SketchUp trays - an old, neglected problem

Technical Problems SketchUp
1

Two years ago, when I was tired of fighting it alone, I wrote here about the fact that SketchUp (and Layout) has a serious UI issue - it is not possible to save the workspace (including the location and content of the trays), as can be done, for example, with hotkeys.

It often happens that when you open a program, you see - oops! - no tray, and sometimes no toolbars either.

Sometimes, even once is not enough to restore the contents and layout of the trays, for some time they have to be restored in each session, until the program understands that I am not doing it by accident, but want it to remain that way. All this is long and laborious.

This option - saving the workspace - has long been provided by every self-respecting software developer, not to mention the ability to create multiple workspaces for performing various tasks. Even this “insignificant” option (however differently one evaluates it, since there has been no reaction from the developer for two years) determines the use of the software product as a professional work tool. I already called for it to become more user-friendly then, and I can repeat it again.

Other users have also made similar requests.

Nothing has changed in these two years and after yet another time when for some reason that I don’t understand the entire tray layout completely disappears and I have to recreate it right when I don’t have time, it makes me seriously reconsider using this software in the future. There is no shortage of alternatives at the moment.

Sorry for the irritated tone, but over the years, fighting this nonsense, I have lost a lot of working hours and as you know, time is money.

Do you like losing money? I don’t.

2 Likes
2

sketchup and layout automatically save the trays and their position when you (properly) close the application.

sounds like you didn’t install it properly. you need to download the installer, right click on it / run as administrator and then repair.

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3

if you are pc based, 2026 will be a happy year for you.

4

I hope so.

5

It’s a very nice theory, but in practice it doesn’t happen. This bug has been around since at least the 2021 version, if not earlier. Not on a single computer and not on a single installation. It’s fine if the program can’t handle something, but then there has to be a mechanism to restore the previous state.

6

idk. I’ve only seen this on bad installs, and I’ve always seen it solved by repairing… on many computers, and many installs, over many version and many years.

7

First rule of beta club is we don’t talk about beta club… :wink:

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8

If you encounter this issue again can you make a copy of your private preferences before closing SketchUp and shoot me an email? It’s not been something I’ve encountered before so it’d help to see if your preferences haven’t been saving out correctly.

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9

Experiences vary. In any case, workspace management in SketchUp is one of those basic things that needs much more flexibility and user participation. I appreciate that many cosmetic changes are being made and new options are added to the use of tools, but these are higher-level improvements, and one could only be happy about them if the basics were in order.

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Yes, but what do you mean by private preferences, how do I collect them and send them to you?

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On windows, they’ll be located in AppData/Local/Sketchup/SketchUp 2025/SketchUp/PrivatePreferences.json

This is where all workspace related settings are currently saved, and any time you close SketchUp it will snapshot those settings.

2 Likes
12

All i can add is:

Yes, trays and toolbars do move around a lot and sometimes at random. this occurs when working on different monitors etc (eg going between office and home). Even if i move them or close them accidentally, it would be good to get them back to original.

A simple “reset” button would go a long way. I shouldn’t have to repair a windows installation, delete Preferences.json, and all that stuff… I have paid work to do!

And Yes I agree - a simple fix - Workspaces - plural. One for Modelling, one for client presentations (ie, hide everything uncessary), one for doing Colour/Style adjustments…Easy. Cleans up all the mess.

Part of the issue is also if i have multiple SketchUp instances open, possibly on different monitors/setups, and i’m adjusting trays, etc, on one of them , then sketchup is likley to “remember” a certain layout that i may not want it to have as my default next time.

2 Likes
13

Thanks for info!

14

I completely agree. The last time I lost my trays was in exactly such a situation - after working in the office, opening my laptop at home.

I wonder why Trimble does not follow the best examples of software developers, who take care that their products become more and more user-friendly, while preserving all the best features of their past. For example, I have been working with Adobe products for 30 years and have always been grateful to them for the fact that innovations have not affected my work habits in any way, because all the usual things always remain where they are. Similarly, Solidworks, Onshape and a lot of other programs are built in such a way that you can work with their latest version just as well as the one released many years ago.

Of course, we have a leader who damages users’ brains with each new version - Microsoft. But we do not need to learn from bad examples.

P.S. By the way, I really don’t like the look of the new buttons on the toolbars, which are hard for me to distinguish from each other. I would be grateful if I, as a user, had the option to switch back to the old ones.

2 Likes
15

Im not sure Trimble is totally at fault. There was another owner of SketchUp before Trimble. I keep hearing about the problems that are involved in unifying the UI between Mac and PC and how the code that runs all of that has to be “re-developed”. Which might be my naive way of saying that they are having to dig out of a code quagmire and it isn’t easy to do that and keep the app working as is.
SketchUp is not like most of the apps on the market. It’s sold as a free powerhouse that your grandma can model with and that power users use to produce top shelf models and documentation. Solidworks and Onshore are targeted at power-users. Their code strategy is different and their audience is different. If either of them had to make their UI easy for grandma to model her 3D printed thimbles, I think it would be an apples to apples comparison.

edit: free for beginners and paid for pro’s who need bigger tool sets.

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I know that SketchUp, developed by @Last Software, was originally a free program from Google, which was then divided into free and paid (Pro) parts. I have been using it since 2008.While this arrangement existed, everything was understandable. But as a pure paid program, it should meet much higher requirements.

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what is it with today…

sketchup, made by Last Software, was a paid program. not free.
after it got bought by google, they released a free version IN ADDITION to the paid one that already existed, because they wanted users to do free work for them and model the world.
these days, there is a paid version, a paid ipad version, and there is a free version in your browser.

I know, because I’ve been using it since 2007.

18

And, none of that will ever change the fact that Trimble now owns the results of the 20 years of development that they bought into.

The result of that for the user is one of three solutions:

  1. Find a new app.
  2. Change your own patterns so the issues aren’t issues.
  3. Don’t do anything.

If it matters that much, get on the beta program and test and comment. You will get the advantage of knowing where they are going and you can actually be heard by the product managers.

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I’ve never delved into this issue that deeply. I’ll just tell it as it affected me as a user. In 2008, it was already a Google program and, as far as I remember, the paid and free versions at that time did not fundamentally differ in the capabilities necessary for a wide range of users. Later, however.

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  1. I’m already on my way to that.
  2. Hardly. I create other types of models in other programs.
  3. Yes, of course, that’s the easiest.

Adding another beta test would be too much for me, although I won’t hide that it sounds tempting. Especially when it concerns a program that I’ve been using for 17 years.