Google has launched a free version of the 3D modeling software it acquired when it bought @Last Software last month.
SketchUp, a 3D drawing application which Google released recently, is the latest example of a happy, booming software trend: Google or Yahoo buys an innovative small company which makes a for-pay product, and quickly releases a cool free version of its software.
In this case, the innovative company was @Last Software, and SketchUp truly is cool, since it makes the notoriously difficult job of drawing 3D architectural models surprisingly easy. In its Google iteration, it is a complement to Google Earth, one which lets that amazing program’s community of fans build and share buildings to be incorporated into its virtual world.
Google SketchUp Beta, the brand new, free 3D drawing tool is not an obvious fit for the Google desktop application canon. However, this blend of vector-based 3D drawing and CAD-like control lets you rapidly build 3D models that can be exported to numerous bitmap and compressed file formats and, more importantly, geo-coded and shared on the company’s Google Earth satellite imagery program, which is also free. So, it is an undeniably cool, oddball app that has the potential to turn one of Google’s most popular services, Google Earth, into an even more powerful and personal tool.
Google SketchUp, which includes: simple tools for creating 3D models of a variety of items, including houses, sheds, decks, home additions and woodworking projects.
The application comes with bountiful documentation and tutorials, but the user interface is so simple and intuitive that you can start to build rudimentary 3D structures even before your would consult the help system.
If you have ever used a 3D or CAD application, SketchUp is remarkably easy to pick up. There are familiar-looking draw and extrude tools—though, as with virtually all the tools in this app, they have simpler names. Extrude, for example, which gives volume to otherwise flat 2D objects is called "Push/Pull." As in simple CAD tools, there is guidance as you draw lines, arcs, rectangles and circles. Guidance is the key here since all your work is done on a 3D plane, with three-point perspective. In practice, this means that as you draw, SketchUp helps you find the end and middle points of lines and squares—and end the spaces over these lines and squares—and tells you if the square you just drew is really a square. Virtually any plane you draw, on any surface, can be extruded. If you are designing a house, for example, you might push in windows, pull out overhanging roofs or run staircases up, down or around your structure.
In addition, Google has also released 3D Warehouse, which is the online storage for work created in SketchUp. The service enables users to search and share 3D models.
Export/Import
If you already have Google Earth installed, you can download pre-made models directly into SketchUp. To find more models, you will need to install 3D Warehouse. This companion product from Google lets you find other people’s buildings, download them, and use them to start your own models. It is also the only way you can geo-code your own drawing and share it with the Google Earth Community. Other Google Earth users who download 3D Warehouse will be able to see the home-made structures on Google Earth. Google’s goal is to build 3D Google Earth with the help of end-users.
Brad Schell, product management director, Google SketchUp, said that the new Google SketchUp is for the hobbyist, really anyone who wants to build 3D models for use on Google Earth.
But you can have fun with SketchUp without constructing anything from scratch, because its easy to grab models from Google’s 3D Warehouse, a searchable online repository of objects, including excellent recreations of lots of real-world landmarks.
For a free tool, SketchUp does not skimp on power. Shadow settings allow you to dynamically adjust maximum darkness and light, and you can even set the exact time, month, and day. Changing these settings adjusts your shadows in real-time and creates surprisingly realistic results. Setting the Time to late afternoon creates hard, stretched-out shadows. Similarly, SketchUp allows you to paint every surface of your building. It comes with wide variety of interior and exterior materials such as–carpet and brick and also includes a simple material editor so you can blend your own.
When your building’s done, you can walk around it with the walk tool, your feet turn into a tiny set of footprints, using the orbit tool is helpful while creating your drawing to dynamically move all around your drawing, pan, zoom or even completely reposition the camera. All of these functions worked smoothly.
A Deal at Twice the Price
As with any 3D/CAD tool, the more graphics horsepower you have, the better. Also, when you download large, complex models you may notice that SketchUp begins to perform sluggishly. Still, most users will probably create relatively simple structures and those ready to build more complex ones are likely using more powerful systems.
Meanwhile, the company believes that the decision to release a free version of the application is similar to their mission to make information accessible and useful.
However, the free version is available only for Windows 2000 and Windows XP Home and Professional editions. A version for Apple’s Mac OS is on the cards.
The new software requires 80MB of available hard-disk space, a video card that is fully compliant with the OpenGL application specifi-cation, Internet Explorer 6.0 or later, and Windows Media Player or QuickTime 5.0.
The fee-based version, SketchUp Pro 5 that costs around $495, is intended primarily for professionals, such as architects, designers, builders, art directors, and game developers