The Drop Tool plugin created by an anonymous author on Ruby Library Depot is a useful tool to drop many components onto a surface that is not completely flat. It allows you to do this simply with the right click of the mouse then choosing “drop at intersection”. Another element of the tool allows you to drop the components at a certain height (but this just works as a move tool).

Though this plugin only works with components. Also when using the tool it tends to drop the object down to the extents of the virtual box that is made. So when you have a tree (such as I do in the above image) it will be seen as a box that takes the extents of the tree, thus the leaves will stretch out the base to many times bigger than the base of the actual trunk. When using the tool the tree will drop down until one of the edges hits the surface and may result with the base of the tree trunk still floating in the air. A way around this is to create circles the size of the trunk and create these as a component (to serve as a place holder). Then drop the circles down to the surface. Once the circles are down, you can replace the “circle” component with a “tree” component.

Overall, the Drop Tool plugin is a simple and useful plugin to have. At the time of this review this plugin is free and is available at Ruby Library Depot. Just be sure to scroll down and find the “drop.rb” file. I give this plugin 4 out 5 stars.

The Balustrade plugin created by T. Marek and D. Bur on Ruby Library Depot is a clever plugin that allows you to create your own balusters (also known as hand rails). This plugin allows you to create your own baluster using the menu to control the styles of the posts, handrails and panels. And you can even take it one step further and create your own custom balusters by creating the elements and naming them according to what they are.

The process of creating your own custom baluster is to first create components named HR (for handrail), PO (for posts) and PA (for panels). Then once you create the components you create the track for your baluster (note that the baluster will be positioned on center of the track). And then you can go ahead and run the plugin. It will give you the option to use the plugins already set styles or choose your own by choosing the mentioned components. Be sure to note the positioning of your components, because this can effect your end result. For a more detailed instructions, click here.

Overall, the Balustrade plugin created by T. Marek and D. Bur is a great plugin. It is easy to use and can be very helpful when designing architectural works. At the time of this review this plugin is free and is available at crai.archi.fr – Ruby Library Depot. I give this plugin 5 out 5 stars!

*Be sure to download the Balustrade Components file*

The Volume Calculator plugin created by TGI is a great plugin that allows you to calculate the volume of certain objects. It works really well and has a simple menu to fill out. The menu gives you the option of the units to be used, which layer to place the NEW object on (be aware that this plugin does create a new object that is not the original). You also have the option to hide sides and the original object and finally what color to make the new object. I recommend using a certain color style to differentiate from volume measurements and the actual object.

This tool has a drawback it will only allow you to find the volume of objects that are grouped or a component. You cannot simply just highlight objects and find the volume. NOTE: to use this plugin you need to create a group or component, then right click it and click “Volume”.

Overall, the Volume Calculator plugin created by TGI is a great tool to have to get some more insight into your model. At the time of this review this plugin is free and is available at www.cad-addict.com. I give this plugin 3 out 5 stars.

This plugin really works the best when applied to components brought in from the Google Warehouse or if you need to use a complicated model as a part of another model. But in order for it to work correctly you would have to create a new file to import the warehouse component or model, then you can explode the entire model with one click and then import it into your original file. This, to me, poses the one flaw of this plugin. The plugin would work much better if there were extra options associated with it. Instead of exploding the entire model, it would help to be able to only explode selected items or items on certain layers.

Overall, the Bomb Google Plugin explodes all components and groups seamlessly and is a must to have while working with SketchUp, but be aware! ALWAYS save your model before using it. At the time of this review the Bomb plugin on Smustard.com is free. I give it 3 out 5 stars.