# Sketchup and alternatives?



## ChuckBarnett (Jan 5, 2013)

I am getting started in this stuff and see a fair amount about Sketchup. I looked at the program for about 3 minutes awhile back and didn't find it clicking with me. It's not like I'm going to use a drawing program very often and should use something simple.

I wonder if there are alternatives or I should just quit sniveling :crying:and figure it out?

Thanks!

Chuck Barnett


----------



## rinn69 (Feb 12, 2016)

Like most things, there is a learning curve...I've played with it a little, but did start to "get it" after a few hours. The best thing about it, is that the base program is FREE ! Can't beat that !
About a year ago, I met a guy who is a friend of a friend....after a couple of beers, the guy left. My friend said "you know who he is?" and I said "no". He then went on to tell me that he was one of the original designers of Sketch Up and he and his partner sold it to Google for about $30 million....Brad Schell...just an everyday, ordinary guy... Never thought I would meet someone like that around here


----------



## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Sketchup is about the simplest 3d modeling program you can find. Id say stick it out, there is a learning curve, but its a very, very small curve. Takes some doing, but its not hard to get the basics down-pat, and for the ocassional use its not like you really need to know how to work all the fancy stuff


----------



## NickB (Sep 24, 2013)

Youtube, man, youtube.

One of the main benefits of Sketchup is the community of similar users that teach and help each other out. There are literally thousands of quality how-to videos. There's also some great free extensions that automate some of the process for you, but I'd focus on getting the basic navigation and modeling down first.


----------



## CoolWhip (Feb 8, 2016)

NickDIY said:


> Youtube, man, youtube.
> 
> One of the main benefits of Sketchup is the community of similar users that teach and help each other out. There are literally thousands of quality how-to videos. There's also some great free extensions that automate some of the process for you, but I'd focus on getting the basic navigation and modeling down first.


The videos are what helped me. The basics are very simple and watching other do walkthroughs can really help. It's a great program that I use all the time. I'm actually contemplating buying the full version to be able to use for business purposes.


----------

