New to Sketchup

If any of you are still looking for instruction, American Woodworker had just jumped on board and will be posting about 4 times a week. The link below takes you to the first post.

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Reply to
Leon
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Ooops 4 times a month!

Reply to
Leon

Leon wrote: > If any of you are still looking for instruction, American Woodworker had just jumped on board and will be posting about 4 times a week. The link below takes you to the first post. > >

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Just curious. Is anyone running this well on HD4000 built-in graphics. I'm pretty sure "discrete graphics" would do better. Nvidia GT-6XXm???

635? 650?

I have reached the point where I am waiting for the next operating system after Windows8. If the industry can't do a little better, I'm not going to encourage them. It's like they are not even trying--laptops with SSD drives are relatively scarce. I mean an SSD drive would seem to be a natural fit for a laptop, yet you would never know it from most offerings.AndI assembled a desktop have one 3 years ago! I guess the suppliers just can't make as much money that way...

Bill

Reply to
Bill

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If you are having graphic issues with Sketchup you probably need to tweak your Sketchup settings. I had an old Dell and got less than favorable results until I tweaked the settings.

What kind of problems are you having?

Reply to
Leon

On 4/18/2013 10:25 PM, Leon wrote: > If you are having graphic issues with Sketchup you probably need to > tweak your Sketchup settings. I had an old Dell and got less than > favorable results until I tweaked the settings. > > What kind of problems are you having?

I've been shopping for a laptop. I just want to make sure whatever I end up with runs SU (very) well. The rest of what I would like in a laptop is:

SSD drive (256 GB would be plenty more than adequate, 128 GB not quite enough), preferably a name-brand one like Intel. Not all SSDs are created equal (I will have to rely on consumer ratings). i7-CPU several USB drives

1080p (Full HD, 1920x1080 resolution) Quiet ("Optimus" GPU switching?) Non-touch screeen Reliable-feeling keyboard Windows 7 or something "better" than Windows 8, preferably the professional version (but I expect to have to upgrade to get that).

I'm not too picky, am I? ASUS seems to come closest. Maybe Toshiba?

I am not in a hurry. My desktop is adequate for all essentials that I have to do. A conundrum is that most of the newer hardware has Windows8 on it. Amusing that MSFT could throw a wrench into this purchasing experience! : )

Bill

Reply to
Bill

My desk top has a 128 GB SSD primary drive and a 1TB data HD. Don't recall the brand.

I originally wanted i7 but my neighbor, the guy in the computer business, talked me out of it 2 years ago. At the time and foreseeable future no software that was available or in the pipe line required it. I agreed with i5 and the machine is Fast. You might research if this is still true before spending extra money on power that you may never use.

Drives or ports?

LOL, how does that feel exactly?

Again my neighbor was only installing Win7 Pro on all of the computers he sold.

My motherboard is ASUS..

I would look into having a local build you a machine, Tell him exactly what you want the computer to do, not the components to use except for the type components, ie Intel brand, SSD. Let him build the computer to your needs and wants instead of settling for a "one of four choices" available in the store situation.

Reply to
Leon

I've assembled my last 3 desktops. But with a *laptop* it's not really an option--although I have found some "boutique laptop builders" online. Yes, the "14 choices in the store" is no fun at all. You can't even compare their specs very easily, let alone stuff that can't be seen. e.g. HP, I believe, has a reputation for bad hinges since their hinges are made out of 2 kinds of metal that interact with each other. They don't dispense that sort of into in the store. I read alot of reviews (maybe too many), probably most people just "pick one of the 4" in the store...

Bill

Tell him exactly

Reply to
Bill

Most any one can build a computer, your local builder should be able to pick out the parts that play nicely together and with out you having to over buy.

Reply to
Leon

Something not mentioned, but the most important requirement of all, your video card:

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Do not disregard the requirement for an openGL graphics card and you won't have a problem on most any computer, desktop of laptop, running Sketchup.

Reply to
Swingman

Yes, I didn't mention it because that question was the basis for my post: Whether HD4000 was up to the task of running SU.

I had tried to locate information like in the link below. Thank you for posting it. I doubt HD400 is a 3D-GPU (as described at the link), but I will learn a little more about the whole matter, whether I like it or not! ; )

Reply to
Bill

You won't find that in any low end laptops but here is several with your requirements:

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Reply to
Pat Barber

Leon wrote: > Bill wrote: >> i7-CPU > > I originally wanted i7 but my neighbor, the guy in the computer business, > talked me out of it 2 years ago. At the time and foreseeable future no > software that was available or in the pipe line required it. I agreed with > i5 and the machine is Fast. > You might research if this is still true before spending extra money on > power that you may never use.

I read once that "if irritated by slow reponse time, then you need an i-7". I have been bothered by lag of the wireless mice (mouses) I have tried, and haven't bothered to try a wireless keyboard for the same reason.

IIRC, I use an i-5 at work and have not had any problems with it. I haven't tried SU on it. I'll double check. Silly that it didn't occur to me to use it as a "benchmark".

I have never owned a laptop.

Thanks for helping me try to save some $$ which might be better spent. Seriously though, one of the main things I like to see in a computer is Quiet! : ) My desktop has a GPU with ambient cooling ("heat pipes") and uses an SSD.

Bill

Reply to
Bill

Bill wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@news6.newsguy.com:

I'm a huge fan of my ThinkPad T510. I've mentioned that here before a time or two. Good keyboard, it's quiet and runs cool. The trackpoint (red eraser thingy) is the way to go for mouse-intensive tasks. It won't leave your finger raw or cramped like the track pads do. (Plus, it manages to stay out of the way most of the time while typing...after you get used to it.)

If you want to custom configure a laptop, check out most manufacturer's websites. Lenovo let me choose certain options as they were building it, including SSD drives (not for me yet), OS version, video options, etc. Toshiba was the same way, I assume others will be too.

Laptops are pretty good about allowing the RAM, Hard Drive, and Optical Drive to be replaced, so if you don't like those it's not a problem.

One more note: weight is an issue. I had a 17" machine that weighs like

10 pounds (I think of it as a luggable rather than laptop) and went to a smaller machine that weighs (picks up machine) about 4. Much nicer to carry, and I don't really miss the extra screen size.

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

LOL. my computer has 5 fans. We had an issue when the computer was still under warranty, it would freeze up. My neighbor would come get it to work on it and find nothing, it only acted up at my house. Long story short the problem was an intermittently failing external Seagate HD. Once I quit hooking it back up I have been trouble free ever since.

And I am not trying to tell you what to do here but I always thought I would like a lap top. They are great for portability but I bought one for my wife and one for my son for college. His home computer is again a desk top and I personally dont like the compromises that you have with a lap top. Given that, it is unbeatable if you need portability and or to be able to use it where there is no electricity.

Reply to
Leon

future no

money on

------------------------------------------------------------ SFWIW, recently was talking to a guy who operates an internet business.

He has been operating long enough to have established a track record for computer hardware to operate his business.

He is now standardizing on rebuilt Chinese IBM lap tops,remote monitor, mouse & keyboard.

His comment, "We change batteries the first of every month".

"Keeps life simple".

YMMV

Lew

Reply to
Lew Hodgett

Yes, I made sure that I bought a power supply with a very low decibel level too! : ) Your system is only as quiet as your loudest fast!

Yep, that's the whole thing (portability).

Good luck getting your new saw properly settled-in!

Bill

Reply to
Bill

I'm with you, I have a laptop from when I worked because it was easier then trying to move files around all the time. I had desktops at each location though. Since I'm not working anymore I updated the home computer to Win 7pro and more memory then I know what to do with and two 1.5 TB drives. Now I just use the laptop in the shop, or when I want to work in front of the TV. The 15" screen just doesn't compare to the 23" on the desktop. As you said everyone needs to figure out their needs. Oh Bill the old Dell Lattitude 820 with an Nvidia video card running XP has no problem with sketchup 8.

Mike M

Mike M

Reply to
Mike M

Just the opposite of you and Leon.

After years of having as many as 20 boxes to deal with, and all the attendant wiring and routing, I consider a desktop a compromise for the way I now work, to the point that I haven't had one in the office for almost six years.

Both my older Dell XPS1210 (Win8), and the newer XPS15 (Win7) are easily attached to the 24" monitor on my office desk, giving me two simultaneous displays, or go where I go; and both run SketchUp handily.

I generally leave the XPS15 in the office these days hooked to the 24" monitor, and take the 1210 on the road when the IPad won't do the trick. With a 1T USB drive going with me, and all devices synced to the cloud (Dropbox and Evernote in particular), it makes little difference where I am as far as business oriented computing.

Reply to
Swingman

I looked up the XPS1210, and it has a discrete graphics card (nVidia GeForce 7400). Not a slouch. Thank you for providing another data point. Due to astigmatism in my eyes, I'd prefer a larger screen or I won't enjoy using it very much.

Bill

Reply to
Bill

Over the years I have had 3 laptops and 1 luggable suitcase computer.

About a year ago I bought the machine I am typing on now, and couldn't be happier. As usual, I feel like I was a bit too tight and should have bought it earlier, but can't redo the past.

I bought it for several reasons. My business is as small as it has ever been, and now I do everything for it including washing dishes. So the first thing that made sense to me was that I could take my documents, contract forms, invoicing and communications with me where I went through my day.

Free wireless is everywhere. I store no passwords on my computer, never check "remember me" on any websites, and I don't log onto my accounts at Starbucks. The cigar shop I frequent has great security (the guy that set it up is an old wonk, techno geek guy that is hyper paranoid about security) and if I need to access my email from there it is great. Occasionally I do break my own protocol when I get the call of "hey Robert, if you can get your invoice over to me this afternoon I can it in the pay cycle". I stop at any place that has wireless, type out the invoice, log in for about a minute and then send it off.

Same with a contract modification. Same with a report that needs a clarification. Same a picture that needs to be sent to reinforce my suggestions for repairs. Stop somewhere get a glass of tea, get done what I need to do offline, then log on, fire it off, log off.

Last month, I had taken a bunch of pics with my high res camera for a roof inspection. My suggestion was that the tile roof needed a lot of detail work to keep it watertight and to remedy the existing leaks and my estimate reflected that. My client isn't going to go stomping around in his roof, but wanted to know what I saw. Across town from my HO, but near the client, I stopped in Office Depot and bought a ten pack of CDs for 6 bucks, burned 320 mb of pics (not resized, obviously, and dpi set at 300 for clarity) onto a CD an delivered it to his office within an hour.

He thinks I have a large, efficient support staff and was impressed by how fast I was. He would be much less impressed if he knew I bought the CDs, went to McDonalds and got a tea and burned the pics to a disc in a restaurant full of screaming kids and old people.

At $3.60 for gas, and 10 miles to a gallon with my truck, I can't even imagine how much money this machine has saved me driving back to my office for simple clerical tasks. I am no longer tethered to my home office. If I am working across the city and finish late in the day and don't want to spend an hour plus in traffic, I can pull over and work just about anywhere.

I have an ASUS computer, and when I bought it they claimed about 6 hours of battery life. As with my other computers I immediately cut that by 75% thinking that would be about right. Nope. One time (all power savings devices activated) it lasted 6 hrs and 14 minutes before failure. I can easily work 5 hours (doing my normal tasks, not watching BluRay movies) without any power if I start with a full charge.

The keyboard is large enough to be comfortable, and the screen is excellent. This machine has one HDMI out for use as a presentations machine, DVI out for use with a monitor, 3 USB ports with one being USB 3, bluetooth, a regular NIC card/cable connection which I like for secure computing, and an excellent wireless adaptor that works everywhere I have been so far.

With an i5 processor, 750G HDD, 6 G or usable RAM, and a pretty good video card, it is more computer than I have ever had AND I can take it with me.

Robert

Reply to
nailshooter41

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