multiple sub-components and the same ‘no options’ message. The ‘model wrapper’ is something I will keep in mind, though.

Do you mean that you are not accessing the 3DW from within SU? Not sure whether that makes any difference but it might.

I was not ‘within SU’ when I downloaded the components. The easiest way to access the full range of Marvin Windows Dynamic Components is to use Marvin’s link to them which they provide in their online technical documents. I clicked the ‘download’ button and a SU file opened up, but with no dynamic options. Both downloading from within SU or importing a component into SU that was saved to a file works fine. Perhaps I figured this out in April/May and had forgotten.

You can try it yourself by clicking the link I provided in my original post–that link is from the Marvin website.

It’s a fair point. I have often tried finding a specific model within 3DW when accessed from within SU and failed. Then I do a Google search and it turns up in the browser version. Can’t explain that!

So you clicked on, for example, the icon that shows the download in your browser, like Chrome? That, indeed, opens up the imported component “wrapper” in SketchUp. In the case of Marvin, the user configurable options are in the “wraooer”.

I find 3D Warehouse components/models by searching the internet. I rarely search inside 3D Warehouse because I have far better success by typing: ‘specific item 3D Warehouse.’ Or, by going directly to a manufacturer’s website. I have watched Aaron D’s outstanding video on how to effectively use the Warehouse–twice. Excellent advice, but internet search consistently yields better results, at least for my needs.

Anssi, yes, the ‘wrapping’ or ‘unwrapping’ needed to access the DC options seems to happen automatically if I access the 3DWarehouse from inside SU and then download the component. The same is true for downloading a file and then importing it into SU.

As I mentioned, I find it so much easier to find things by direct Google search via web browser (I use Firefox) that I’ve developed the bad habit of opening a 3DWarehouse model/component without going through the SU interface. I open the item in SU 2021, review and edit, then I copy/paste the component into the model I’m working on when I’m satisfied. This method, it appears, has limitations.

The root of the issue is pretty straightforward but can lead to confusion.
All Components are actually Sketchup models. Dynamic components too.
So, when you create a component in a model it is wrapped in a Component wrapper, when you save as that component out to a file location the wrapper is the file itself, so if you open that file you will be opening the component for editing, therefore you will be straight into the raw geometry.
The fact it is a sketchup file means it is affected by how you introduce it into another model, or even how it has been added to the warehouse. You can end up with multiple wrappers or no wrappers at all.

This is all the same with a Dynamic Component, so if it has the wrong wrapper you can’t access the Dynamic Options.

I’m sure that has made it all clear for nobody.

On the contrary, it becomes crystal clear that one must stay within the guardrails and not go willy-nilly into 3D Warehouse Land. The reason I went astray is specifically because, as you say, ‘all components are actually SU models.’ So, when I found myself able to open a 3D Warehouse item in SU without already being in SU or importing it into SU via the import function, I thought that’s all there is to it. Everything is an skp, no problem!

Apparently, I need to let SU do its job with the wrapping and unwrapping.

You can easily set the default download location in a browser (eg. Documents/SketchUp/3D Warehouse models) have multiple tabs open with different search strings and collect them all in that folder. (the inside 3D Warehouse refreshes and have limited ways to go back)
Then in SketchUp, open the Component Panel, click on the little blue ‘details’ icon and open that collection, and set that to ‘favorites’