Version 2.7.5 - 02.06.2022
- Added casing "Style E" for rectangle windows (Victorian style casing with rosettes).
- Fixed a bug related to upgrades introduced in Version 2.6.8 specifically for CMU and "No Framing" walls.



!!!! Critical Fix !!!!
If you are using CMU walls or the "No Framing" option, this update is a critical fix for doors and garage doors.  Please update your plugin to this latest version.  Always remember to first uninstall the existing version first before installing the updated plugin within the Extension Manager in SketchUp.

Style E is another common variant of the Victorian style of casing that I thought would be a good addition and complete the recent window and door casing upgrades to the plugin.  Again my objective here is to provide a low poly version to represent the overall configuration rather than all of the minute details of such a typically ornate window treatment.

Version 2.7.4 - 02.03.2022
- Added two additional (advanced framing) layers: Bottom Plate, Header 2.
- Added an option for the cutting of bottom plates for doors and garage doors.





The "Cut Bottom Plates" option by default is turned on (YES), however when it is turned off then the bottom plates are not cut out for door and garage doors.  This is useful for wall panel manufacturers who would rather leave the bottom plates intact for shipping/transportation and other reasons.

The "Header 2" layer is specifically for the sheathing placed between the lumber of spaced headers:

Version 2.7.3 - 02.01.2022
- Added casing "Style D" for rectangle doors (Victorian style casing with plinths and rosettes).
- Added casing "Style D" for rectangle windows (Victorian style casing with rosettes).





This is a low-poly version of a Victorian style casing.  The details in the rosettes and plinth blocks are missing and the typical fluting in the jamb and header are also missing.

Version 2.7.2 - 01.31.2022
- Fixed a bug with the window preset system within the window edit menu.

!!!!Alert!!!!
This bug existed within the window edit menu when creating a new window preset.  Any window presets created prior to this bug fix may need to be manually removed from the window preset config file.  This can be easily done by editing the file with any basic text editor (ie. Notepad).

Properly configured window presets will begin with the following character string "b1=".  If the preset does not have this specific string followed by a number (the preset number) it is corrupt and should be deleted from the preset file.

In Microsoft Windows the presets are found here:

C:\Users\%Username%\AppData\Roaming\Medeek\2022\medeek_wall_ext\presets

The window preset file is named:

WINDOW_PRESETS.txt

Version 3.0.8 - 01.29.2022
- Added ceiling gypsum and ceiling battens to all floor assemblies.



I am still working on the new floor plugin however in the meantime it was not difficult to add the gypsum option to the existing floor truss/joist module.

This feature added per customer request.

Version 2.7.1 - 01.27.2022
- Converted the door preset system to a Hash data structure.
- Converted the garage door preset system to a Hash data structure.

!!! WARNING !!!
This update will require deleting and recreating any door and/or garage door presets. This update will not affect any other preset types (ie. walls, windows, etc...)

Just loaded up SU 2022 Pro on my PC and promptly installed all of the plugins.

So far I'm not seeing any issues running 2022 with any of plugins, of course far more testing is required but so far so good.

Version 3.0.7 - 01.25.2022
- Added energy/raised heels for 4/2 scissor trusses (1 variant: vertical w/ strut).

Version 2.7.0 - 01.23.2022
- Enabled custom materials for cavity insulation.



This update was per customer request.

Version 2.6.9 - 01.22.2022
- Added an additional layer for furring into the Layers tab of the Global Settings.
- Fixed a bug with Door tab (HTML) of the Global Settings.



!!!! Critical Fix !!!!
The HTML file of the Door tab of the Global Settings was updated back in October (Version 2.4.9).  However at that time it appears that this updated version of the file somehow did not make it into the compiled codebase.  I just discovered this today and have moved the file into the correct location and released this latest update which corrects this oversight.  My apologies that this bug was introduced in the first place but it pains me further that it took until now to actually discover it.  Please upgrade to this latest version to resolve this issue.

Version 2.6.8c - 01.20.2022
- Fixed a minor bug with custom labels for doors, windows and garage doors.

Version 2.6.8b - 01.18.2022
- Fixed a bug with exterior wainscoting when doors and garage doors are vertically offset negative or positive values.

!!!! Critical Bug Fix !!!!
This addresses the issues with door and garage doors that have been vertically offset within the wall.  This bug fix addresses all wall types: rectangular, shed, gable and hip.

Version 2.6.8 - 01.15.2022
- Fixed bug with exterior trim when doors and garage doors are vertically offset.

It's that time of year again where I look back and analyze what has been accomplished with the plugins over the past year and then try to formulate a plan moving forward.  It has been a very busy year, especially for the Wall plugin.  The number of updates or versions released for each plugin in 2021 was:

Wall Plugin:  118
Truss Plugin:  29
Foundation Plugin: 19
Electrical Plugin: 7

Looking back through my records only 2018 was a busier year for the Wall plugin, but overall 2021 has probably been my most productive year yet.  Not sure if I can keep up this pace forever but I will continue to try.

In my mind the Wall plugin still has a few items that need attention and some of those are actually quite large items (ie. wall sandwich presets) however compared with the other plugins it is quite far along.  I think this year I need to spend some more time on the other three plugins and bring them more inline with the capabilities of the Wall plugin, especially the Truss plugin.

With the Foundation plugin I would like to enable window and door bucks as well as window well hardware in the next few weeks.  I am also wanting to add the window and door module from the Wall plugin to the Foundation plugin so that these openings in stemwall/foundation walls can be populated with hardware.

The Truss plugin has so many areas of needed improvement that it will require a completely separate discussion to lay out all of the roadmap but needless to say the complex roof module still awaits as does a completed dormer module.

With the electrical plugin there are not any really large items that need to be addressed unless I move forward with adding in more regional outlets and switches (ie. Australia, Europe etc...) However there are some nagging little issues with the placement of ceiling and floor lights and outlets that does need to be addressed.

Now on to the new stuff:

1.)  Floor Plugin:  This new plugin is long overdue and is mostly there but does need to be finished and released into the wild.  This will be a big priority over the next few months.  I am actually very excited to get this one out and start moving its further development along.

2.)  Engineering Plugin:  Not as high priority as everything else listed thus far but by far the coolest project if I can pull it off.  Adding a full calculation package to the shearwall module is very exciting and tempting right now, even though higher priorities exist.  I will do my best to only work on this plugin as time allows.

3.) Additional Help:  So at the beginning of 2020 I was seriously considering bringing on additional programming help but Covid kind of made me rethink and ultimately put those plans on hold.  Then, 2021 was possibly going to be a better year as the vaccines became available and somehow we ended the pandemic but later in the year Delta and Omicron changed the script on us again.  For now I will keep fighting the battle alone but when and if this pandemic finally comes to an end I will probably be bringing on at least one other programmer to help with the coding (possibly two).  Realistically there is only so much one man can do and my ideas tend to outstrip the number of keystrokes I can muster, so additional help is warranted and desperately needed.

From a business standpoint, 2021 was better for us than 2020 which was better than 2019 etc...  The trajectory has been upward from day one, I am still surprised at that.  I honestly thought after 2020 we would hit some sort of saturation or cap on growth but I guess I was wrong.  Eventually that will happen (not sure when), there are only so many design professionals who choose SketchUp as their weapon of choice, but I do hope to convince more people that SketchUp is the preferred choice when it comes to architectural modeling.

As always I can't help but thank all of the many users of the plugins and their valuable feedback.  Yes, I've put in the hours and many late nights and continue to do so, but without you the customers none of this would be even remotely possible.  What started out as a curiosity and then a hobby ultimately became my bread and butter.

Thank-you SketchUp for your awesome API and product and thank-you SketchUp Community.

I am looking forward to having a productive and great year in 2022 and if the stars happen to align we might be seeing some of you at Basecamp this year in Vancouver B.C. Canada.

mdkBIM Tutorial 2:  GARAGE2826-2





View model here:

https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model/73271181-ccb2-41b0-909e-7e97dbd9a4b3/GARAGE2826-2

P.S.
Not to be tooting my own horn but my son, after looking at this model, asked me how long it would take me to draw this garage manually at the same level of detail if I did not have the plugins. To be perfectly honest I really don't have a good idea but but my best guess would be at least two days (8 hours per day) depending on how experienced I am with using SketchUp. Of course getting all of the material textures and electrical elements put together would probably entail even more hours of searching about on the warehouse and creating some new components, but it is hard to say for certain.

What would be your estimate for modeling this garage with the same level of detail without the plugins?