The first time you use SketchUp, you need to sign in to activate your trial or subscription. After you're signed in, the Welcome to SketchUp dialog box appears, as shown here. This dialog box is your starting point for creating a model and appears every time you start SketchUp (unless you choose to turn it off in the SketchUp Preferences dialog box).
The place to share and download SketchUp 3D models for architecture, design, construction, and fun. SketchUp Studio has everything you need to bring your green designs to life. Draw in 3D, analyze and improve building performance, and share your ideas.
In the Welcome to SketchUp dialog box, you can; choose a template for your model, set the default template, open recent files, browse for an existing file, or license a copy of SketchUp Pro (see Understanding Your License for details), and learn more about SketchUp.
Tip: If you’re new to SketchUp, this article is a great place to warm up your 3D modeling skills. You find an overview of how to select a template, move around the SketchUp interface, create a basic model, and save your model.
Table of ContentsSelecting a template
Every model in SketchUp is based on a template, which has predefined settings for your model’s background and units of measurement. When you begin a new model, selecting a template with the correct unit of measurement makes modeling easier.
Here’s how to select a template in the Welcome to SketchUp dialog box:
Tip: While you’re working in SketchUp, you can access the Welcome to SketchUp window anytime. On the menu bar, simply select Help > Welcome to SketchUp. After you become comfortable creating 3D models in SketchUp, you can create a custom template that reflects your preferences.
Exploring the SketchUp interface
When SketchUp opens, ready for you to start creating a 3D model, you see a screen that includes the following:
Title bar
The title bar contains the standard window controls (close, minimize, and maximize) and the name of the currently open file. When you start SketchUp, the name of the currently open file is Untitled, indicating that you have not yet saved your work.
Menu bar
The majority of SketchUp tools, commands, and settings are available within the menus on the menu bar. The menus are: SketchUp (Mac only), File, Edit, View, Camera, Draw, Tools, Window, and Help.
Getting Started toolbar
When you begin using SketchUp, the Getting Started toolbar is the one you see by default. It contains the basic tools you need to begin creating 3D models.
To display additional toolbars, select View > Toolbars. In the Toolbars dialog box that opens, select the toolbars you want to see and click Close. In macOS, you can display tool palettes by selecting View > Tool Palettes. (Learn more about the toolbars and how to customize them in the Customizing SketchUp section of the Help Center.)
Tip: This article introduces you to a few basic tools. As you continue learning how to create 3D models in SketchUp, the Instructor can teach you (or remind you) how to use each tool. See Learning how to use SketchUp tools for details.
Drawing area
The drawing area is where you create your model. The 3D space of the drawing area is identified visually by the drawing axes, which provide a sense of direction in 3D space while you work.
The drawing area might also contain a simple model of a person to give you a sense of 3D space.
Status bar
When you’re getting started with SketchUp, the two important elements on the status bar are the tips in the middle and the Measurements box on the right:
Tip: Did the Measurements box disappear? The most likely reason is that your SketchUp window size is larger than your available screen viewing area. To recover your view of the Measurements box, click the Maximize button in the title bar.
If you’re a Windows user and enable the Auto-Hide the taskbar option, the Measurements box can slip behind the taskbar when you have the taskbar displayed. In this case, the Measurements box reappears when you’re done using the taskbar.
Note: On the left side of the status bar, you find buttons to geolocate and claim credit. These options help you work with advanced SketchUp features that are beyond the scope of this article.
Default panels
On the right side of the screen, you see a tray of panels, including the Instructor, Materials, Styles, and so on. The Default Tray appears when you open SketchUp, but you can close the Default Tray of panels by click the Close button in the upper right. Toggle the tray so it's visible or hidden via the Window > Default Tray submenu.
Sketchup 19 0 1684 – Create 3d Design Concepts Worksheets![]()
On the right side of the screen, you see a tray of panels, including the Instructor, Materials, Styles, and so on. The Default Tray appears when you open SketchUp, but you can close any tray by clicking its Close button. To reopen a tray, select it from the Window menu.
Learning how to use SketchUp tools
As you use SketchUp, the Instructor and the status bar give you pointers on using each tool.
The Instructor teaches you how to use the currently selected tool. To turn on the Instructor, shown here, select Window > Instructor, or click the question mark icon in the status bar. Here’s what the Instructor has to offer:
Sketchup 19 0 1684 – Create 3d Design Concepts Worksheet Answers
The Instructor teaches you how to use the currently selected tool. To turn on the Instructor, shown here, select Window > Instructor, which you find in the Default Tray. Here’s what the Instructor has to offer:
The Instructor teaches you how to use the currently selected tool. To turn on the Instructor, shown here, select Window > Instructor. Here’s what the Instructor has to offer:
If the Instructor offers more detail that you need, remember that the status bar also offers tips on using the selected tool. See the Status bar section earlier in this article for details.
Viewing the SketchUp Quick Reference Card
The Quick Reference Card is an easy-to-print guide to all the SketchUp tools and their modifier keys. Keep it handy as you start using SketchUp and you’ll learn to model quickly and efficiently. Here's what the Quick Reference card looks like:
To download a PDF of the Quick Reference card, click the link that corresponds to your operating system:
Note: Looking for the LayOut quick reference cards? Click here.
Creating your first 3D model in SketchUp
If you’ve never created a 3D model in SketchUp (or any other modeling program), the following steps offer a quick overview the basics:
Saving and reopening a model
To save your model, follow these steps:
Backing up a SketchUp file or restoring an Auto-save file
SketchUp creates a backup file the second time you successfully save your SketchUp file and any subsequent saves. This file is an exact copy of the previously saved version of the file. The backup file uses the naming convention
FILENAME.skb on Windows and FILENAME~.skp on macOS, and it's located in the same folder as the original file.
If SketchUp crashes while you're working on a model, the recovered file is not deleted. By default, SketchUp automatically saves your files every five minutes while you're actively working. You can recover your work from the point the last automatic save was performed by opening the recovered file. To find and open a recovered file, open the Welcome to SketchUp window, select the Files tab, and select the file you want to recover from the Recent list.
Comments are closed.
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |