The Styles Browser contains options used to alter how your model and the drawing area is rendered (its edge type face type, background colors, watermarks, and so on). Activate the Styles Browser from the Window menu.
Select one of many pre-defined styles from the Styles Browser and apply it to your model. Each pre-defined style represents a collection specific settings that can be applied to your model and the drawing area. To select and apply a pre-defined style:
Styles are comprised of several different settings found under the Edit tab. To Edit a style:
Use the Styles Browser controls to navigate among styles in your styles libraries.
The style thumbnail displays the style currently applied to your model.
The style name field displays the name of the currently active style.
The style description field displays a description of the currently active style.
The Display Secondary Selection Pane button displays a second select panel below the primary select panel. This feature allows you to display both your styles libraries and the in model library at the same time. This feature is useful when you want to drag styles between libraries and the in model library.
Note - You can only apply one style at a time, but you might want multiple styles in the In Model library. For example, you might have one style that you apply when you are working on the model (because performance is better when you use the style) and another style you use for presenting the model. Styles in the In Model library are also saved with your SketchUp file.
Click on the Create new style button to create a copy of the currently active style in the In Model library.
Click on the Update style button to update the copy of the currently active style in the In Model library.
Click on the Select tab to display the select panel . Use the select panel to navigate between style libraries.
Back Arrow: Click the Back arrow to navigate to the previous location in the hierarchy of libraries.
Forward Arrow: Click the Forward arrow to navigate to the next location in the hierarchy of libraries.
In Model Button: Click on the In Model button to navigate to the In Model styles library. The In Model styles library contains all of the styles currently included with your model file.
Note - You can have styles in your In Model style library that are not being used by your model.
Libraries Drop-Down List: Click on the libraries drop-down list to list all of the styles libraries in SketchUp. Click on a library to select the library.
Details Menu: Click on the Details arrow to display the Details Menu. See Details Menu for further information.
The Edit tab contains five separate panels: The edge rendering panel, face rendering panel, drawing area styles panel, watermark panel, and other styles panel.
The Mix tab contains five wells corresponding to the five categories of styles in the styles browser (edge, face, background, watermark, and modeling styles). Click on this tab to display the five wells and a secondary style pane. Select a style from the secondary style pane and click on one or more wells to sample the corresponding settings from that style. For example, click on a style in the secondary style pane and click on the Edge Settings well to sample the edge settings from that style. The style in the style thumbnail change to reflect the newly sampled settings.
SketchUp contains a variety of edge rendering styles allowing you to manipulate the edge appearance on the screen.
Note - Endpoints and Jitter edge rendering styles are not available for NPR Edges.
Tip - Models with perfectly straight digitally drawn lines are often perceived to be in a finished state. Edge Rendering Styles are useful in conveying that a model is still in conceptual state and, therefore, is open for feedback.
Check the Display Edges checkbox to activate the display of edges in your model. The following images shows a series of cubes without and then with edges.
Check the Profiles checkbox to emphasize the outlines or profiles of major shapes in your model. This style is particularly useful in ensuring the 3D nature of geometry is emphasized and borrows from a proven traditional media drawing technique. Enter a thickness, in pixels, for the profile lines in the pixels field. The following image shows a series of cubes with edges and profile edges.
Check the Depth Cue checkbox to emphasize the lines of geometry in the foreground over the lines of geometry in the background. The following image shows a series of cubes with edges and depth que edges on. Notice that the foreground edges on each cube get progressively thinner from front to back and top to bottom. Enter a thickness, in pixels, for the depth cue lines in the pixels field. This thickness determines the thickness of the forward-most lines (such as for the bottom middle cube in the following image) of your model.
Check the Extension checkbox to extend each line slightly past its endpoint, giving your model hand-drawn sketched appearance. This edge rendering style does not affect inference behavior. Enter a length, in pixels, for the extension lines in the pixels field. The following image shows a series of cubes with edges and extension edges.
Check the Endpoints checkbox to place additional line thickness at the endpoints of lines. Enter a length, in pixels, for the length of the emphasized endpoints in the pixels field. The following image shows a series of cubes with edges and endpoints edges.
Check the Jitter checkbox to render each line multiple times at a slight offset, giving your model hand-drawn sketched appearance. This edge rendering style does not affect inference behavior. The following image shows a series of cubes with edges and jitter edges.
Check the Halo checkbox to create a halo affect where lines overlap in your model by ending lines, that would normally overlap, a certain distance away from the overlap point. Type a number in the halo text field representing the distance away from the intersection where lines will end. This option is only available for styles that have a Sketchy Edge.
Move the Level of Detail slider to the right increase the number of displayed edges. Move the Level of Detail slider to the left to decrease the number of displayed edges. This option is only available for styles that have a Sketchy Edge.
Tip - Experiment with combinations of edge renderings to see how they appeal to you.
SketchUp also allows you to manipulate the edge color on the screen.
Note - Edge Colors are only available when using Shaded and Shaded with Textures Face Rendering Styles. Inference alignments to edges are not available when edges are hidden.
All Same: Select the All Same drop-down list item to display all edges using the Edges color as defined in color swatch. This option does not actually change any edge color assignments you may have made, but preserves them if you choose to view them again.
By Material: Select the By Material drop-down list item to display edges using an assigned material color. The following image contains edges painted with a grey material.
By Axis: Select the By Axis drop-down list item to display edges in colors corresponding to the color of the Drawing Axes to which they are parallel. This option is helpful in determining when edges are not aligned to an axis. The following image has lines colored red, green, and blue corresponding to the axes to which they are aligned.
SketchUp contains a variety of face rendering styles allowing you to manipulate the amount of material and textures displayed on the screen.
Click on the Front color button to set the default color for all front sides of faces. Materials assigned to faces override this setting.
Click on the Back color button to set the default color for the back sides of faces. Materials assigned to faces override this setting.
Click on the Wireframe face rendering style button to display the model as a collection of lines. Faces are not displayed in Wireframe mode.
Note - You cannot use face modification tools, such as the Push/Pull Tool, on a wireframe rendered model
Click on the Hidden Line button to display faces in the model without any shading or textures.
Tip - Use this face rendering style when creating black and white printouts which you might want to modify further with traditional media, or which you might use as an underlay for hand drawings.
Click on the Monochrome button to display the model as an assembly of edges and faces, just as with the Hidden Line face rendering style. However, Monochrome mode provides default shading and is useful for shadow studies whereby you turn the face front and face back to white and then display shadows.
Click on the Shaded button to display faces in the model as shaded to reflect a light source. Any color that had been applied to a face will be displayed. Remember that both sides of faces can have different colors. The default colors for front and back face are displayed when no color has been applied to a face.
Click on the Shaded with Textures button to display the faces in model with the texture images that have been applied to a face.
Tip - Textures can slow down SketchUp's performance. Use other face rendering styles, such as the Shaded face renderings style, when performance slows dramatically. Switch back to the Shaded with Textures face rendering mode to create your final output.
Click the Monochrome button to display the faces with the default front and back face color.
Click on the X-Ray button to display all faces in SketchUp with a global transparency. This option allows you to see through the model's faces and edit edges behind faces and can be combined with any of the above face rendering styles.
You can easily visualize, select, and snap to points and edges that would otherwise be hidden behind faces when modeling with X-ray mode. Remember, however, that it is not possible to select and infer faces that would otherwise be hidden.
Faces can not cast Shadows when using X-ray mode. Shadow display will default to ground plane shadows only when X-ray mode is enabled. X-ray mode is different than material transparency.
Click on the Enable transparency checkbox to enable or disable global material transparency.
The Transparency Quality options allow you to select the quality of transparency display between faster, medium, and nicer. Each option differs in its speed and quality of transparency sorting. The Faster display sacrifices sorting accuracy to provide a faster rendering update rate. Conversely, the Nicer display performs additional calculations to correctly sort transparent surfaces.
Because SketchUp's transparency system is designed for real-time feedback and display, it may sometimes display transparent faces in an unrealistic way: Faces may appear as if they were in front of other surfaces when they are really behind, and vice-versa.
Styles also contain options for configuring the drawing area background, sky, and ground colors.
Click on the Background button to select a background color for SketchUp's drawing area.
Check on the Sky checkbox to have a sky color that is different from the background color. Click on the Sky button to select a sky color.
Check on the Ground checkbox to select a ground color that is different from the background color.
Slide the Transparency slider to adjust the level of transparency for the ground plane. Place the slider toward the left-most position to minimize below-ground visibility. Place the slider toward the right-most position to maximize below-ground visibility.
Check the Show ground from below checkbox to toggle the display of the ground plane from a viewpoints below the horizon.
Refer to the Watermark section of this User's Guide for additional information on the watermark feature.
The Modeling panel contains styles for how a variety of entities are displayed on the screen.
Click on the Selected button to set the color of the highlight used to indicate a selection. Use a color that will contrast well with the other colors in your model when selecting a selected color.
Click the Locked button to set the color of any locked component.
Click on the Guides button to set the color of any guide line entities in your model.
Click on the Inactive Section button to define the color for the currently inactive (not highlighted) Section Plane entities in your model.
Click on the Active Section button to define the color for the currently active (highlighted) Section Plane entity.
Click on the Section Cuts button to define the color for the active section plane's section slice line.
Enter a Section Cut Width to define the thickness (in pixels) of all cut lines in the active section plane.
Check the Hidden Geometry checkbox display hidden geometry or entities that have been hidden using the Hide menu item or context command. The Hidden Geometry checkbox displays hidden faces with a light cross-hatch pattern (edges are displayed dashed), enabling you to select the geometry. Once selected, hidden geometry can be made visible with the Unhide> Selected, UnHide>Last, and Unhide>All menu items.
Check the Color by Layer checkbox to apply materials to geometry on a per layer basis using the color associated with the layer. Ensure shaded or shaded with Textures display is turned on to view materials.
Check the Guides checkbox to display guide line entities and guide point entities.
Check the Section Planes checkbox to display section plane entities.
Check the Section Cuts checkbox to display section cut effects.
Check the Axes checkbox to display the drawing axes.
A number of useful Styles Browser-related commands are accessible using context menus. Context-click on any style's icon or name to access the Styles Browser context menus. The following options appear depending on whether you are clicking on icons in an established styles library or in the In Model library:
Select the Delete menu item to delete a single style from a styles library.
Select the Make a Copy menu item to make a copy of the currently selected style.
Select the Save As menu item to save the selected style to a separate file (.style), with a new name and location. You can use this menu item to save styles that have been modified or created during a drawing session.
Click on the right arrow next to the styles library drop-down list to open the details pop-up menu. This menu allows you to perform additional styles-related functions.
Select the Create style menu item to create a copy of the currently active style in the In Model library.
Select the Open or create a library menu item to open an existing library (or file) or create a new styles library (folder).
Note - The open or create a library menu item displays a Browse for Folder dialog box. This dialog box does not display files, only folders. Select the folder or location containing the file and click the OK button.
Select the Save Library As menu item to save a copy of a library with a new name.
Select the Add Library to Favorites menu item to add an existing library to the list of favorite libraries (appearing at the bottom of the libraries drop-down list).
Select the Remove Library from Favorites menu item to remove a library from your list of favorites (appearing at the bottom of the libraries drop-down list).
Select the Purge Unused menu item to remove all styles in the In Model library that are not actually used in your model.
Select the Small Images, Medium Images, Large Images, or Extra Large Images menu item to change the size of the thumbnails in the Select panel.
Select the List View menu item to display the styles in list form.
Select the Refresh menu item to update the styles appearing in the styles browser.
Select the Get More menu item to get more styles from the SketchUp web site.
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SketchUp User Guide (Microsoft Windows): Display Settings Dialog Box |
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