certified for Sketchup?

[fostertom]

Are any ATI cards certified for use with Sketchup? Is there a list of certified applications - Autocad etc?

Or Nvidia e.g. Quadro?

[bubba]

Think a Quadro card would be a bit overkill for Sketchup... I run/ran Autodesk Inventor on a rang of cards. ATI X300, X600, X1400 mobile as well as nVidia 6200, 6600, 9800GTX

As long as you can run OpenGL with the card and have 512mb memory on it, you can run sketchup.

[fostertom]

Mm yes but just lately SU advice has come to

"Which graphics cards are recommended for SketchUp?

We recommend any graphics card that fully supports OpenGL 1.5 or higher and has at least 64 MB of video memory...We've seen good results when SketchUp is run with most of the graphics cards recently released by NVIDIA and ATI.....Some graphics cards are designed primarily for games and don't fully support the OpenGL standard. Cards like these may not support 3D programs like SketchUp very well. If you have updated to the latest graphics driver and you are still having problems using SketchUp, you may need to upgrade your computer's graphics capabilities.

PC Note: One way to test whether your graphics card is supporting OpenGL fully, the way a 3D program like SketchUp requires, is to disable hardware acceleration. This takes the graphics card out of the equation so that graphics are fully handled by the software and the operating system. Normally, you shouldn't do this because it typically causes a slow down in graphics performance, but it can help you troubleshoot an issue."

I do have problems with my Geforce 7900GT, which go away when hardware acceleration is switched off. Lots of other trouble with gamers cards on the SU forums. So looking for something certified to work - either Nvidia or ATI - £105 to £130 isn't 'overkill'

[bubba]

Thats maybe something that will have to be lived with, to get a workstation card that has 512MB RAM on it you're going to be in the $500-600 range. Take a look at these, under $200 and support OpenGL 3.0

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi ... rchInDesc=

and the ONE quatro card that might work, looks like it has issues from the reviews...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814133273

[fostertom]

Thank you. My shortlist was the FX580 you suggested, and the AT!3750, cheaper. Revieved in http://www.develop3d.com/downloads/ (June 09), the ATI did outstandingly well for the price but has only 256MB.

My main question was: is e.g. the FX580 actually certified for Sketchup, and are there lists of the applications certified for the ATI and Nvidia professional cards? I can't find any such info on the makers' sites.

[bubba]

certification is left up to the program maker. Autodesk has a hole section for their programs (AutoCAD, Inventor, Maya, 3DS Max) that shows what cards have been tested and how they work with it. Doubt Google would take the time for a program they give away.

[fostertom]

Thanks for much enlightening info. SU is in fact very widely used in paid-for Pro version, but only 575 pounds or something. I will enquire on SU forums.