UKH

I've downloaded SketchUp Make 2017 for working on some basic 3D models at home but when I try to open the 2017 .skp file from work, I get an error message saying:

"Your Intel(R) G45/43 Express chipset graphics card's Open GL version is 2.1. SketchUp requires a graphics card that supports OpenGL 3.0 or better".

I've updated all my drivers but I still can't open SketchUp and am being given the same error msg.

In layman's terms is there anything I can do to allow the programme to open, or is my PC basically too old to run it? It's a Dell Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 @ 2.93GHz running Win.7 with 8Gb RAM.

In reply to Fraser: Have you downloaded OpenGL3 something and ttried to install it? What graphics card?

In reply to Fraser:

If SketchUp is saying it needs a more recent level of OpenGL compatibility, then you need to look at upgrading your graphic card. Could be that there are drivers available to do so (as there were for some cards I had to upgrade recently).

You can get the OpenGL compatibility of your existing graphics card from the internet.

In reply to wbo:

Not tried that but I will. I'll need to check what card I have tomorrow. Have now shut down the pc for the night but I should have checked that. I know it's integrated rather than dedicated.

In reply to steve taylor:

Cheers, I'll look into what card is installed and see if there is an upgrade option I can pursue.

In reply to Fraser:

You can't fix it. You laptop is too old for the graphics chipset to support the newer opengl 3 commands.

You'll need a new laptop. Opengl 2 was the standard in 2004, current intel embedded gfx chips support 4.5.

If you're doing something that uses a lot of 3d processing you'd be better with a desktop and a dedicated graphic card.

In reply to Philip:

Hmmm, interesting. I think the pc is maybe about about 6 years old now, perhaps slightly older. The annoying thing is that I was successfully running Sketch up 2015/16 a while ago but had to reinstall Windows. I hadn't been using SU much at the time so didn't bother reinstalling it again. They now say even the 2016 version still requires the ability to run OpenGL 3.

In reply to Fraser:

If you've a spare PCI slot, it would be worth picking up an NVIDIA graphics card which would do the trick. However, most of the workstations I've got running these applications have more than 8GB RAM, maybe time for an upgrade?

In reply to Fraser:
I'm pretty sure the Core 2 Duo was obsolete in 2010, so if you bought a new machine with one in then, I'm guessing it was pretty basic? It's not the CPU that is your problem though.
The message about Intel Express graphics suggests that the graphics are on the motherboard, not a separate card. Have you got a slot you can put a new graphics card in? It doesn't have to be anything fancy, you could pick something up new for under £30, or secondhand for the price of a pint.

In reply to paul_in_cumbria:

I'll check the slot situation, can't recall offhand tbh but it'd certainly be cheaper than a whole new machine. I am tempted though to splash some cash for the sake of speeding up LightRoom, if nothing else! SketchUp ran fine last year with the older version, so it's not the performance of that which is an issue requiring an upgrade.

In reply to Hooo:
Yes, I'm fairly sure it's not a separate graphics card. It could be a bit older than 2010, but not by much I'd say. I'll investigate the spare slot first before ordering something new and shiny.

Thanks all for you advice so far.


Edit: okay, just checked the receipt, it was bought in Dec. 2010 and the spec sheet says: "Integrated Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X4500 Graphics"

In reply to Fraser:

Looks like you'll need to upgrade then! No support beyond OpenGL2 for the 4500

As others have said, if you have space for a PCI card, you can get a dedicated graphics card for very little outlay.

In reply to steve taylor:

Ah, thanks for checking that for me. Time to start shopping methinks...

I'd not want to spend more than £500-600 max, so will have a hunt through some of the old 'laptop recommendation' threads on here to start with!

Thanks again.

In reply to Fraser:

How much to you need to use sketchup? If fairly infrequently and your existing laptop does all the other things you do then it may be worth having a look at https://www.paperspace.com/
You can create a virtual machine with a pretty decent spec and just pay for your usage. That should resolve your graphics issue for minimal outlay. So long as your internet connection is pretty good it's just like working on your own laptop. I'd been looking at a pretty powerful machine to process photogrammetry projects, the paperspace option has allowed me to rent a an 8 core xeon processor, Quadro GPU and a ton of RAM for less than $0.50 an hour, the advantage is I only pay for the hardware when I need it, the rest of the time my laptop does everything else. Obiviously if you are going to be using sketchup pretty heavily then it may be more cost effective to upgrade your laptop, if you can get one with a separate dedicated Nvidia graphics card it would be good. I run Sketchup, Autodesk Revit, Civil 3D and AutoCad on a 2015 Lenovo Z50-70 Core I5 and Nvidia Geforce somthing or other. Works fine for most things, though had to up the RAM to 8GB for larger models. Cost about £500 when I got it, so you should be able to get something for your budget without any bother.

K

In reply to KeithWakeley:

Hi keith, thanks for the detailed response. From a very quick glance, the Paperspace facility looks similar to something we sometimes use at work for cloud rendering (I think - I'm no expert!) The demo video on its functionality was a bit over my head, if I'm honest!

I don't use SketchUp very often, even at work (where we also use Revit, mostly on monster jobs). I just need it at present to get some 3D views of my small house extension and I thought it would be a good opportunity to have a more detailed tinker with the programme than I've done to date. Working early mornings and lunchtimes in the office is fine, but I'd like the option to use SUp at home in the evenings.

My wife's also reminded me I had another spare old desktop at home which used to have both SketchUp and Microstation on it, so I'll check and see if that's still running before I look further afield.

Thanks though for your suggestions and info on Paperspace & laptops.

In reply to anyone:

Okay, I've checked my other pc and its graphics card is Intel (R) G33/G31 Express Chipset Family.

What I can't now do is discover whether or not this will let me run OpenGL3. Googling has come up with nothing that I can actually understand. Intel's help pages are written by geeks for geeks.

Is it really so hard to get a grasp of this? Or do I need to go to School of Geek for a few years then revisit this particular problem? Aaaarghh......!!!!!

In reply to Fraser:


http://microdream.co.uk/laptops-and-netbooks.html?dir=asc&limit=30&...

I highly recommend them. Have used them multiple times and despite the occasional problem will happily use them again.
For your specific requirements, why not contact them and let them make a suggestion. Then if you have a problem at least you have someone in your corner.

In reply to Mark Edwards:

Thanks, it may yet come to that sort of solution.

I managed to install SketchUp Pro 2015 on 'machine #2' and it runs fine, but it's only a trial version - there was no freebie, lower-spec. version available as there was with the 2017 software.