SketchUp Plugins and Blog: 2006

Plugin: OBJ Importer

Update Dec 28, 2010 - TIG's OBJ Importer, based on this code, is likely a more robust plugin.

This is a basic importer for .obj files.
It works sometimes, but not all the time.
The .obj needs to be fairly well formed.
It does not support textures.
SketchUp is unusable during import.
larger files can take a long time.

obj_importer.rb

There are 2 options: Import and Import as Mesh

Import reads the file and creates faces one by one.
As Mesh allocates a Mesh object, and creates smoothed edges. It can be slightly faster.

SketchUp 3D Warehouse Search

Assign a keyboard shortcut to do a quick search on the 3D Warehouse within SketchUp.

3dw_search.rb

Plagiarist of the Week

I'm thinking of exposing the models on the 3D Warehouse that don't give credit to the original creator (using the ratings.) I think a plagiarist deserves a "poor" rating. What do you think?

ScriptLoader.rb

Uploaded scriptloader.rb - used for loading and re-loading scripts as needed. Re-loading is useful for plugin authors.

http://jim.foltz.googlepages.com/home

I had a couple of ideas for Sketchup models that I'm pretty sure I don't have time to do, so if you're interested, I'd love to see them done.

1. The image toys that change image when you tilt them. This involves a lot of sectioning of the images in an image editor, then lots of importing the sections.

2. 3d Vase shapes based on real peoples facial profile. We've all seen the optical illusion of the vase which is made up of the profiles of 2 faces. You just need to import an image and trace it, then Follow Me it into a circle.

Please let me know of you try any of these ideas.

UPDATE: j swajime has created a SketchUp model of #1. Check it out! He also has a website.

Blogger Plugin

Any interest in being able to post a snapshot from SketchUp to your blog? I don't have a clue how to do it right now, but i think it can be done.

Butterfly Herd

I've been playing with ruby scripting in Sketchup. This is a demo of random placement.

Terrain

I made a quick example of making terrain using Google SketchUp (not pro). It was tedious and the results questionable.

There are several examples of people creating similar models in the 3DW. Here's a few links:

Now compare these to an island done using the Pro version:

Kids Picnic Table

Download SketchUp model.

I got lazy while building this. It doesn't exactly match the model. It's still plenty strong and I may modify the model to match the real one.

Google Window Collection

I put together a model of all the windows I could find made by Google.

You can download it from the 3D Warehouse

Dragon Illusion

Bill was ingenious enough to have thought of this first. It's a very cool optical illusion that started life as a paper model, but works in SketchUp. There was a discussion about the model in the Google SketchUp group

Download it and orbit around.

Tip: Roof Pitch and the VCB

You can enter a roof's pitch right in the VCB if you use a colon. The following image shows the front view of a wall. Using the Protractor tool, select point 1, then select point 2. Move the mouse up slightly in the direction you want the slope to go (up in this case.) Next, enter 6:12 in the VCB. You should have a contruction line with a 6/12 pitch.

Best of 3D Warehouse

Here's a list of artists that caught my eye.

Update: 2006-06-30

I'm sure there's many more - if you have a suggestion leave a comment or email me, I'll update the list. If your on the list and have a web site, please contact me or leave comments. Enjoy.

Tip: Naming Layers

If you use layers in your models, you might consider renaming the layers with a prefix of the model name they are in. For example, I have a shed component I want to use in my house model. My shed model has layers named trim, siding, and roof. You should consider renaming those layers to shed_trim, shed_siding, and shed_roof. The problem is, my house model also has the same layer names. So, the imported shed layers get merged with the house model's layers. The shed siding and the house siding would get merged on one layer called siding. Maybe this is what you want and maybe not. If not, then renaming the shed layers keeps them separate.

One Sheet Plywood Desk

Here's neat little desk and seat you can make from one sheet of plywood. It's a fun excercise, even if you aren't planning on building it. Found here:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/8108/plywooddesk.html

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