Converting SketchUp files to Daz Format
kyoto kid
Posts: 41,027
...I remember long ago someone discussing the process for converting Google SketchUp models for use in DazStudio however don't remember the steps and tools needed. The 3D Warehouse has a lot of nice RL architecture which I would love to convert for use in scenes.
Another thing I noticed is that there are few .obj downloads. Most are just SketchUp and Collada (the latter usually having large file sizes). In the past, thought I saw a lot more that also were in .obj format.
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Well how I did a few was:
Put in a folder "all" the sketchup files I wish to convert.
Download/install/run the free trial. [Be SURE to close the program when not in active use as it's good for 4 hours real time]
Export out all the .obj files possible inside of 4 hours. [be it in one stretch or over a period of days]
:-)
...only a 4 hour demo? That's pretty lame. Heck, even AutoDesk gives you a full 30 days.
So you can't just DL them and then convert using something like Hexagon or another modelling app?
Sketchucation
http://sketchucation.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=33448
not tried it as I use a ruby script for Sketch up7 that does great obj export but not been updated.
There's one company I found that is selling a plugin for about $100 if I recall correctly, just to convert the sketchup files to .obj files. No demo.
If there's a lightwave file to be had, then PoseRay [one option of several] can convert it.
...have to do this on the cheap, 100$ for a plugin to convert a few models is a bit much for my budget at the moment as I am unemployed.
A lot of the models I'm interested in unfortunately appear to be only in Collada and SketchUp Formats.
if you cannot use the freee sketucation obj converter plugin for some reason
either use the .dae or export as kmz, rename it a .zip extract and import into Blender
export obj, Blender will fix the ngons and reversed normals that are rife in sketchup models.
I combed the page, maybe can't see the forest for the trees but is there a download link somewhere?
...I had the same issue. I clicked on what I thought`was the DL link but it only opened a copy of the same forum page. Also not sure what it is supposed to "plug into" as the posts that I read didn't make it very clear.
So a .dae is the standard Sketchup format then?
I have Blender but still early on the learning curve yet.
look under tig http://sketchucation.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=33448 need to sign up, free
Sigh, right. Well for a plugin, okay ... number 100 billion [give or take a trillion] website to sign up for/in/with/whatever ... got it. When my 4 hours are up I'll give it a whirl. Thanks Wendy.
The plugin is for Sketchup. There's the free edition [4 hours pro demo] and of course the $ Pro. Where to put it is included with the text around the attachment's link.
...I seem to remember there was a more "scaled down" free version. Is that no longer available? The 4 hour demo is ludicrous considering all that Google gives away for free.
it is a .rb ruby file that goes in the program files plugins folder
my SU 7 with the Japanese exporter I have
which model were you looking at KK?
I can try a few options and see what works best
the Seattle Giants stadium
using the obj exporter I have
native skp in iClone which imports them via iClone 3Dxchange
dae from sketch up while it did not work in Daz studio, imported into Blender untextured,
saving the dae export from Blender in the same folder as the textures loaded them into Daz studio
...I'll have to go to the Warehouse tomorrow (well, later today as it is after 02:00 now) and look up the buildings portfolio again to get some names.
I can convert some for you if they are sketchup models specifically for Google Earth under their EULA
depends entirely on usage rights as stated for individual models
I would never redistribute any however a conversion if allowed for one person I would do
...OK I'll make sure they are G.E. files.
Wouldn't have to put you though all this trouble if they just did like other vendors and offered the standard "30 day demo". 4 hours wouldn't even be enough time for me to crack the UI not much less convert a bunch of freebie models.
DAZ Studio can import the collada (.dae) version, if there is one available. (at least it's possible, anyway; I just went through a whole pile of buildings from 3D Warehouse this morning. Lots of things were invisible or were missing polygons or had weird shading on polygons, but other things worked, and I never saw any error messages.)
we know but importing it into Blender and out again often fixes it because the missing faces are caused by ngons and reversed normals in most cases and Blender unlike most other free options preserves the uv mapping while triangulating ngons and fixing nomals
and to KK, ideally I want to give you a free work flow,
I will do one model for you if is one where it permitted (IE a Google Earth generic one in creative commons) and post a tutorial of sorts so you can do the rest as I have very limited 3G broadband so not easy for me either.
...my experience with Collada files is that they tend to be "big" compared to other formats which translated into long download times (excruciatingly so with my connectivity which is also timeout/reset prone).
Actually you'd be surprized. All you do is "Open" the file, then "export the .obj". "new project" "open the file" "export .obj" .... "new project" "open the file" "export .obj" ... do remember to close the program and take a break though 'cause 4 hours straight is a bit tedious.
You'll find some .obj files are workable, some are junk, some are pretty okay.
Install more than one version of sketchup like I have I have the SU6 pro trial as well as free 7, still 8 to be downloaded if I need it
How convenient that this topic is being discussed as I was just running into the same issue myself. I d/l'd a number of models in the Collada format, thinking I could just import and get away with some minor tweaking. Yeah, right! After several hours of WILDLY inconsistent results, I threw my hands up in disgust; I'm pretty sure that each person has a different way of formatting all their files than anyone else on the Warehouse.
Anyway, I'm a bit confused by your instructions here. If you d/l a model in Collada format from the 3D Warehouse, they already come in a .zip file - which (generally) includes the .dae & .kmz as well as any textures. Can I just use that in Blender or do I need to literally change the extension of the .dae (or .kmz) file to .zip?
Also, it's a bit off topic, but while I'm thinking about it - is there a way to rename assets in a D|S scene like you can in Poser? It's one thing when you're dealing with just a couple of iterations of Vicky (Victoria, Victoria1, Victoria2, etc.) in your scene tree but another hassle altogether when you're trying to create a skyline and every single building is named Model#. I shudder at the thought of trying to keep track of 40+ models that I'll need to constantly re-size, rotate, and translate when they all basically have the same name.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
-Damon
Just the .dae of the one I did other page worked in Blender but often unzipping the kmz to get the .dae works if it does not.
they ARE very messy inconsistant files
and Blender for me is also a nightmare!
yes, click on Victtoria in scene tree to get rename brackets
So far collada files made in sketchup 6 (and probably earlier versions) don't load into DS, the scene data in the dae is all over the place, so the only parts we get are the nulls and the cameras, sketchup 7 collada does load, it just loads invisible as opacity is set to 0%, haven't found any sketchup 8 collada files yet as those downloads only appear to be skp.
I have a couple of sofas that I like the look of, but they were done in 6 so they don't load, but as dae is a sort of xml I might have a bash at hand editing the files to see if I can get them to work.
Well after a fair bit of head scratching I'm actually able to get most of the Sketchup DAE files to load into DS4.5, files made in 6.0.5xxx and newer will load without any file editing, they just load invisible as Opacity is set to 0%. It's the files made in 6.0.4xxx and older that need a bit of text editing, my methods aren't perfect as it's about 50/50 on it loading properly or giving me a WTF moment, issues are the mesh loads in HUGE, so big that scaling it down to Genesis size requires scale settings around 0.01%, loads in so far of in the distance that you need around 400,000 in the X & Z translations to center it, or the mesh parts being a bit scambled and looking nothing like the pictures, I've had all three and combinations of the three.
Thanks.
Just an idea, if you've got the item in 4.5 way off in the distant 400,000 give or take ... if said item can then be exported out of D/S as an .obj; imported into Hexagon, the item repositioned to world centre, then exported back out ... the import back into D/S should have it at world centre. Just an idea at this stage as I haven't time to test atm however the concept has worked on other items I've worked with.
Best work flow for me is right from converter into Hex for setting up Including rescaling if needed then into Daz.
well I downloaded SU 8 and joined sketchucation and downloaded that ruby file
buggy but works on some models, some others crash sketchup
bit hit and miss
that stadium worked and imported into Daz studio fine