 NewsletterNovember 2006Newsletter Editor: In This Issue:
Meeting information
Future Meetings:
Minutes of the October 18, 2006 Meeting
The newbie session started at 4PM, and the regular meeting was called to order at 4:30 by President Robert Elphick. After payment for the Club's new MacBook and monies collected at the meeting, the Club bank balance Is $443.93. President Robert announced that Devon Technologies (http://www.devon-technologies.com), a maker of Mac S/W, has offered club members a 25% discount on its products. See MAGIC Moments below for further details. The program was The November program will be given by Chris Douthitt and his multimedia class of Oak harbor High School. The December meeting will be our annual Christmas party. The meeting was closed by President Robert at 6PM. Daryl Thomas MAGIC Moments
Robert Y Elphick - a self appointed wizard of the very best kind! Many of the past MAGIC monthly presentations have been rendered into HTML and included in the Tricks and Tips page of this web site. Check them out for useful tricks and tips. New Directors at LargeSince the major officers of MAGIC are elected for a two year term, we do not need to have new elections this year. However, the Bylaws allow for adding new Directors at Large every year for a one or two year term. At the next meeting we will be asking for volunteers or picking people who are not present (hee hee!) so please consider taking on this role. The job is very easy - It only requires giving advice and discussion to the major officers when a major policy decision has to be made - for example; discussion and advice from all the board members was very welcome when we were considering purchasing a new computer (a major purchase for MAGIC) earlier this year. This can usually be done by email. Maintenance pageAll members are recommended to print out the Whatever else you do, BACK UP your hard drive regularly! Future presentationsWe are actively looking for ideas for presentations and presenters in 2007 - it is closer than you think and we need to plan these things in advance. Do you have something that you would like to talk about? Is there a topic that you would like to have explained in plain English? At the October meeting suggestions for future topics included:
MAGIC member discountsDEVON (see email for discount code)
Our major products are the document and information manager DEVONthink, the Internet (re)search agent DEVONagent, and the notepad application DEVONnote. In addition, we make the web cam viewer PhotoStickies and a number of little but useful freeware applications, namely the file find utility EasyFind, the thumbnail generator ThumbsUp, the menu bar launcher XMenu, as well as the Services menu extensions WordService, CalcService, and HotService. While our applications are truly powerful and sometimes have a steep learning curve, they're not just targeted at rocket scientists! DEVONthink helps everyone drowning in electronic documents, emails, papers, be it in the office or at home, and DEVONagent is used by thousands of Mac users around the world. Mac User Group members shop with a 25 percent discount in our online shop! Just shop as you normally would in any online shop, and enter this code when asked to do so (near the end (!) of the purchase process) to get the discount deducted from the total. This discount code is valid until the December 31st, 2006. Have a look at DEVON products here: http://www.devon-technologies.com/products/ Intego Until December 31st 2006, Intego is offering us 20% off of the MSRP for all of their titles. Intego, is the leading developer of Internet security and privacy software for Macintosh, Intego is the only company to offer a complete line of software that protects Macintosh computers from the dangers of the Internet. With more than 1 million users in over 60 countries, Intego is the leader for desktop Internet security and privacy software for Mac. Intego software provides Internet security and privacy protection in four areas:
Since its founding in 1997, Intego has been firmly committed to supporting Macintosh computers and new innovations and developments in the Mac OS. As soon as each new version of Mac OS X is released, Intego provides software compatible with the new operating system, leveraging new possibilities in Mac OS X to provide powerful new features to keep its users secure. Intego was the first company in the world to offer a personal firewall for Macintosh, and was also the first to offer native Mac OS X (Cocoa) security solutions. Intego also offered compatibility with Mac OS X, Jaguar, Panther, and Tiger, Apple's new Intel processors, and all of Apple's innovations before its competitors. Intego's users can be confident that their software will continue to progress as other changes are made to Mac OS X and Macintosh computers. Go to their web page and download a demo of their software, then give them a call at (512) 673-0700 between 8:30 am and 5:30 PM Monday through Friday and make sure to mention that you are calling on the MUG offer to get the special 20% off pricing. Apple Finally - Don't forget to check out the User Group Discounts: http://homepage.Mac.com/ugab/offers.html Apple releases iTunes Update 7.0.2
by Jim Dalrymple - MacCentral Apple on Tuesday released iTunes 7.0.2, the latest updated for the company's jukebox software. According to Apple, iTunes 7.0.2 adds support for the Second Generation iPod shuffle and addresses a variety of stability and performance issues found in iTunes 7 and 7.0.1. The update is available from Apple's Web site or via the Software Update mechanism in Mac OS X. http://playlistmag.com/news/2006/10/31/itunes/index.php MacBook firmware update fixes shutdown issue
by Jim Dalrymple - MacCentral Apple on Thursday released a firmware update for its MacBook line of computers that fixes a problem that caused the MacBook to shutdown without warning.
The firmware update improves the MacBook's internal monitoring system, according to notes provided by Apple. You will need to have Mac OS X 10.4.7 or higher to run the update. Apple said the update is recommended for all MacBook systems, including those that received warranty repair. The firmware update is available from Apple's Web site. http://news.yahoo.com/s/macworld/20061026/tc_macworld/macbookfirmware20061026_0 MacBook Pros get Core 2 Duo bump
by Jim Dalrymple - MacCentral Apple on Tuesday updated its professional line of notebook computers adding the new Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The MacBook Pro now also includes twice the standard RAM and higher capacity hard drives, as well as FireWire 800 ports. The MacBook Pro with the Core 2 Duo is up to 39 percent faster than the previous generation MacBook and more than seven times faster than the 1.67GHz PowerBook, according to Apple. Application specific tasks show vast improvements over previous generation models, as well, with DV rendering and encoding increasing by 39 percent and Aperture running 25 percent faster.
...The new 15-inch MacBook Pro is shipping today - the 17-inch MacBook Pro will ship next week. Prices range from $1,999 (low-end 15-inch MacBook Pro) and $2,499 (high-end 15-inch MacBook Pro) to $2,799 (17-inch MacBook Pro).
Complete Article at:http://news.yahoo.com/s/macworld/20061024/tc_macworld/macbookpro20061024_1 MacBooks driving Apple's computer sales
by Jim Dalrymple - MacCentral With its highest ever quarter for Mac shipments on the books and a rising computer market share, Apple executives said its portable computers are responsible for over 60 percent of the reported shipments.
According to market research firms IDC and Gartner, Apple's overall computer market share has passed the five percent mark, growing more than 30 percent in the quarter.
Apple has been focused on its growing portable business for some time now and the efforts appear to be paying off. The company's successful transition to Intel-based processors and the continual updates of its portables have been noted as triumphs by analysts.
Apple's increased portable sales are not just about the hardware, according to Deal. Apple has said for a long time it is its ability to bring a full solution to market that gives it a competitive edge and Deal agrees.
Of course, when it comes to Apple's increased hardware sales, the impact of the iPod must also be taken into account.
Article at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/macworld/20061024/tc_macworld/macbooksales20061024_2 Sum It Up With Calculator
by MacWorld Hidden Helper Weather you're complex equations or tallying up the profits from your latest bake sale, don't forget Calculator(Applications). Its Paper Tape window (view: show Paper Tape) displays a running summary of your calculations, but it can do so much more than that. Say you've just made a calculation, and you want to do it with different data. Click in the paper tape, change any of the numbers, and click on Recalculate Totals. when you type directly in the paper tape, use the originaal operators (+,-,*, and/), as well as parentheses. Presto Change-o iPhoto Sorting
by MacWorld Hidden Helper When you need to sort loads of photos, iPhoto 6 has two tools that can get the job done together: Smart Albums and the Batch Change command. To gather all your summer picture, for example, first create a smart album (File: New Smart Album) with the condition Date Is In The Range 6/1/06 To 9/1/06. Give it the name Summer 2006. Repeat the process to create additional smart albums for other summers. Then select all the photos in each summer album, choose Photos: Batch Change, and set comments to Summer. Peer inside this album to see all your summer photos. Apple offers 8GB RED iPod nano
by Peter Cohen - MacWorld RED is a special initiative to raise money for the Global Fund to help fight HIV/AIDS in Africa. Apple is already participating in the program with a special red version of its iPod nano; initially, the company sold a $199 4GB version. Now a $249 8GB version joins the line. Apple will contribute $10 to from the sale of each RED edition iPod nano to the Global Fund. Under the hood, the RED nano is exactly the same as Apple's other iPod nano models - it's a flash-based digital music player that works with music you've ripped into iTunes or downloaded from the iTunes store. Its color display shows you album art and digital photos you've synced from iTunes. Apple estimates that the 8GB RED nano can store about 2,000 songs - twice the effective capacity of its 4GB sibling. It features the same dimensions, so it can use the same accessories from Apple and third parties designed for second-generation iPod nano players. The 8GB iPod nano RED features redesigned earbud headphones, a dock connector and a USB 2.0 cable to connect to a Mac or PC. Apple said the new 8GB iPod nano RED will be available through the online Apple Store beginning today, Friday, Nov. 3, 2006, and will appear at Apple retail stores through the weekend. System requirements call for USB 2.0 and Mac OS X v10.3.9 or later with iTunes 7.0.2 or higher. Article at http://news.yahoo.com/s/macworld/20061103/tc_macworld/8gbrednano20061103_0 Interview: MAGIC Member Ron Sharp
How did you get started with Macintosh computers? My brother had an Apple computer circa 1988, that he gave me in about 1992. At the time, I told him there was nothing I'd use a computer for. He said there were a couple games on it so I took it and did play the games occasionally. I thought that the real fun thing would be to access the internet to see what that was all about. So I bought a 14.4k modem and got connected. The computer, I think an Apple ll c, had a 16 MHz chip and 80 megabyte hard drive. It was painfully slow and pages would take forever to load. I was amazed the first time I saw a computer scroll a web page smoothly instead of the slow jerky scrolling I was getting. How do you use your computer now? I'm astounded at all the things I do on the computer. Actually alarming because I'm starting to spend more time on the computer than I probably should. But I access my online stock account, shop for household merchandise, read news, access an automotive professionals site for my profession, keep up a personal accounting spreadsheet, not to mention music and photos, and e-mail. I do spend a certain amount of time reading and learning software and maintaining my two iBook computers. I guess I'm often trying to do things like connect them wirelessly and transfer files, etc. I know that having two computers increased my time using and maintaining them and that the two adults in this house could easily get by with one computer but my excuse for purchasing a second (faster) laptop was for backup. If anything happens to one computer I won't be blowing my mind thinking how much stuff I lost and how long it takes to set everything back up. And I enjoy computers and for the most part, enjoy troubleshooting problems. What programs would you like to see developed? I'm glad you asked that question. There seems to be a plethora of software when searching the internet but often I don't find just the thing I want. Many times the software I find does way more than I want. I'm usually looking for a simple program. For instance, I'd like a small program that, besides printing up a music cd song list, also sets the correct size for the CD jewel cover and allows me to add color. I have an AppleScript that prints up the song list but I spend way too much time with the list in AppleWorks setting a graphic the right size to fit a CD jewel cover and adjusting the text to fit. iTunes will import album art but I don't think they cover the area of creating album art. There is probably a program out there on the Web, I just haven't found it yet. Other software that isn't develpoed yet is good landscape design software for the Mac. There is one I recently found, Cadintosh by Lemkesoft. Very reasonably priced at $33 but I fear it may be very technical. I haven't tried it yet. CAD is Computer Aided Design, or sometimes Computer Assisted Drafting, software for engineers and architects. Also, I know OSX is a great bundle of software, but overall I think there is still room for even more user friendly software. I do find answers to my questions in the You've mentioned a concern of spending time on the computer. Is that an issue for you? Ahh, ..yes. But I have to qualify that yes. It's hard to pin down how much is too much time. For instance, I feel I actually save a lot of time shopping and ordering things online rather than driving x number of miles and spending maybe half a day looking for a product. But then also, a percentage of time I'm searching for something computer related. Also, I spend a lot less time watching TV. I'd guess 80% of the time the internet/computer stuff is more interesting to me than network television. So that has to be figured in. I heard about a show on TV raising the question of people being addicted to the internet. Well I think the internet is such a fabulous tool that if we are addicted then it's not such a bad thing. Then there's the issue of straining my eyes to be focused at one distance so long. It sounds like my parents, years ago, saying TV is ruining my eyes. So maybe that's more an indoctrinated concern than a real issue. I also wonder if the whole issue of spending time on a computer isn't a developing concern en-mass. The Western world is so computerized, more than ever and increasingly so, that it's something to be scrutinized. I, at least, don't spend much time on a computer at work so I feel ahead of the curve overall. As I've already mentioned I just enjoy playing on computers. In fact, a couple weeks ago my internet cable service was down for about a day and a half and in that time I found a couple games that came with OSX Tiger and kind of got into one of them. MarbleBlast. It'll get old quickly for me but I find it pretty ingenious software; fun to watch the graphics. Sleeping Beauty
by Jeff Merron - MacWorld I'm a big believer in the power of napping, but I must admit that much of this But sometimes actually falling asleep can be a problem. The unfinished projects and looming deadlines make too much noise. Sometimes I'll put on some ambient music - Brian Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports is my favorite - and it will help. But last week I discovered Brainwave's Pzizz 1.7 (4 mice; $40 with energizer module, $20 for sleep module). This software generates background audio for power napping - a combination of soothing spoken words, sound effects, and music - and it has helped me nap both more deeply and more efficiently (that is, I fall asleep more quickly). The company makes all kinds of claims about how Pzizz stimulates the subconscious using neuro-linguistic programming. I haven't been using the program long enough to assess whether this really works. However, there is some sound scientific support for the benefits of napping, and considering the quality of Pzizz's output, I'm willing to bet that this product is on the right track. The voice on the nap tracks, that of Michael Breen, who the company says is an 
Although you can get a hardware Pzizz unit for $147, most people will probably use the software on their computers; there are versions for both the Mac and PC. After you install the software, you can create custom naps, adjusting the length (between 1 and 60 minutes) and the volume of the voice and music. Pzizz export to iTunesPzizz also enables you to export nap files to iTunes. You can then put them on your iPod, which seems appropriate, since it's easier to bring your iPod to where you nap than to either lug your laptop to your nap space or to try and catch some zzzs near your desktop computer. 
According to the company, the software creates algorithms that create unique nap mixes every time you use the program. The benefit is supposed to be Pzizz is clearly a niche product, one that's unlikely to inspire much competition. But the good news, for those of us who struggle if we don't get our nap time, is that Pzizz fills the niche very well. Pzizz requires a Mac G4 667MHz with 512MB of RAM or better running OS X 10.3 or later. It is a Universal Binary. Article at http://www.macworld.com/weblogs/macgems/2006/11/pzizz/index.php Changing Graphic Format in No Time Flat
from Apple's Tip of the Week If you have a graphic file and wish to convert it quickly to another commmon format then open it in Preview. After selecting the File->Sava As.. pull down menu, clicking on the format button offers several formats that the file can be saves as (see below). For graphic designers who work with EPS images from applications like Adobe illustrator, Coreldraw for Mac, Freehand, and Photoshop. If you want to convert your EPS image instantly into a PDF (ideal for emailing), just drag it onto Apple's Preview application icon in your dock (or in your Applications folder) and Mac OS X automatically converts your Postscript file to a PDF on the fly. When you choose save from the File menu, it will save as a PDF. 
MAGIC, the Macintosh Appreciation Group of Island County, serves people who use Macintosh computers, software and peripherals. Our goal is to share information and get answers to questions to make us more productive with our use of technology. Our monthly meetings give us a chance to discuss computer problems and share ideas with other Mac users, feature speakers on specific topics, and to keep apprised of Apple news. |