Entering start point for geometry (Beginner question)

SketchUp
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Is there a forum for beginners? I have two issues I am looking for help with:
I am using SketchUp Make and perhaps that is part of my issue for the first question:
When I am trying to draw objects, I cannot find a way to specify the starting point for a piece of geometry - line, rectangle, etc. I have discovered that after the first point is selected, then I can hit tab to enter the coordinates of the second point. I would like to be able to specify the coordinates of the starting point. In AutoCAD I can enter line from, energy the coordinates, then line to and enter the ending coordinates. Is there such a feature in SketchUp Make?

Second question, I have a difficult time selecting a specific surface in a specific space. For example if I use a template to create a 3 storey, T shaped building, I can’t determine how to drill down to the first storey to remove walls to merge two spaces?

Thanks for any assistance!

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Generally, see the new and improved User Guide. They just spent a year to overhaul it.
SketchUp User Guide: Getting Started in SketchUp

See how to use [ ] and < > in the Measurements control, explained in the “Note” box in the section:
User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Introducing Drawing Basics and Concepts > Drawing a line

FYI, I have logged a Feature Request to have the Measurements control honor & accept the engineering world de facto standard characters for modifying coordinates. (Ie, !, @ and #.)

Also, generally:

User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Drawing Lines, Shapes, and 3D Objects

User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Introducing Drawing Basics and Concepts

User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Drawing Lines, Shapes, and 3D Objects > Selecting Geometry

User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Organizing a Model > Grouping Geometry
which says:

To open a group’s context so that you can edit the entities within the group, double-click the group with the Select tool.

User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Developing Components and Dynamic Components > Creating a Basic Component
Note, you drill down into component instances the same way you drill into groups. The SelectTool double-click, or using the Outliner window.

User Guide: Creating a 3D Model > Organizing a Model > Working with Hierarchies in the Outliner

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Thank you very much Dan!

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Dan,
The link does explain how to enter the end point of the line by entering the coordinates in the measurement box. I get that. I am asking how to you specify the exact coordinates of the starting point?

For example, I draw a rectangle 60’,40’. Now I want to define a corridor down the middle. I want to enter the starting point at 0’,17’ to 60’, 17’. Then the second line from 0’,23’ to 60’,23’.

I am used to the command line in AutoCAD.

Thanks for your patience.

5

I am sorry about that. (I was also when I first came to SketchUp.) The makers of SketchUp seem to have purposely made SketchUp unCAD-like as much as they could.

This “specify the edge start point” is an often asked for feature, that has not yet been given to us.

What people are doing is drawing a unused temporary edge that end at the start point you want (by specifying in the Measurements box,) then continuing the tool drawing the actual edge by specifying it’s end point. When done, go back and erase the first unneeded edge.

There is a sample “linetool.rb” in the Examples extension, that might allow start point entry, or it could be tweaked if you know programming.
EDIT: Just checked the code of the sample “linetool.rb”, and it mimics the native C edgetool.
From the code, a comment just inside the tool’s onUserText() callback:
# We only accept input when the state is 1 (i.e. getting the second point)
… so the example would need tweaking.

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ADD: I am also using a LineTool extension by SuForYou. It is neat. It accepts user input coordinates for the start point, and with a right-click popup menu, can switch to Clines of different stipples “on-the_fly”. (And it has a single button toolbar.)
http://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/s4u-linetool

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Thanks Dan,
I did find I could define a line from anywhere to the point I wanted
to start from.

My goal was to draw a rectangle 60’ x 40’ then have an 8’ corridor
running down the middle of the long rectangle axis.

I started a line from the corner vertex of the base rectangle, then I
entered the end point, (16’, 0’). Then I drew the first corridor line.

This went well until I tried to erase the two construction lines I
used to locate the starting points of the two corridor walls.

These two lines lay along the Y axis wall and on top of the base
rectangle wall. I found it difficult to select just the short
construction line. I always ended up deleting the corridor section
along with the construction line.

So I re-drew the corridor section again.

As you can see, I need a lot of help.

My interest is in OpenStudio energy modeling. Once I get the geometry
in, I can carry on but I’m struggling with the geometry.

I’m working with Make and there are not any options for importing
other format floor plans, elevations, etc.

Thanks for you patience and great assistance!

At 12:37 AM 06/03/2016, you wrote:


http://forums.sketchup.com/users/danrathbunDanRathbun
March 6

crollinjones:

I am used to the command line in AutoCAD.

I am sorry about that. (I was also when I first came to SketchUp.)
The makers of SketchUp seem to have purposely made SketchUp
unCAD-like as must as they could.

This “specify the edge start point” is an often asked for feature,
that has not yet been given to us.

What people are doing is drawing a unused temporary edge that end at
the start point you want (by specifying in the Measurements box,)
then continuing the tool drawing the actual edge by specifying it’s
end point. When done, go back and erase the first unneeded edge.

There is a sample “linetool.rb” in the Examples extension, that
might allow start point entry, or it could be tweaked if you know programming.
EDIT: Just checked the code of the sample “linetool.rb”, and it
mimics the native C edgetool.
From the code, a comment just inside the tool’s onUserText() callback:

We only accept input when the state is 1 (i.e. getting the second point)

… so the example would need tweaking.

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8

How do you access the ‘User Guide’, I can’t see it listed in the Help menu in SketchUp I’m trying to learn how to use?
It doesn’t appear to be listed on SketchUp Campus , or the 'Help Center.

Sounds like this could be a very useful document.

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  1. There are a bunch links to various chapters in my post above.

  2. The articles for the various User Guides, are part of the Help Center.
    (They all are generated by Drupal.)
    Each major SketchUp product or service has it’s own guide.

  3. From SketchUp Campus page, if you click the rightmost (lifesaver) icon labeled “Help Center”, … and then from the Help Center landing page:
    a. … you can use the top “Help With…” dropmenu and choose which Guide to read,
    b. … or click the “Get Help With…” (book) icon on the left, which will bring up a list of all the online Guides:

10

Thank you,

It’s probably very obvious for an experienced user. But I’m struggling to find how to do things that I used to find easy in CAD systems I used to use (mostly 2D…)
I don’t yet understand how to specify exact start points (x,y coordinates) or points relative to existing geometry (e.g. Cartesian or Polar offset from existing entity),
Does this system have any concept of grids or construction lines/geometry?

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I could not live without the tape measure tool you can use it to set guidepoints or guidelines, referencing from existing geometry to start new geometry etc.
I used 2d cad a lot at one time, when you get used to the difference, it is much easier in SU.

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Yup. SketchUp is the “UnCAD”. It was designed to not have a CAD interface. (Otherwise it would have been just another CAD clone that disappeared with most all the others.)

However, with respect to it’s automatic inferencing, it is similar to the ol’ 16-bit Ashlar Drawingboard. (When was that? Windows 2, I think.)

Some of SketchUp’s native tools do not allow entering start points, such as the LineTool.
So instead I use a 3rd party extension: s4u LineTool

Oh, you definitely need to read this re inferencing:
Introducing Drawing Basics and Concepts

… and this re entering co-ordinates in the VCB (Measurements) box:
Moving Entities Around

And, while on this subject, never click in the VCB to give it focus, just type when in a tool, and the numbers will go into the box.

Yes, the UI calls them guidelines and guidepoints.

Not native, but there are some extensions to create grids of guidelines (clines.)

13

Hi,

I hope someone can help.

Ive been using sketchup for a while now but something seems to have changed.

i am trying to draw a simple rectangle but when i type in the dimensions the length comes out a random size? and not the size that i selected?

How can i fix it?

Thanks

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What exactly are you typing when you try to enter the dimensions of the rectangle? What localization are you using? What units are you using?

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Don’t click in the ‘Measurements’ field before entering any input.
When SketchUp accepts input, just type and hit [Enter].

For rectangles type: value unit , value unit [Enter]

But depending on your keyboard settings you may need to replace , for ;
So type: value unit ; value unit [Enter]

Units are optional and needed if they aren’t the current setting.