Copying and distribution of this article is not permitted. and dimensioned 2d views78 F I N E w o o d w o r k i n gPhotos: Matt Berger drawings: Tim KillenCOPYRIGHT 2007 by The Taunton Press, Inc. It enables you to plan and visualize projects on your computer, not as static drawings, but as models you can take apart, put back together, and view from any angle. Both versions runon Windows or Apple computers.A half-day training course offered by the program’s developerconvinced me that SketchUp could let me renderthe necessary shapes, moldings, curves, and joinery I usewhen I design furniture (Google still offers the training).I was especially struck by the power of SketchUp’s “component”tool, which treats the 3D shapes I draw like solidA scale drawing. SketchUp is a free three-dimensional modeling software application available from Google by clicking here. SketchUp Pro,a for-pay version that I use in my business, sells for $495and includes features that I seldom use. Better yet,Google offers a free version that’s comprehensive enoughto let you design very complex furniture. For example, they didn’t let me see a piece inperspective, the way a viewer would see it later, or createexploded views of assemblies, or design complex joints.Then, two years ago, a breakthrough-I found GoogleSketchUp, a 3D drawing program from the company thatoperates the biggest Internet search engine. The 2Dcomputer-aided drawing (CAD) systems I tried were OKbut limited. A Quick Course in SketchUpThis powerful 3D drawingprogram is easy to use-and it’s freeB y T i m K i l l e nFor years I dreamed of using the computer to designfurniture-being able to work out the proportionseasily, preview the construction and avoid mistakes,even to see how the piece would look in the room.
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