The announcement on April 26th 2012 that Trimble is acquiring Sketchup from Google is exciting, and a bit confusing. What does this mean for the Sketchup community?
Well first off, who is Trimble?
In their own words:
“Though best known for GPS technology, Trimble integrates a wide range of positioning technologies including GPS, laser, optical and inertial technologies with application software, wireless communications, and services to provide complete commercial solutions. Its integrated solutions allow customers to collect, manage and analyze complex information faster and easier, making them more productive, efficient and profitable.”(Trimble.com)
More simply put, Trimble makes both hardware and software that collect and organize data, generally related to things like mapping and measuring (satellites used for GPS, optics for highly accurate surveying equipment, etc) They create lasers that are capable of scanning an environment and recreating it digitally (sound like a good opportunity to integrate with something like Sketchup? Yeah... I think so too.) They already create products that are used by architects, engineers, surveyors and contractors. Clearly their market overlaps quite a bit with some of Sketchup’s professional users.
Are you a professional who already uses Trimble products? What do you think? Is Sketchup a good fit for Trimble, and are you looking forward to the results?
What are they planning to do with Sketchup?
According to Trimble.com, their goal is to integrate Sketchup with their existing products to create a single platform where users can collect data, design, model, and collaborate. Sounds exciting right? And I imagine, expensive. Similar professional 3D modeling programs such as ArchiCAD cost around $4,000 , and may not have the same features that Trimble can provide with their various technologies.
So, is this the end of 3D modeling for all? Will Trimble be shifting Sketchup to a fancy paid version and leaving it’s more casual users in the cold? According to the Sketchup blog, there is no need to worry:
“If you’re one of the many, many people who use SketchUp for something else—from education to woodworking, geo-modeling to movie-making—rest assured that there will be a SketchUp for you, too. Our mission has always been to make 3D modeling tools that anyone can use. The free version of SketchUp is an important part of our world as well, and that isn’t changing in the least.” (The Official Google Sketchup Blog)
It also appears that the development team from Google will be staying with Sketchup, keeping it in the same capable hands that developed it originally at @Last (the company it was originally purchased from by Google.)
Do you see yourself jumping to a fancier paid version of Sketchup with some of the integration capabilities that Trimble can bring to the table?
Overall the future looks bright for Sketchup! One of the common complaints is that Sketchup really has not been improved much on the developer side, and most of the contributions have come from the community at large. With the move to Trimble, the development team will have access to new resources that will allow for expansion of it’s capabilities in exciting new ways. Sketchup is poised to grow, while remaining an enjoyable, accessible program for all kinds of 3D modeling! If you are new to Sketchup, and would like to learn more about how to use this powerful program then head over to www.mastersketchup.com for free video tutorials and quick tips!
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