topic Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad in Modeling

Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Anonymous — Tue, 23 May 2023 13:04:42 GMT

I'm currently having a few problems exporting a sketchup model into archicad to create a roof structure i thought was impossible to achieve using Archicad alone.

So i created these roof structures of varying height and complexity with the intention of simply exporting into Archicad using the sketchup export add-on i have installed.

Yet when i attempt to export the file into Archicad i get absoloutely nothing..not even an error message saying it had failed...just a blank plan and nothing in 3d.

I have attached a screenshot of the roofs created in sketchup ready for export. If anyone can suggest any way of overcoming this problem i'd be extremely grateful

Thanks alot,

James

P.S Im using AC12 on a computer with dual core processor - 3GB RAM and 145GB Hard Drive

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Anonymous — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 18:11:43 GMT

peach49 wrote:
Yet when i attempt to export the file into Archicad i get absoloutely nothing..not even an error message saying it had failed...just a blank plan and nothing in 3d.

What version of SketchUP are you using?

PeterKis wrote:
- The current SketchUP add-on supports .skp file format up to v6. When you exchange data with the SketchUP application, please be sure that the appropriate file format is used.

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Anonymous — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 08:45:46 GMT

ah...i think im using Sketchup 7 at work where im attempting to do the export...i've just tryed to export another file using V6 at home and its worked fine...so ill give that a try tomorrow!

Thanks very much for your help

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

vfrontiers — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 10:29:02 GMT

Loosely related:

I believe I saw one of the tutorials showing that objects from GOOGLE WAREHOUSE can be DROPPED right into ArchiCAD.... Is this TRUE? I don't recall it explaining the methodology...

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Erika Epstein — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 16:08:55 GMT

After installing the plugin:
File>Google Earth Connections>Import Model from 3D Warehouse.

Works a treat!

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

vfrontiers — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 19:40:41 GMT

Are you freakin kidding me! Another NOT AVAILABLE for MACINTOSH crap...

Ugh... I quit...

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Karl Ottenstein — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 20:02:42 GMT

Yes, a frustration for Mac users with no timeline for a fix, as the problem relates to software issues between the Google programming interface (API) and the methodologies used by ArchiCAD to date.

One workaround if you have a SketchUp Pro license is to save things out of SketchUp as 3DS and use the 3DS importer in ArchiCAD.

That just brings up a separate annoyance with Google (continuing the exact policies of @Last, who they acquired): a SketchUp Pro license is only for one platform - Mac or Windows. You have to pay for the other platform, or go through hoops to switch platforms. Not unlike Adobe. All of these guys let you install software on one desktop and one portable computer - but will not provide licenses that let your portable be a different OS. Stinks. Definitely a nice thing about ArchiCAD (with dongle) and Artlantis (with internet activation).

Karl

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Dennis Lee — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:16:00 GMT

vfrontiers wrote:
Are you freakin kidding me! Another NOT AVAILABLE for MACINTOSH crap...

Ugh... I quit...

I wonder if this is a result of a bigger fight going on....Google vs Apple ?
They are competing in the smart phone business for sure and probably many more, and it's quite possible that things are not that friendly between the two giants... and maybe Graphisoft is just an innocent (powerless) bystander in this. Just some speculating...

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Eduardo Rolon — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 22:40:04 GMT

Google's CEO? Eric Schmidt is on Apple's Board therefore that might be a very strange war.

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

owen — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:53:20 GMT

peach49 wrote:
I'm currently having a few problems exporting a sketchup model into archicad to create a roof structure i thought was impossible to achieve using Archicad alone.

So i created these roof structures of varying height and complexity with the intention of simply exporting into Archicad using the sketchup export add-on i have installed.

Sorry I can't help with the problem .. but my understanding was the SketchUp conversion process would convert everything to 3 ArchiCAD elements - Slabs, Walls and Roofs. For ArchiCAD to import the SketchUp model it has to be something AC is capable of modeling with those tools - so it is possible to model it in ArchiCAD, just maybe not as quickly as SketchUp.

Personally i always found the SketchUp import to be a bit of a mess (99.9 degree roofs stretching to infinity, etc) .. but it has been a long time since i tried it out so maybe it has improved.

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Karl Ottenstein — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 03:47:38 GMT

owen wrote:
.. but my understanding was the SketchUp conversion process would convert everything to 3 ArchiCAD elements - Slabs, Walls and Roofs. For ArchiCAD to import the SketchUp model it has to be something AC is capable of modeling with those tools...

This is part of the confusion / problem (but not the Mac one). Graphisoft has two separate SketchUp import functions. One is part of the Google Earth Connection. It will bring skp files in as objects. The other is the SketchUp importer, which attempts to convert skp surfaces into ArchiCAD elements.

They each appear in the interface in what I consider ambiguous ways. For example, Open > .skp is different than Merge > .skp and a few other ways that I cannot recall of getting to a skp file. You really never know what kind of import you are doing until you've begun and/or it is finished. So, perhaps Mac users are blessed by not having to be confused. 😉

Karl

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

owen — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 11:26:19 GMT

Karl wrote:
owen wrote:
.. but my understanding was the SketchUp conversion process would convert everything to 3 ArchiCAD elements - Slabs, Walls and Roofs. For ArchiCAD to import the SketchUp model it has to be something AC is capable of modeling with those tools...
This is part of the confusion / problem (but not the Mac one). Graphisoft has two separate SketchUp import functions. One is part of the Google Earth Connection. It will bring skp files in as objects...

Thanks Karl .. i did not know that the Google Earth Connection brought them in as objects not elements. It sounds very useful in theory (there is a huge range of SKP objects) but i guess its usefulness depends on how well the objects are converted (same issue with 3DS). I had previously tried bringing SKP objects in via 3DS but the results were always pretty terrible - lines where you dont want them, missing polygons, etc

I had never got around to firing up VMWare to test out direct import - do you think it is any better?

On the issue of the Mac Google Earth Connection .. a while back our local AC reseller came into my old office to do an AC12 introduction. Near the end he spent 5 mins getting everyone excited about the new Google Earth connection. But strangely when it came to actually showing a demo of the plugin he had 'forgotten to install it' on his (Mac) laptop. This was to an all-Mac office too, which he knew. I knew what the real problem was but didn't think calling him out on it in front of 50 people was the right thing to do..

Re: Problems Exporting a Sketchup File Into Archicad

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 13:42:58 GMT

Hey Everybody,

MAC USERS.....

Check into Bonzai3d (www.bonzai3d.com). Created by the people who developed FORM-Z. FREE BETA download. For MAC and PC. Saves to 30 file formats. Their technical people say "NO PROBLEM" exporting to Archicad. NURBS and BOOLEAN capabilities. Supposed to compete with Sketchup. Some say its better than Sketchup.

HTH,

Greg