I'm new to the forum and new to the product.
I started using sweethome3d, and I found that it didn't meet my requirements, I needed more power to model the changes I want to do to my house.
I have read a lot about how can I do this changes. I downloaded Sketchup from Google, learned how to do models. Easy, no problem, I have used modelling software like this before.
So I tried to extract models from sketchup to sweethome3d, but there was no direct way to do so, and what I have read about was incomplete and didn't tell the full explanation about how to do it.
After a bit trying, I have found out how to do it, so I want to share it, maybe it will help somebody trying the same.
I do know programs used in this explanation are not free-of-use, although they are free-of-cost. So maybe this howto can be not legal if you use it to make profit, so be careful if you use it in commercial ways, ensure yourself the legal use reading the licenses. I use it only for personal purposes, so I didn't read that boring stuff...
Steps:
1) Download Autodesk FBX converter. It's free for downloading, at http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc ... id=6837478
2) Use Sketchup to model something. You can use textures as well.
3) Export the sketchupmodel in Google Earth file (kml).
4) Change kml file extension to zip (yes... it's a zip. Everybody now uses zips! Office 2007... X3 reunion...)
5) Unzip.
6) Go to see the model in COLLADA (models/xxx.dae).
7) Convert the dae to fbx using FBX (just last version of fbx works fine).
8) Convert the fbx to obj, using FBX again. It will generate two files, .OBJ (mesh) and .MTL (materials)
9) Textures: FBX doesn't convert the textures. So we must do it manually. Go for the textures directory (root of unzipped file/textures), copy all of them to the models directory.
Then, open the MTL file generated by FBX when converting to OBJ, as text, look for the materials yo have used, and insert this line:
newmtl material_0_1_0ID
Ka 0.000000 0.000000 0.000000
Kd 0.800000 0.800000 0.800000
map_Kd texture0.jpg <--- NEW LINE TO BE ADDED.
illum 1
Tr 1.000000
Don't use relative paths, just the name of the texture, since we will put it in the root of the zip where we will pack everything. If you are not sure what textures are to be added to what materials, refer to the COLLADA file (.dae), open it as text (is an XML), and search ".jpg" string...
Pack the .obj file, the .mtl file, and all the textures used in a zip, throw it to the import forniture window of SweetHome3D, and you have it.
Best regards, and thanks for this excellent product (and now even more powerfull!!!)
