We have been using SketchUp pro 2015 and a short while ago this cool feature went away. Is this permanent, or can I hope that it is returning? I believe that we will be going to Sketchup Pro 2017 this summer.
thanks,
Laurie
Yes. It’s gone for older versions of SketchUp. You’ll need SketchUp 2017 Pro now to get terrain. This was announced some time back and the change occurred a week or so back.
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Thank you for the prompt response!
Created an account just to say that I’m massively disappointed that they’ve retroactively removed a great feature and held it hostage in order to force users to pay for an upgrade.
This is an incredibly slimy move, sketchup. I’ll be phasing your software out of my design workflow. Adios
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When Google sold Sketchup to Trimble five years ago, the terms stipulated that Google Earth imagery would only be avail;able for five years. Apparently Trimble waited until the last minute and bought this Digital Globe imagery for the GeoLocate feature.
Not only did Trimble take away the GeoLocation from older versions, but on the PAID Pro 2017, the imagery is now garbage…complete fuzz. And…I just discovered, that a jobsite I am working on in my state has NO TERRAIN available for the site! Not that the image on the terrain is fuzzy (which is true for everything now) but there is NO 3D TERRAIN AT ALL!!! There are two flat “snapshots”…one labelled Terrain and one labelled Snapshot,
This is in a PAID Pro version! Completely disgusted. Trimble claims in these forums they are providing the highest level of resolution available from the new source, Digital Globe, but this is not true. I’ve started using the extension Placemaker to get decent imagery and THEY use the highest resolution available from Digital globe. You can check out their website and see samples of the Digital Globe imaging they have made available when you use their extension (and is visible on the trial copy of the software)…and it is much higher than the garbage Trimble is providing.
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As a follow-up, something strange is certainly going on.
If I select my area for GeoLocate as fairly small, say 2000 feet x 2000 feet, the Terrain LAYER shows up, but there is nothing ON that layer…there is NO 3D terrain.
If I select a larger area…say one mile by one mile, the 3D terrain DOES get imported…along with the lowest resolution imagery on it that you have ever seen… Absolutely nothing is distinguishable on the imagery,
So it appears that there are some regions where when you drill down to one of the higher resolutions (less area selected) the data set available does not include 3D (even though it should)…and you need to zoom out and take a larger region to get terrain. Usually I will try to use the smallest section of snapshot and terrain (especially terrain) as I can to avoid larger files and to get higher resolution imagery. (Even in the google Earth days, when you zoomed in, you got higher quality imagery on both the snap shot and the terrain. i believe there was a greater level of accuracy on the 3D terrain TIN itself at the higher resolutions…another reason for selecting smaller segments.
Trimble- please feel free to post here and let me know if I am wrong. If I am right, I would also appreciate some explanation. As far as I can tell, these forums are the only way to interface with the company regarding sketchup.
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I understand that this is how it might feel to you, but this is not in fact how the change went down at all. There are several threads going that describe the circumstances around this change and the reasons why its not possible technically to retroactively continue support for the updated terrain feature in older versions. I am also affected by the change and am very frustrated with the low quality of the new data. It’s a disappointing move no doubt, but I think it’s unfair to call it “slimy” as making more money was not the driving reason behind this change as you characterized it. If you do find other software that does the job better there are many of us who would like to hear about it.
I don’t think this aspect has been explained succinctly, but I would guess it’s due to the move to Chromium Embedded Framework in v17 and the ‘new’ Add Location uses that for it’s internet connectivity…
all previous versions used IE or Safari and providing 3 versions would take resources away from getting this ‘fixed’ as fast as possible…
john
Yes, I bet you’re right about focusing resources on the future fixes rather than rebuilding older versions to comply, let’s hope. I thought I had read a more detailed explanation about retro-difficulties from Bryce in that endless thread of geolocation, but maybe I’m wrong and I don’t have the stomach to wade back into that stream of unpleasantness to find it. Cheers.
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Hi
It looks like you are having the same issues as me and many others. Al I ma getting form this forum AND Trimble is platitudes and “be nice” to poor old Trimble. I agree with you, but am getting no where. They don’t believe the fuzzy claim. What is this extension you mentioned ?
Regards
Tom in Australia
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I am getting the same issue, they help/knowledge base article implies that a grid will show up. This is not happening for me, neither is" Pro users will see two new layers in add location: “DigitalGlobe Satellite” and “Trimble Map”. As stated in the updated information from Trimble. There is no need for you to reply my friend, the company who I pay maintenance to reply should reply smile:-)
I agree and Trimble- please feel free to post here and let me know if I am wrong. If I am right, I would also appreciate some explanation. As far as I can tell, these forums are the only way to interface with the company regarding sketchup.
I am a commercial user min eis not a friendly relationship with Trimble in Australia if something is not “fit for purpose” it is fixed or refunded
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