Hi! So I quickly tried out some of the new features in SketchUp 8 and Building Maker. I am still getting accustomed to them and may not remember all that I did, but I'll take my best shot.
- In Building Maker I tried "add Street View images." The interface was different than I expected, responsive and reminiscent of "match photo." For some reason I could position the wire frames but not create new ones. The final texture was very compressed.
- In SketchUp I used the "add new building" button to import my model to SketchUp. Here the Street View texture became more compressed. I re-textured with the "photo textures" button (same images but better resolution).
- The new "Back Edges" style was on by default in this mode. It looked cool but I didn't need to use it in this case.
- I tried the "image igloo" and the scene tabs which now show me the relation between projected images and my model. The igloo images were quite tiny and distant: maybe because the images were shot from high altitude. I haven't figure out practical application yet for the new tabs and igloo. Maybe it works in the style of "photo match" allowing you to tweak geometry against the images?
- Building Maker shifted the building's footprint, so in SketchUp I used the new "add more imagery" button to get a terrain snapshot and adjust. The terrain was in color!
My favorite improvements are the "add more imagery" feature (rather than having to open Google Earth) and the streamlining of buttons/features generally. It just makes everything easier. I'm guessing image igloo and back edges will become more important in more complex models.
I wish that the Street View textures added in Building Maker were not so compressed so they would be more useful. I guess it is OK for quick, rough models.
There's a lot more to learn and I'm sure it will be fun.
