Scenes Panel

Now that you’ve had some time to enjoy better toggling visibility with hidden geometry and objects, this feature just got even better. Hidden geometry and hidden objects are now split up so you can select and save them separately on a Scene-by-Scene basis. You will see a new checkbox in the Scenes panel that lets you save the visibility state of hidden objects, not just hidden geometry. This gives you better visibility control per Scene.

Section Planes & Scenes

In the new version of SketchUp, you can save Section Plane visibility in every Scene.  Since Section Planes are grouped with objects, we want to make sure they behave like objects. What’s the value here? Before this change, only top-level visibility could be saved per Scene. Again, more control in your Scenes — and consistency across functionality.

Hidden objects are now editable

Editing invisible things might sound like a superpower, but it’s really just a great new feature in SketchUp Pro. When you select a hidden object in Outliner, it will now appear as a mesh. This means that you can make more precise edits to hidden objects with ease.

Did you notice how much faster it is to work in SketchUp when Outliner is open? SketchUp 2020.1 includes a few performance improvements to speed up your workflow that we think you’ll like.

Improvements to Grips

You can now cycle through ALL Grips of an object when using the Rotate tool — just like the Move tool! This provides a more instinctive modeling experience while switching in between the tools.

Empty object

Picture this: you are working up a new table design and quickly model a lamp to make it look more realistic — but oops! —  you did it too fast and forgot to group your lamp and table separately. Now, everything is glued together, creating editing reworks and wasted time.

The solution? Now, you can create a grouped object or component by right-clicking on an empty space. No more triple-clicking to select and then group, or drawing it elsewhere just to place it where you want it. Pro tip: you can also use the ‘G’ shortcut to create a new component and speed up your workflow. (Shortcut win!)

One last added bonus! When you create a new component from scratch, a window will immediately pop up allowing you to name it. Say hello to better model organization.

Check out this Skill Builder to see how to use this feature in your workflow.

Improved Select Tool

Make intentional — not accidental — moves with your crossing and window-selection workflows. Now, when you click-drag to create a crossing or window selection, you won’t mistakenly move anything. If you’ve encountered this, you know what we’re talking about… and you’re welcome!

If you’re wondering, “how do I move an object now?” — just pre-select an entity and move from there. Also, selections and moves now occur when clicking on the actual object, rather than the object’s bounding box, strengthening that intentional workflow.

Download the new version, play with the latest improvements and let us know what you think. As always, we will be there listening, responding, and getting great ideas for new updates. See you on the Axis!

All of the 2020.1 features are available to Classic license users with active Maintenance & Support, and active SketchUp Pro and SketchUp Studio subscription users.  Upgrade today to start using new features!