This is the way!
How to enable three finger drag on OSX
System Preferences - Accessibility - Pointer Control - Mouse and Trackpad - Trackpad Options - Enable Dragging - Three Finger Drag
In sketchup press “O” to enable orbit and then simply use three fingers to orbit your model and then two for zoom functionality. Its seamless.
Hey all, sorry I realize this thread is super old but I still find it baffling that Sketchup still doesn’t appear have a built-in way to easily support the ability to zoom, pan, and orbit on a trackpad without needing to make customizations to the OS settings (which change how I use my computer overall) or pressing keys on the key (which make it difficult to navigate with one hand). I see a lot of the old arguments that it’s not necessary or that it wouldn’t work well. The fact that Sketchup on iPad supports these very simple gestures out of the box only proves that it not only can be done, but that it’s delightful to use. Just curious but why wouldn’t we just add these exact same gestures to a trackpad?
You can see from the web version of SketchUp that trackpad is supported, hopefully some day that will show up in the desktop version.
Meanwhile, I work entirely with my MacBook Pro trackpad, except if I am testing mouse specific features. On Mac you can briefly hold Control and Command, and you drag to orbit. Once you are orbiting you can release those keys, and continue orbiting. If you press Shift you switch to pan. To go from the current tool straight to panning, you can briefly hold Control-Command-Shift, then let go of Control and Command to continue panning, and release Shift to switch to orbiting.
There is a system setting in Accessibility, where you can set a three finger touch on the trackpad to act like a left button press. I have that turned on, and it means I can gently touch with three fingers, with Control and Command briefly held down. After the orbiting starts I can release the keys, and two fingers, and be gently stroking the trackpad to continue orbiting. It’s a lot less physical effort than when there is normal trackpad support.
monospaced showed the three finger drag settings.
It’s so weird coming from sketchup web to desktop and find that the trackpad doesn’t work the same way.
Agreed. This is silly that there isn’t parity across versions. Especially having paid the pro price tag and then essentially have gestures you are used to removed.
Agreed. It’s actually stopping me upgrading to the Pro version. It’s so jarring.
I just upgraded from the browser version to desktop trial and was stunned by the dreadful ergonomics. Zoom and orbit is so fundamental and the browser version’s trackpad behaviour is so intuitive and a joy to use. What’s worse is that this thread has been going for well over two years.
@Colin the flaw with the control key is that it only (sort of) helps people who use the trackpad with their right hand. I use a full-size trackpad with my left hand as my wrists did not take kindly to years of mousing.
So it means reaching across the keyboard with my right hand to press the only control key on a Mac keyboard and the shift key gets really awkward.
I kindof worked out an alternative to press the “O” key to orbit and space to “end orbit”. But it’s still a big step back from the browser version. I’ll persevere for a little longer but so far the web version fulfils most of my needs and I just thought a dedicated app would be better to use. Very disappointed to find that usability is dreadful compared to the web version though 
Also, and this may just be me, I much preferred the browser version’s positioning of the tool icons on the left rather than on top as the desktop app has them. Trackpad users have a greater left-right “reach” than up-down movements, so they’re just that bit easier to get to on the side. Especially on a 4k monitor, it takes about 3 ‘swipes’ to travel all the way from bottom to the top if it’s fullscreen but generally only a single swipe to get to the left edge.
you can simply add the large tool set to the left, and cutomise the top bar you know ? menu view /tool set / large tool set - and right click on the top bar to customize to your liking.
but yes, SU pro il mainly made for mouse users, like pretty much every pro software out there. I’ve met a few people working trackpad only, but in my experience (architecture field) they’ve been marginal.
maybe SU will add the trackpad gestures to Pro, but I don’t think it’s ont top of their todo list right now 
Thanks, I tries right-clicking and looked for location in the toolbar options, but didn’t find it. The large toolset as floating option is great, thanks for the tip!
Understand that trackpad may not be the most popular but it’s frustrating that they are clearly capable of a good interface as the browser version’s trackpad zoom/orbit is superb, but two years on the desktop version has yet to catch up.
Sketchup pro is mostly used by professionals, and professionals mostly use a mouse to model and navigate around the model, there are tools like 3D mice that make the navigation smoother but personally, as a professional who uses the program, would never use the trackpad as my main or only navigation tool, I’m sure that most of the pro users will agree with that statement, I even find sketchup for iPad annoying to work on.
Adding (and knowing) shortcuts will eventually diminish the need to reach for the icons.
Check this post, also:
Hey everyone! I wasn’t expecting to find this… Most people just say “professionals don’t use a trackpad” and “buy a mouse”… I’ve been a Mac user for about 10 years now. I hated even the idea of a trackpad first, but I gave it a go. Those saying those dreadful things have NEVER tried a trackpad on a Mac. It’s nothing like a PC trackpad (which I’m yet to see a good one) and just as what others have mentioned before, it is much better for your hands.
My personal opinion (being a professional software developer myself) that a broadly used software’s team should NOT just ignore a feature request just because “they themselves wouldn’t use it”. We are not talking about something being orange or pink here - this is a very basic usability issue which you need to address and do it as soon as possible. I have been using the web version for years on end as a hobbyist woodworker, and it is SO USEFUL to be able to move something while you can still move/pan/zoom around WITHOUT having to switch tools.
I am absolutely shocked that this request of being able to move around simply and effectively in the tool has become a “you need to buy a mouse”. A trackpad is perfect in EVERY APPLICATION I used, and you have made it great in the free web version. Why would it hurt you to provide the same convenience for your PAYING users? Why does it have to be a “you must not be a professional” kind of conversation? It’s just beyond me.
I have upgraded to the pro version as I needed to generate a cutlist. It is totally inefficient to keep switching tools to move around. For example, I needed to select 4 items around an object - basic. This is how it works with a trackpad in web:
- space, click, hold down shift, 2-finger swipe, click, swipe, click, swipe, click
and done. In the PAID PROFESSIONAL version it is
- space, click, O, click and drag, space, shift+click, O, click and drag, space, shift+click, O, click and drag, space, shift+click
to get the same done. What you need to understand is that “click and drag” is not at all easy on a trackpad and if it works seamlessly in the free web version it is expected to do at least that much in the paid professional version. In my current opinion, professionalism is almost equal to efficiency and what should take 3 seconds (and it does in the free version) takes 15 seconds in the paid one is not at all efficient, not even mentioning that all those tool changes and clicks required will make it much more error prone risking that you might need to start the selection process all over.
Again, I would like to emphasise that we are not asking you to cater for individual magic wands here, but rather to make moving around more efficient with trackpads - which 40% of computers solely use in 2023. And as support is seamless in all other tools, it makes me question whether I want to stay inefficient and annoyed for the foreseeable future (seeing how old this thread is) or rather I should invest some time to learn another tool instead - and frankly, this should not even be a question when switching to the paid professional version of a tool you love and have been using for years.
It may be something useful for some users to be able to use the track pad as a navigation tool, the question is how many professionals will use this feature on the pro desktop version, it may not be worthy developing this for a small minority, before there was a web version the only way to navigate efficiently was with a mouse, sketchup created this “need” when they released the web version in 2018. I know no one who uses sketchup or any other 3D software professionally that uses a trackpad to navigate around a model.
I am a professional software developer myself - and it’s not about “how many professionals I know”, it is more like “trackpads are supported in every tool (not just design/CAD type) but SketchUp Pro” in my eyes. As I said, a trackpad may not be the default option for PC users but it indeed is for Mac users, because on the latter platform, it works. In other words, imagine a website where you could not use your mouse wheel, but rather you’d need to press a button on your keyboard then move your whole mouse down and once you finished “scrolling”, you then need to press another button on your keyboard to be able to move your cursor on the page. This is more like how I see this.
Currently, zooming works with a gesture that’s being used to scroll up and down - similar to a mouse wheel. Two finger swipe up and down. If SU could default to orbit for that gesture (and have the shift to switch that to pan, like if the orbit tool was selected), that’s 75% there. And zoom would become the pinch gesture. As a software developer, that sounds to me like an easy win over a 2 year long argue - we do pay the same amount for the software as professionals, don’t we? In fact, any argument sounds negligence at best that tries to prove that something is not needed in the paid professional version that works very well in the free one! How could the paid version be lesser quality (doesn’t matter in any which way) than the free?
But let me put it another way, as I started to sound like just having a rant despite my effort of trying to be constructive here… Can plugins have any control over mouse gestures? If so, I would be very happy to contribute a FREE plugin for the trackpad part of the SU community that overrides the current defaults and implement the navigation what SU has nailed in the free version. Any chance do you reckon?
The current SketchUp Ruby API does not provide the hooks you would need for such a plug-in. The Tool protocol includes only mouse and keyboard event callbacks and those are live only while that Tool is active.
But did you know that on a Mac pressing cmd-ctrl and then dragging on the touchpad activates the orbit tool in the same way as pressing the middle mouse button, and once in orbit, pressing shift changes to pan? Not as slick as a built-in gesture would be, but lots better than toggling the orbit or pan tools on and off via the toolbars.
I get it, I use a Mac, I love the trackpad. I would never use the trackpad for SketchUp. Even with the best trackpad gestures incorporated it’s too hard to do simultaneous operations. If you think the free version is good with a track pad, get a scroll wheel mouse and drive SketchUP Pro, it’s a pleasure and way more efficient. With a mouse one can do thee or four operations simultaneously, that’s why almost everyone who drives a CAD program all day (not just SketchUp) uses a mouse. I use the trackpad on Sketchup sometimes, like when working on a plane, it’s fine, work can get done, but it’s not the same, once you go mouse, you never go back. Then you will discover the Spacemouse and then things really take off.
I only use trackpad on my mac. For me is better than mouse. Am I unprofessional?
We’re not saying you are unprofessional. I use the touchpad sometimes too when a mouse is unavailable. What were saying is that driving SketchUp with a multi button scroll wheel mouse is so much better that professionals inevitably end up using one. You are free to use whatever you like, and I understand your request, but really, have you tried a mouse?
Yes, I have one but I don’t use it. I’m happy with shortcuts and my trackpad.
It is also true that the trackpad on a macbook pro is a far from most conventional laptop trackpads. Mine is an external trackpad.
Yeas you are.
