Imagine being able to create a perfect world, a complete utopia of your own. Years ago, this would have been reserved for Richard Branson, but with Google SketchUp, users can choose to reshape the world as it is or create their own.
Computer geniuses or architecture enthusiasts may want to download this new program. Google SketchUp allows users to model anything they can imagine, such as redecorating their family room, inventing new items or even creating an ideal city from Google Earth. There are no boundaries when using Google SketchUp, and it can be downloaded for the low price of free.
Within this software, there are many other special features users can explore. There is the 3D Warehouse, which allows sketch artists to share their own 3-D creations online. A few examples of what can be found in the Warehouse are Porsches, hot tubs, chic sofas, Victorian houses and much more. The items are all put on the website by other users and can then be shared and utilized by others. The entities users can find are endless. Even the suburban houses of America’s own “Desperate Housewives” can be utilized in a user’s own utopia. The Google 3D Warehouse is a library filled with items from the past, present and future.
“Anyone can contribute their models to the 3D Warehouse,” according to the SketchUp website. “If you’ve made something you’re proud of, you have products to sell … this is where to do it.”
For those interested in being architects, Style Builder is an innovative tool. Through Style Builder, sketch artists are able to turn hard-lined computer drawings into amenable sketches, create their own models or drawings and also turn any stroke into a custom style. By using Style Builder, artists are able to create their own sketches with different style effects such as pencil lines, quick pen strokes, graphite marks and many other special effects.
Sketch artists familiar with using a drawing pad will probably feel flustered when first using SketchUp because of all the options available. The SketchUp online page has plenty of tutorial videos that will help amateur SketchUp artists learn the tricks and skills needed to recreate their own ideas.
Also available are international classes taught by SketchUp experts. The first course offered is “LayOut 3,” which teaches the basics of the program and shows students how to use the different amenities within the program. Other classes offered are SketchUp Essentials I and II, SketchUp for geo-modeling, SketchUp Advanced Skills and SketchUp Advanced Landscape. For sketch artists enthused about the program, a local class will be held on April 27 at 3636 Camino Del Rio North.
