I am used to using Sketchup 2015 without difficulty. Once I name a component I, it shows up in the component window but it is uneditable. Why?
How are you trying to edit it?
Are you ādouble clickingā on it so as to open it up in itās edit mode?..
or are you right clicking on it and choosing the āEdit Componentā option?
ā¦and neither one of these are working?
If so, you should probably post up the file so folks can take a look.
and the methods mentioned above, have to be done from within the SU modeling spaceā¦ you donāt edit a component from within the components window. It still has to be done within the SU model space.
ā¦that is you donāt edit the basic geometry of the component from within the component windowā¦ you can of course edit itās name, and description, in the text fields.
Thanks very much for your reply. I have tried both methods and the dialogue box that pops up when I select the component using either the double click or select method doesnāt provide an āedit componentā choice but instead shows āmake componentā even though I have already made the object a component.
I have attached a sample file that shows the problem.
Thanks for any help you can provide.
Tom White
379 Bay Laurel Lane
Hendersonville, NC 28791
(828) 698-9315
(828) 551-3261
Example.skp (103 KB)
your example file does not contain a component. It only contains loose geometry. that is edges and faces.
After creating a component you should see something like the following.
Not the Entity Info window shows a component is selected as does the Outliner.
Is it possible you arenāt selecting the edges and faces to make the component or perhaps you are canceling the creation of the component?
Dave beat me but iāll post anyway.
Your sample is raw geometry.
You have created the component but not ticked the Replace box.
If you look at the in model part of the component browser it is there, but the original raw geometry remains.
Thank you very much. I did not understand what the Replace Box was (and I still donāt) but I know that it works. I very much appreciate your help. I spent a lot of time trying to figure this out.
Tom
The Replace Box is letting you decide if you want to swap out the original modelāthat geometry that you used to create the component in the first placeāand instead āreplace itā with an instance of the component you just made.
said another wayā¦
You have an object that you like, and youāve decided youād like to make a component from it.
SketchUp is giving you the option to preserve it in its original stateā¦ thus keeping it as normal geometry (replace box = unchecked)
OR, you can replace it, and it then becomes an instance of the component itself (replace box = checked).
Components are special in that they are a ādefinitionā of an object you want to have in your model.
When you bring a component into the drawing, that copy of the component is referred to as an āinstanceā of that component.
If you you have 10 copies of a component then youād also have 10 instances of it.
One of the big reasons why components are desirable (and also why they differ from standard groups) is that if you edit any of the instances of a component, you are also editing that components definitionā¦ and all other instances of that component change to match what the new definition has become.
Since itās not covered and for completeness, you may ask āwhy would it give this option?ā
if you need to make a variety of similar components, this become very usefulā¦
example: ten sizes of boxes
make one, select āMake Componentā uncheck āReplaceāā¦
re-jig the size/shape, select āMake Componentā, rinse and repeatā¦
john
1 Like
Thank you very much. There is so much to learn. The terrific flexibility of Sketchup also means an entire vocabulary to learn in addition to the functions. Can be a bit overwhelming for a simple woodworker.
Got it. Thank you! This also helps me understand how to duplicate an object without including it in the component. Simple, really, but not entirely intuitive.
Several times I have inadvertently altered a component thinking that it was a group, only to find out an hour later that I have unwanted changes all over the place: why doesnāt SketchUp show components and groups as a different colour when selected?? I suggest components dark red or magenta (as per locked items in Layout) and groups and unique components remain blue.
That has been suggested before. Maybe in SU2017.
I have a different strategy that works for me but I can see that for some, different colored selection boxes would be good.
1 Like
Wink, wink, nudge, nudge: Daveās strategy is to use only Components 
This idea can be expanded upon, and if it makes it into the development phase, I think that it should be.
Rather than force a single color upon folks, let them adjust their own colors with UI color preference settings.
There is a plugin that flags components, and shows you all the components that will be affected by your edit.
Edit Flag
Got it. Thanks for the explanation and the little example.
Thanks. Do you know what the plugin is called? I assume I can download it from the Extension Warehouse, right?
Itās called Edit Flag. The link to it is at the end of Boxās post. Click on the words āEdit Flagā in his post. It isnāt available in the Extension Warehouse. It is from Sketchucation, though.