A Window Installation - Google SketchUp Workshop: Modeling, Visualizing, and Illustrating - page 88

Other than SketchUp Pro 7, three other types of software were used to create
the document:

• LayOut2.0:Tolayoutthedocument;
• AdobePhotoshopCS4:Tocreaterealistictextures;
• AdobeAcrobat9Standard:Toreducetheilesizeofthedocumentand
transform it into a widely used format.

New Approaches

1. The concept : Creating step-by-step documents is not a common practice

in the homebuilding industry. Typically, this type of documentation is not
cost effective. Even more uncommon is the use of 3D modeling software
to create the illustrations, so using SketchUp in this manner is a fresh way
of looking at construction procedures in the industry.

2. The manner of using SketchUp : Using scenes and layers together to

control the visibility of groups and components is a new way of using
SketchUp to illustrate a construction procedure in a step-by-step manner.

3. The library : Creating a library (database) of materials and components

decreases the amount of time spent on modeling. Many of the materials
and components used in this step-by-step document were first developed
for other step-by-step documents; since the items were saved in a library,
they were easy to leverage.

4. The manner of using LayOut : Creating a scrapbook and a template

speeds up the process of creating the final step-by-step document.
A scrapbook is much like a library, except it is for LayOut, rather than
for SketchUp. In addition, LayOut is usually used for conceptual design
layouts for a client instead of for step-by-step documents.

Step 1: Planning

Goal : To create a roadmap that guides the development of the step-by-
step document.
Inputs : Project plan, development schedule, and style guides.

The planning stage is arguably one of the most critical steps to the success of
the final step-by-step document. It is during this stage that we first sat down
to discuss the project's background, set roles and responsibilities, create a
development schedule, and identify resources. Typically, the background of
a step-by-step document involves a homebuilder who is either proactively
looking to provide his/her trades with clear instructions on how to properly
install an aspect of a home or reactively looking to repair installation errors
that were already made. We assigned our roles and responsibilities based on
attributes like who is better equipped to interface with the client, to provide
structure and scheduling, and to accomplish the end goal successfully. For
this project, we built several small buffers into the development schedule to
account for certain variable factors. These factors included the availability