Dear SketchUp Island: How do I hide a component? What if I just want to hide the edges? I'm so confused and don't know what to do! --Concerned in Ireland
Dear Concerned: This is a common problem, so don't feel alone. Hiding edges is as simple as editing the component by double clicking on it, then choosing a wireframe view from your SketchUp menu (View>Face Style>Wireframe). Select all the edges and in the right-click menu choose "Hide." And you are done. To hide the whole component, don't edit it, just select it and perform the same operation (right click, hide).
Dear SketchUp Island: Two buildings that I want to model are connected in real life. How do I upload two models so that they fit perfectly together in Google Earth??? --Feeling Disconnected
Dear Feeling Disconnected: Keep it together and fear not. If I were in this situation, I would create one model, and then group it using my right-click (context) menu. I would then select the group, copy it, open a new SketchUp file, and paste in place (Edit>Paste In Place). Now I can build the second building exactly in-line with the first. (Be sure to import the proper terrain in to the second model from Google Earth too).**
EDIT: I want to thank Mike Tadros of Igloo Studios for teaching me the first trick. Two years ago I had not the clue, either! There are many clues I still don't have but thanks to Mike I do have that one.
**Regarding the second question, SketchUp 7.1 now has an "upload component" feature which allows you to upload adjacent buildings from one SketchUp file as separate models. This will make modeling neatly-fitted adjacent buildings much easier.
