Publish is reporting that Google has released a free version of the popular 3-D drawing program, SketchUp, reviewed so well on TechTalk earlier by Ken (Snyder).
Publish is reporting that Google has released a free version of the popular 3-D drawing program, SketchUp, reviewed so well on TechTalk earlier by Ken (Snyder). The free SketchUp now also incluedes a copy of "3D Warehouse network link", which apparently enables Sketchers to geo-reference SketchUp for viewing within Google Earth.
For example, there's a 3-D SketchUp of a tower at the University of Soutern Califronia, which can be downloaded to SketchUp or Google Earth, and which looks very interesting.
Apparently the commercial version of SketchUp Pro 5 is still available for purchase at $495, and the free Google SketchUp version is for personal use.
SketchUp Founder Brad wrote a very nice message announcing Google's purchase of @Last Software, the creators of SketchUp. He writes in mid-March:
WHAT'S NEW -- Well, about the biggest thing ever: we've been Googled. That's right, Google Inc. has acquired @Last Software… so you might have just spit your coffee all over your keyboard, or you're rolling your eyes thinking this is another one of my April Fool's jokes. Believe me, we're still having a hard time believing it ourselves, but it's real â€" we are now Google!
My guess is that having a free personal version of SketchUp, great tool that it is, will dramatically increase sales as folks like me get used to using it for personal projects, and then find ways to apply it at work and for our clients. I'd love to profile a cool SketchUp project as a Planetizen Feature. If you'd got one that's impressive and related to planning, send me an email.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Data reveals that NYC’s bet on congestion pricing has paid off
After almost two years of the program, reports show positive impacts on traffic and air quality and no disruptions to parking.
HUD modernizes 50-year-old manufactured housing framework
The Next Generation Manufactured Housing Action Plan establishes new energy-efficiency standards for manufactured homes, and new guidelines for anchoring them.
Who pays when a remote Alaska village can no longer stay?
A year after ex-Typhoon Halong, the struggle for two communities to find safer ground has become part of a national debate over who should bear the costs of the climate crisis.
Florida could lose billions in funding for infrastructure, parks
If Amendment 3 passes, Miami-Dade would lose about $445 million annually by fiscal year 2028-29.
New Mexico spent millions drafting climate goals. Data centers are unraveling them
Three data centers in New Mexico and El Paso will release more emissions yearly than 2 million cars in the same timeframe.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
County of Mendocino
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Montrose County
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
