SketchUp skills and relevance in the workplace

[am_i_wry]

This thread was split from Organic Modelling in SketchUp thread

I have to say if thats what you want to do from your model then you really shouldnt be using Sketchup. Yes you can play tennis with a spade but it will be much more difficult than using a racket.....In terms of being a student and developing skills i would also suggest that you need to break out of the nice easy wee sketchup ghetto. Employers want sketchup but they also need Autocad, they might want Rhino or Max, they may very soon need Revit. You would be better served looking at other, more suitable software options rather than just what is more expedient. If i interviewed someone who had spent their student years deriving their GA drawings from Sketchup models i would think more than twice about employing them.

[Ross Millaney]

Originally Posted by am_i_wry

I have to say if thats what you want to do from your model then you really shouldnt be using Sketchup. Yes you can play tennis with a spade but it will be much more difficult than using a racket.....In terms of being a student and developing skills i would also suggest that you need to break out of the nice easy wee sketchup ghetto. Employers want sketchup but they also need Autocad, they might want Rhino or Max, they may very soon need Revit. You would be better served looking at other, more suitable software options rather than just what is more expedient. If i interviewed someone who had spent their student years deriving their GA drawings from Sketchup models i would think more than twice about employing them.

I know that but thats not the point of this-I can use Autocad, sketchup. artlantis studio, and archicad perfectly-I have a year out now which i intend to teach myself 3ds max and maxwell during this period whilst I work on the velux competition(future of light)...my point is that I want to do a work around in the meantime because i dont have time to teach myself a new programme-I want to use the tools available to me at the moment so I can concentrate on my design and its development...also I cant afford 3ds max-Im a student!

[am_i_wry]

Well one would never suggest that any software one might want is avaliable in a free or almost free form somewhere....what i kind of dont get is the fact that you are trying to learn to do something that you dont know how to do in Sketchup and you have time to do that yet you dont have time to learn how to do it in something more appropriate and sellable...I have to admit that i dislike this kludge culture that SU seems to be generating. Yes its cheap, yes its easy, but if it takes me days to produce something i could do in minutes in another package then i am wasting time and money with it.

[Ross Millaney]

'If i interviewed someone who had spent their student years deriving their GA drawings from Sketchup models i would think more than twice about employing them.'

Why do you say this-this is a very accurate method-I think people underestimate Sketchup-sure its easy to use but in terms of orthogonal modelling its very useful-the output is disgusting imo but if you export sections and axos etc to autocad you can produce some very tidy and accurate drawings that can be further worked up. And no I havent spent all my student years exporting-but at the end of it all I want the most accurate and beautiful drawings possible-SU is a tool that will help me achieve that.

[Ross Millaney]

Well I can see that were not going to agree here-the reason I want to stay with SU is that I know that Im less likely to make a mistake as I understand completely what Im doing-its only a new method to learn whereas a new programme will mean a new interface and a new work methology to learn...

[am_i_wry]

Originally Posted by Ross Millaney

'If i interviewed someone who had spent their student years deriving their GA drawings from Sketchup models i would think more than twice about employing them.'

Why do you say this-this is a very accurate method-I think people underestimate Sketchup-sure its easy to use but in terms of orthogonal modelling its very useful-the output is disgusting imo but if you export sections and axos etc to autocad you can produce some very tidy and accurate drawings that can be further worked up. And no I havent spent all my student years exporting-but at the end of it all I want the most accurate and beautiful drawings possible-SU is a tool that will help me achieve that.

Dont get me wrong, we want SU skills. What we need more, and value more are skills in Autocad. Thats mostly because we dont use SU for producing drawings and i cant forsee the time when we will. We recognise that graduates will need time and will need to learn on the job but we arent in the business of teaching basic skills like CAD and large firms have CAD standards that need to be complied with. You obviously have CAD skills so thats less of an issue but i would still tend to think that if you have SU skills and you have a chance to learn something new then the new thing is better on your CV.

[Ross Millaney]

LOL!no of course not-Ive got eighteen months-15 months of working and 3 months of travelling-Im hoping to move to London for awhile(my Dad lives there M-F) and try and get some experience there too. Also planning to learn the saxophone ...well see if I achieve this-hopefully the velux will keep me focused!Torrents?!-could try these guys who provide backup cds-supposably legal! - http://www.cdrbstore.net/index.php

[Ross Millaney]

I taught parametric modelling to firms last summer-I worked for a graphisoft distributor and learnt/taught archicad 10 there...I think parametric modelling is the furure-even Hadid is advocating it-just wish i could model a hologram on site at 1:1 scale...with my hands-now that would be intuitive!

[lewisuk]

I'd go for more of a 12/6 working travelling split personally but i suppose you're not working to ARB requirements in ireland are you? Its always good to have travelling at the end of a cad monkeying placement to look forward to and i think the velux will help with that too.
Regarding the backup cds- nooooo, i doubt very much if they're legal and apart from that there is no point whatsoever in paying if you're going to go down that road. i've heard you can go to bittorrent.com - download the software and then go to a site like torrentspy.com (it looks like a porn site but has all kinds of stuff on) and search for software.

[Ross Millaney]

Fairdoo's!Personally I prefer owning the manual but each to their own!Any tips on work in the uk?!do you think ill have much chance in London?!considering ill be set up and wont have to deduct living costs from wages?!