A quick Public Service Announcement:
Just wanted everyone to know that Sketchup 2018 is available only in a Pro ($700) version. There is no free desktop version. There is a free web version, however it does not support extensions, so the TF Rubies are not available for it. So if you want to continue using the TF Rubies for designing timber frames with Sketchup, you'll need to remain on the 2017 version, or pony up the cash for the Pro version. CB.
Trimble is getting bad reviews for that decision on their own user forum. Believe me, after using schedule make for a while, even buying sketchup school to help me learn it, I can tell you they still have a lot of things to fix.
I bought SketchUp I think 4 years ago. A week later they released a new version with now reasonable upgrade for me. So I sit with an old version just because of the principle of the thing. I like it but I'm not doing business with it so it makes no sense to upgrade.
Very troubling to read about. I've used the free version for many years now. I'll continue to use my current version as long as it works and maybe look for another program in the future. It's unfortunate that Trimble will not sell a reasonably priced version for the home/hobby users. I would definitely buy one, but I can't justify the cost of the "pro" version,
Fusion 360 is free for personal use. Not sure of the learning curve on it though, pretty fully featured.
i'm using the free version (2017) - will it stop working after a while? does it expire?
The previous free version did not expire but you could "only" do 3-d modeling with it. I need to generate cabin plans and for that you need Layout (part of the purchased product).
Trimble's decision of Sketchup Free without the ability to run plugins is unfortunate for us timber framers. Without the capability to add features and functionality with plugins, the benefits of daiku's (Clark Bremer's) hard work in writing the Timber Frame Rubies will likely fade away.
I performed a little experiment that looks promising but I'm not sure it'll benefit anyone else.
I'm an owner of the Pro license but I often like to sit in my easy chair and doodle with Sketchup Free using my Chromebook. I found that I can draw a frame with Sketchup Free, download it (to Google Drive), open it with Sketchup Pro, run a plugin that performs solid intersections between timber components that generates Sketchup shop drawings and a timber list (as a CSV file). If I choose, I can upload to Sketchup Free using Trimble Connect or I can just print them or save them to Google Drive.
Here's the "frame" in Sketchup Free ("designed" using my Chromebook):
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/24680/SketchupFree.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1515164540)
Opened in Sketchup Pro (on my Macbook Pro):
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/24680/SketchupPro.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1515164540)
And here are the shop drawings for all timbers after running the plugin:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/24680/Beam_1.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1515164541)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/24680/Post_1.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1515164541)
Finally, here's a shot of a shop drawing in the Sketchup Free application (on my Macbook Pro) after uploading it using Trimble Connect:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/24680/Post_1-SketchupFree.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1515165895)
The next step (a relatively trivial one) is to write a script (AppleScript) that would wait for files (Sketchup Free Timber Frame designs) to be uploaded to a particular directory on Google Drive, load them into Sketchup Pro to generate the shop drawings (and timber list) and either upload the generated drawings to Google Drive or upload them back to Sketchup Free via Trimble Connect.
Since the plugin I use on Sketchup Pro operates on only solid components, no plugin is needed in Sketchup Free (which, thankfully, is able to create solid components). Just create the "male" joints (tenons, etc.) and arrange other timbers to intersect them. The "female" portions of the joints will be cut into the intersecting timbers by the plugin. There is no need to use (or create) "joints" like you must with the Timber Frame Rubies.
I think this might be useful to (scores?) of timber framers if this type of service were available to them.
Unfortunately, this will of be little use to anyone else. The Sketchup/Trimble EULA specifically prohibits me from doing this as a service for anyone else (and it's questionable if I can even do it for myself -- so please don't tell anyone ;D)!
I might bring this up in a Sketchup Forum that Trimble employees frequent to hear what they have to say.
Am I mistaken in thinking that sketchup was created as open source software and was developed by volunteers, much like Clark's rubies? If so how can it be held by one corporation? Can't the community of developers just publish it on their own?
Apologies, I've just watched a series of lectures on the Revolutionary War and am ready to kick some tyrant butt :D
Most people think it was originally created by Google, but actually, it was first brought to us by @last Software, a tech company co-founded in 1999 by Brad Schell. With an original release date in August 2000, Schell and his team developed Sketchup as a 3D modeling tool for Architects, designers, and filmmakers.
https://mastersketchup.com/history-of-sketchup/ (https://mastersketchup.com/history-of-sketchup/)