Ugh. This is really a bummer and cause for me to think about other softwares. I love SU Pro, but this rate increase is above what my budget will allow for what I use it for. I still don’t understand this philosophy. Maybe someone at SU will hear our pleas. At least they gave us another year to make a decision.
You only have until 4 November 2020 to make a decision, less than 6 months…
Ugh. That’s right. Dam!
Man, I don’t like it. Ok, if we call it a price increase - it is a hell of a price increase.
Let me play devils advocate a bit more and talk about some grievances discussed in this topic 
Trimble SketchUp Pro has been advertised as an affordable modeling and visualization platform that can be adjusted to anyone’s needs with the help of plugins. Every major update has brought incremental improvements to the engine, tools and connectivity with other software. I’d say that Trimble has been very consistent in the communication about this.
You want more tools added?
Let me tell you - most users don’t even know about Solid, Sandbox and Advanced Camera tools or have a big need to use them. The functionality of basic tools can definitely be improved but KISS is the main principle why people like working with SketchUp. It’s the only program I hear people have fun while using it. You take that away from the core offer and you will get variation and price of any other CAD/BIM/AEC… product.
Trimble should make their own SketchUp plugins!
They already do. But they are connected to the larger Trimble product portfolio.
You don’t need Web, Shop, Free, School, Viewer, VR, XR, AR or TC?
Well, good for you but the ways that people use, view and access information is quickly shifting and no software developer wants to be left behind this process. Yes, that takes focus and resources away from SketchUp Pro but is a necessary evil to stay relevant among competitors.
Will you ever see big feature additions to SketchUp?
You already have - that is where SketchUp Studio comes in and brings advanced tools for design professionals. And yes, it’s not relevant for most users now, but wait and see what new features will be added to the product in the future. The big question I have - will users prefer to buy these advanced features as a plugin or as a part of a larger software suit? As a SketchUp user, you will have a chance to vote with your wallet.
When my subscription ends I will lose all access to my models!
No. You. Wont.
You can open the model with Sketchup Viewers, Trimble Connect, SketchUp Free and SketchUp Make 2017. You can also continue to use your Pro perpetual licenses until you lose them somewhere… or take a few month trial when you need it.
I don’t want SaaS!
Listen Simba, everything the cloud touches becomes SaaS.
What about that shadowy place?
That is the land of blender, you must never go there!
Thank-you for a detailed response. I think you make some excellent points and I do believe that SketchUp has made some substantial incremental improvements the last few years.
Honestly, I’m not that opposed to a price increase or even SaaS if it means that SketchUp now has the funds to really beef up SketchUp and Layout and take them to the next level.
My biggest issue has always been Layout. If we can somehow increase the horsepower and turn Layout into a well oiled machine, who knows, we might finally put the Revit and AutoCAD juggernaut in its place.
At its core SketchUp itself is pretty adequate in my opinion. Yes, a few more basic tools might be nice (ie. fillet/chamfer tool), but overall I do like the KISS principle that SketchUp has adopted from day one and continues to follow. But please rename Tags back to Layers, that change has always been very confusing and unneeded in my opinion. Tags typically denote a label affixed to a single item to specify certain attributes or properties.
The ability to handle higher polygon models is always a concern and some attention in that area is certainly warranted. However, I would argue that your model should be lean and mean or at least that should always be your goal when modeling.
Yes, you can only open your models in Make 2017, but only if you save them in the 2017 file format, so your comment that you won’t lose access to your models should come with that caveat.
Didnt we get the Web version in that cycle?
(never used it)
Personally I’ve made peace with this, I think a lot of long time users have as well.
Yes, good for us. When we don’t need or want extras that is tagged on to justify higher prices, don’t force it on us. And don’t make it to look like you’re doing us a favor or that we are somehow now in the dark ages because we don’t need or want it. Rather structure your products to better serve the needs of the your clients, but it structured that way already, we have (or should I say had) the SU Pro perpetual licence sans all the extra stuffs that are useless to us. Quite frankly, the worlds you can build in SketchUp cannot compare to the ones you can do in some other software on the market, some of them free. Then the accompanying hardware requirements are not to be scoffed at.
We’ve voted with our wallets in the past, we bought a SU Pro licence, we paid our annual M+S religiously in an attempt to have the software we use and love stay current. Yes, I know there are many user who buy it once off and that’s that, they still bought the software and it fulfills their needs as is. Now we’re being asked to make a choice, you can have any colour as long as it’s black, not happening. We’ll vote with our wallets again, we’ll keep them closed.
Dear man, if you please give things a little thought and read the licencing terms and conditions. For commercial purposes you need an accompanying licence. Models / files that are of commercial purpose would only really need to be opened because we need to work with, on or from them. Viewer will not do that. SU2017 Make could do that with Eneroth’s extension “Open Newer Version” but you won’t have Layout and you’ll be in contravention of licencing terms and conditions and expose yourself to litigation. SketchUp Free online version, same problem as with SU2017 Make, apart that it won’t run extensions. How do you make changes to and create / develop SKP models with Trimble Connect, you can’t as it is an intermediary service. And why if I already have a perpetual licence would I be worried about subscription woes, this just proves the point. And how do you take a few months trial? And what happens at the end of the trial? Clients are notorious for putting things on hold and then get back to you 1 or 2 months later with some additional requirements and / or amendments they would like, how does that help then?
No, we want perpetual licencing with optional M+S. Don’t conflate SaaS and subscription software, it’s not the same thing, SketchUp has it’s toe in both those ponds at the moment. In the end I support neither, what you have under your control will path your way to future success or failure in trying times.
TIP OF THE DAY
Please don’t mention Blender, people here seem to be sensitive that way.
Amen!
This is my worry! The only definite is a price hike and your arm up your back! It really concerns me that there is no carrot, just a vague, woolly suggestion that the increased revenue will lead to improvements. Based on the development over the last few years, I am sceptical to say the least. As I’ve said on another thread, to me, Trimble need to put their money where their mouth is first and show us what we can expect! That’s how you attract custom and loyalty!
Bang on! Well said
The question that I had was:
If you renew your Classic M&S in June, and by November you become convinced that migrating to subscription is what you should do, the Classic license gets marked as ‘migrated’, and you are now getting support via your subscription and not the M&S that was going to last until June next year. But, does that mean your Classic 2020 license won’t be updated to 2021, assuming that comes out during your original M&S period?
Apparently it will be updated. If you have M&S that ends after 2021 is released, and of course I can’t tell you what date that would be, you will get your 2020 license upgraded to 2021, even if you migrated to subscription in the meantime.
Just to be clear: the 2021 license would be a perpetual license in such a scenario, yes? In other words, if the user’s subscription were to be terminated at (any) point, the 2021 license would remain valid “forever”?
What’s going to happen to those of us who have relied on annual Faculty discounts (via Creation Engine) to stay current? Or Students, or Non-Profits? It would have been nice to have been notified of this so I could get a new license that’d expire next May to replace the one that is expiring in December. Is there an ability to make our current licenses stay in effect with no upgrade eligibility? I’ve been able to teach my students so much and don’t know what we’re going to do going forward.
Clear as mud now lol…Let me rephrase what I’m looking for.
- I’m thinking of paying my M&S now, up at the end of June. This will entitle me to SU2021 as long as it comes out before June 2021?
- I’m also thinking of getting a subscription now since a discount is available, will this replace my perpetual license ?
- What I want to know is can I have both a perpetual and subscription at the same time totally separate ? Basically 2 licenses, and can the subscription discount be used this way or is the “discount” just to migrate my perpetual license ? If that’s the case Trimble isn’t really showing any love to long time Pro users.
Yes, the permanent license would be upgraded from 2020 to 2021, and would continue to work if they stop subscribing.
I think that to be safe you could wait and renew support at the end of June, then any time after that do the migration.
They are different products, you could continue to use your classic license on two of your machines, and also use your subscription on two other machines you own.
For most education licenses the user will have switched from the old $50 per year of Classic license, to $55 per year for a Studio subscription. As far as I know the $55 product will continue, so most education users are not affected.
@Steve_Ketchup may know more about any lingering Classic education licenses.
Higher education faculty were allowed to “buy” a free 1-year license from Creation Engine, and have been for several years now.
I don’t know what the current or future states of those are. Steve works specifically with education, he will know better than I do.