The Quickest Ways to Use Google SketchUp 8 Tools
Part of the Google SketchUp 8 For Dummies Cheat Sheet
One of the best things about Google SketchUp 8 is that you can use it to create 3-D models much more quickly than with other modeling programs. You can really turn up the speed on your creations with the following shortcuts for using SketchUp's tools.
| To Do This Task | Here's the Best Way |
|---|---|
| —Navigate— | |
| Orbit with your mouse | Hold down scroll wheel |
| Zoom with your mouse | Roll scroll wheel |
| Pan with your mouse | Hold down Shift and the scroll wheel |
| —Draw— | |
| Draw an edge a certain length with the Line tool | Type a length and press Enter |
| Snip off an edge at the last place you clicked | Press the Esc key |
| Lock your current direction with the Line tool | Hold down the Shift key while drawing with the tool |
| Change the number of sides in a circle, arc, or polygon | Type a number, then type s, and press Enter |
| Draw a circle or an arc of a certain radius | Type a radius and press Enter after you draw a circle |
| —Select with the Select tool— | |
| Add or subtract from what you've selected | Hold down Shift |
| Select everything that isn't hidden | Press Ctrl+A (Command+A on the Mac) |
| Select everything inside a selection box | Click and drag from left to right |
| Select everything touched by a selection box | Click and drag from right to left |
| Select all faces with the same material | Right-click and choose Select→All with Same Material |
| —Move with the Move tool— | |
| Move a certain distance | Type a distance and press Enter after you move |
| Force Auto-Fold (tell SketchUp it's okay to fold) | Press Alt (Command on the Mac) |
| Lock yourself in the blue (up and down) direction | Press the up arrow or down arrow key |
| —Copy with the Move and Rotate tools— | |
| Make a copy with the Move or Rotate tools | Press Ctrl (Option on the Mac) |
| Make multiple copies in a row | Make a copy, type a distance, type x, and press Enter |
| Make multiple copies between | Make a copy, type a number, type /, and press Enter |
| —Hide and Smooth with the Eraser tool— | |
| Hide something | Hold down Shift and click with the Eraser |
| Smooth something | Ctrl+click with the Eraser (Option+click on the Mac) |
| Unsmooth something | Hold down Shift+Ctrl and click with the Eraser (Shift+Option on the Mac) |
| —Push/Pull and Offset— | |
| Make a copy of the face you're push/pulling | Press Ctrl (Option on the Mac) and use the Push/Pull tool |
| Repeat the last distance you push/pulled | Double-click a face with the Push/Pull tool |
| Repeat the last distance you Offset | Double-click a face with the Offset tool |
| —Scale with the Scale tool— | |
| Scale about the center | Hold down Ctrl (Option on the Mac) while scaling |
| Scale uniformly (don't distort) | Hold down Shift while scaling |
| Scale by a certain factor | Type a number and press Enter |
| Make something a certain size | Type the size and the units and then press Enter |
| —Apply materials with the Paint Bucket tool— | |
| Sample a material from a face | Hold down Alt (Command on the Mac) and click the face with the tool |
| Paint all faces that match the one you click | Hold down Shift while you click |
| —Create guides— | |
| Tell the Tape Measure or Protractor tool to create a guide | Press Ctrl (Option on the Mac) and click with the tool |
| —Walk around your model with the Walk tool— | |
| Walk through things | Hold down Alt (Command on the Mac) |
| Run instead of walk | Hold down Ctrl (Option on the Mac) |
| Get taller or shorter instead of walking | Hold down Shift |
| Change your eye height | Select the Look Around tool, type a height, and press Enter |
| Change your field of view | Select the Zoom tool, type a number, type deg, and press Enter |
