SketchUp 1.2: easy 3D model building. (reviews).(Software Review)(Evaluation)

ALTHOUGH COMPUTERS have changed the way architects work, architects often complain that CAD systems are not well-suited to basic design--the preliminary sketching of ideas at the earliest phases of a project.

Anyone who feels this way should take a look at SketchUp from @Last Software. SketchUp is a 3D modeling program that enables users to sketch in 3D space as easily as if they were drawing with pencil and paper. Although usable by almost anyone who needs to create models in 3D, SketchUp is targeted specifically at architects and designers.

SketchUp presents a deceptively simple user interface. But it's the program's simplicity that makes it so powerful. To sketch in 3D, you simply draw in 2D, then push and pull the resulting shapes to create 3D objects. Autodesk's soon-to-be-released Architectural Studio (see pg. 54, October 2001) uses a slightly different pen-and-paper approach to architectural design.

SketchUp initially presents a top view, with the X- and Y-axis displayed in red and green, respectively. The program treats this red-green plane as the ground plane. When you switch to a different viewpoint, the Z-axis displays as a blue line.

The Pencil is the primary drawing tool. As you draw an edge, the edge's length appears on a status bar. You can snap to preset increments, or type in desired distances. You also can snap to endpoints and midpoints of existing objects, and easily draw parallel or perpendicularly to existing edges.

Once you've drawn all the edges of a face, SketchUp fills it in. You can then use the Push/Pull tool to drag the face to create a 3D object. For example, once you've drawn a rectangle on the ground plane, you just drag that face to create a box--or an office tower.

The shapes you create don't have to be rectilinear. To create a gable roof, for example, you can draw a line on the top of the box, then use the Move/Copy tool to drag that new edge in the Z direction. SketchUp treats that edge as the ridge of the gable, angling the roof faces and extending the end elevation faces into a gable shape. You also can create curved shapes using the Arc tool, then use Push/ Pull to use those curves to change the shape ...