Getting Familiarized
Open up SketchUp and familiarlize yourself with the workspace. Like all the other graphic design programs you are by now comfortable with, SketchUp utilizes a workspace with a series of tool palettes.

Go to the Help menu and choose the Quick Reference Card (.pdf). Print it out and save it to help yourself learn the tools and keyboard shortcuts you can use to perform various functions.

Using the Mouse
SketchUp is used best when you have a "three button mouse" (ie, a mouse with two buttons and a scroll wheel) though you can certainly use it with a one- or two-button mouse as well.. The Quick Reference Card tells you how to maximize your mouse buttons for designing in SketchUp. Using the scroll wheel on the mouse is particularly useful because it allows you to zoom in and out of your drawing quickly.

Tool Types
Go to View > Toolbars and check out all the different kinds of toolbars that are available. For now, turn them all on (they're on if there's a checkmark next to the toolbar name). You can turn them off and on by dragging the mouse over the name of the toolbar and releasing the mouse button. Not all of the toolbars/tools are described on the Quick Reference card, but several of them are.

There are essentially two kinds of tools in SketchUp: viewing/selecting tools and drawing tools. A couple of tools allow you to "measure" elements in your drawing according to the scale you are working in. Read through the Quick Reference Card to find out what each of the tools do.

The Workspace
The SketchUp workspace looks different than any of the 2-D design programs you've been using because it allows you to see three dimensions. Depending on which "view" you are in (refer to the choices in the Views tool palette),SketchUp displays one, two, or three axes (X,Y,and Z, respectively -- remember this from high school math?!) each with their own color designation. The X-axis (length) is red, the y-axis (width) is green, and the x-axis (height) is blue. If you are in a 2-D view, only two axes will show (x and y, x and z, or y and z). If you are in a 3-D view, all three axes will show.

[the views palette]

[the SketchUp workspace with a 2-D view]

You can begin your drawing anywhere in the SketchUp workspace and any of the views, 2-D or 3-D. Whenever you are drawing in a direction parallel to one of the axes, the line you are drawing will be shown in the color ot the axis you are parallel with to to keep you oriented in 3-D space. It is easiest in many people's opinions (it can be way less confusing) to begin designing in 2-D (plan or section) and then move on to 3-D.

You can also switch views by using the orbit tool. You will notice that the z-axis (blue) will show.