I admit that my Component dialog boxes are a mess. That is mainly because I have not learnt how to use them properly and keep them tidy. Time to improve!
I am attaching a typical example. First thing to notice is that the images aren’t very useful as views are from all sorts of different angles. So my first question is how SU knows what view to use for its thumbnails?
Second thing is to do with purging. If I look in the relevant folder there will be both SKP files and ∾SKP backup files. Does that mean the thumbnails are included twice in the dialog box? In an effort to clean up I used Purge Unused but the dialog box remains unaltered. How does it get updated?
I would guess that on the Mac all SketchUp models in your component library folder are shown in the component browser. On the PC, the backup file has a .SKB extension and SU doesn’t see it as a SketchUp file.
Purge Unused works only for the component definitions stored within your model file (the In model pane with the small house icon in the Component browser)
@Anssi Here is a screenshot showing the Component Browser and relevant folder side by side. I think everything in the folder is in the Browser but that also includes things that have been deleted from the folder. You can’t use one of the deleted items yet they sit there uselessly taking up real estate. I haven’t tried shutting down SU and reopening which might do the purging but should it be necessary to do that?
@DaveR It depends. If I create a component within an existing drawing, the system saves it automatically. If I create it as a new drawing, I save it to a relevant folder. I presume that makes the difference between locally available components and global ones. no?
Thanks for that tip. I wasn’t even aware of folder actions. I don’t think I have ever had cause to use a backup file even though PCs and Macs persist in creating them. But if the Component Browser ignores them, it may not matter much.
It seems that SU uses the view that was last saved for its thumbnails. So good practice would be to choose an appropriate view and then Zoom Extents to ensure it fills the screen before saving. Next time SU is opened the thumbnail will be updated.
