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Google's modeling applications received an upgrade earlier this week; SketchUp 6 (free) and SketchUp Pro 6 (not free) are now available. Most of the new features relate to the software's 3D capabilities.

Chief among these is Photo Match. Google boasts that "users can now quickly and easily trace a photo to create a 3D model of the photographed object or match an existing model with a background photo for near-instant modeling." Even though other software can perform similar feats, it's a neat accomplishment.

Google seems uncharacteristically determined to make people aware of Photo Match, however, as well as SketchUp 6 as a whole. In the Official Google Blog, for example, the heading "Super models wanted" lures readers into clicking on the post. The text then reveals that the company is sponsoring a sort of architectural contest.

There's also the case of SketchUp Pro 6's promotional quotes - you know, the "I use Product X and it's the best thing in the world" comments. Google features one quote from an identifiable businessperson, but then apparently ran out of credible sources; the next quote comes from "Scott - Forum Post Unknown."

Google will get $495 per copy of SketchUp Pro 6 that it sells, so perhaps that's part of the company's motivation. And the "Supermodel" contest could just be an example of the whole Google-is-fun mentality, considering that "the pieces are now in place" for users' entries to "show up in Google Earth for all the world to see."

Even if SketchUp 6 doesn't pique your interest, its release may have bigger implications; Google says that "these developments further Google's efforts to create a fully-detailed 3D Google Earth with user-generated modeling."

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Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news.