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User Group News Bulletin
How To: Apple Support Options for User Groups
By Rick Ortiz
Apple User Groups have always been a great resource for help outside of the normal Apple support system. Besides the in-person meetings, some user groups offer online support resources and email discussion lists. User groups seem to always answer those tough and hard-to-find solutions, for its members. But user group members sometimes need support beyond that, and in the past we would call Apple for help. But as technology changes, so has our Apple support options. This “How-To” is more of a resource article for user group leaders as well as for members themselves. (note: Apple Stores are a great resources for help, but not everyone has a store near them, or can go into a store for support. This article will focus on online support options.)
Bill Medlow and LIMac: More Than 21 Years of Faithful Service
You may have met Bill Medlow at a Macworld user group event or chatted with him by email. For more than twenty one years, Bill has been president of the Long Island Mac User Group (LIMac – currently over 260 members!) and he is retiring this year. Congrats on many years of faithful service Bill. Hope retirement brings new adventures and much fun.
Meeting Ideas: Apple Arcade
Are your members curious about Apple Arcade? The people who created the games that are part of Apple Arcade have woven artistry, curiosity and a lot of heart into a curated selection of fascinating and fresh ways to delight players. From The Enchanted World, a metaphor for a child growing up in a time of war, where the player uses puzzles and challenges to restore a collapsing fairyland, to Borderleap’s Patterned puzzle pieces that must be arranged to complete charming pictures, the post-apocalyptic Overland road trip adventure game, and the card-based Card of Darkness, with puzzles that feature hand-drawn characters with a sense of humor, there is something to delight every player.
Meeting Ideas: New iWork for Mac, iWork for iPadOS and iOS, iMovie, and Clips
Have your members seen the new iWork for Mac, iPadOS, and iOS? Along with Clips and iMove, ASW has information about the recent releases. Better yet, Richard Byrne’s IPAD APPS FOR SCHOOL Blog offers an interesting idea for creating green screen movies with iMove on iPad. Your members might enjoy learning his techniques.
IPAD APPS FOR SCHOOL Blog:
http://ipadapps4school.com/how-to-make-green-screen-videos-on-an-ipad/
ASW’s New Articles:
Clips – First Look (L573379A-en_US)
iMovie – First Look (L544682A-en_US)
iWork for iPadOS and iOS (L575794A-en_US)
iWork for Mac – First Look (L575795A-en_US)
Meeting Idea: Tips For Using Keyboard Accessibility Features on a Mac
Joseph Keller and Mick Symons of iMore published a wonderful series of tips on keyboard accessibility features on a Mac back in July. If you haven’t read the article yet, be sure to take a read. It might make for a great meeting topic.
August Featured Vendor: Eve’s Apple HomeKit-Enabled Ecosystem
While you may not recognize the logo, the company now named Eve was a long-time and much-loved supporter of User Group University and other community events under the name Elgato. With the incredible success of their Eve Flare (portable smart LED lamp), Eve Button (smart home remote), Eve Door & Window (door and window security sensors), Eve Light Switch (smart wall switch), Eve Motion (motion sensor), Eve Room (indoor air quality, temperature, and humidity sensor), Eve Smoke (smoke detector), Eve Thermo (radiator valve), Eve Aqua (smart water controller), Eve Degree (connected weather station), Eve Extend (Bluetooth wireless extender), Eve Energy (empower your appliances) and more, the company decided to focus on their smart home line of products that work perfectly with with Apple HomeKit technology.
In fact, Eve’s growing ecosystem of connected accessories, designed exclusively for the Apple HomeKit-enabled household, are simple to set up, easy to control from anywhere, and provide the convenience that automation can supply. Better yet, even when accessing your home remotely via your home hub, all data is end-to-end encrypted and stored on your iPhone or iPad. So, your privacy is protected.
This month’s blog has an amazing discount for Apple employees and Apple User Group members. Be sure to check it out!
Macstock 2019: Better Every Year
Macstock 2019 . . . Best Yet!
by Tom Piper
Macstock V on July 28-29, 2019, was the fifth annual gathering of Apple faithful at the Luecht Conference Center on the McHenry County College campus in Crystal Lake, IL (near Woodstock, an hour northwest of Chicago). With a theme of CREATE!, it had over 200 Apple advocates in attendance with people from California to Tucson to New York to England. There were 10 featured speakers and 5 special speakers with over 13 hours of content (including OWC demos).
Special Offer – Eve Products: 25% Discount
With a rich history of EyeTV and Elgato products, Eve Systems now includes Eve Aqua, Eve Flare, Eve Room, Eve Degree, Eve Energy Strip, Eve Light Strip, Eve Door & Window, Eve Energy, Eve Button, Eve Light Switch, and Eve Motion. Detailed descriptions about each of these fine products can be seen at evehome.com. How-To: Live Streaming Computer Group Meetings by Graeme Moffatt
[Note: The premiere of Graeme Moffatt’s ‘Mr Mainline Steam‘ documentary was shown recently and the documentary has received amazing reviews and organizational recognitions.]
Filmmaker Graeme Moffatt of Capital Video Productions Ltd. is a member of the Wellington Macintosh Society, and he is also the Apple User Group Regional Liaison for New Zealand, Australia, and Oceania. You can find more than a year of his group’s Wellington Macintosh Society (WelMac) meeting videos at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmJBMCRuX6iyV8smOu2iApw/videos
By Graeme Moffatt:
I became involved with a group in the United States that is doing live internet broadcasts, initially just using an iPad and soon they moved to a much more sophisticated system.
This new system allowed them to use multiple screens, cameras and microphones and the quality of the broadcasts became much more sophisticated and interesting. I sent an email to the person who was coordinating all of this, an ex Hollywood filmmaker, and asked him what software he was using and received a reply stating that it was an iPad app called Switcher Studio.
I did a search online and soon found the app and downloaded a free trial version and tested it out. I found it to quite amazing as to what it could accomplish read more…
Meeting Idea: Apple Families
While parents love the ways that Apple’s iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV promote learning, exploring, and fun, parents also want to be sure that their children are using Apple products and related technologies in ways that are safe, healthy, and appropriate. Are your members aware of Apple’s Families page and how it can help parents make sure that their children are using technology in the ways that parents want?
The site provides tips and tools to keep track of family app usage, determine when devices can be used, limit or block applications and notifications at bedtime, choose which apps are available for their children, provide for internet safety and kid-friendly content, manage in-app purchases (including Ask to Buy), know where their children are 24×7, find lost devices, share apps and music with the entire family, create group chats to stay in touch, reduce distractions, provide for emergency SOS and ensure medical information is there when needed, help emergency professionals locate family members, protect privacy, and so much more.
Check it out!
Meeting Ideas: MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, Then and Now
Your members may be wondering about the new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops. If so, ASW has a great set of presentations that could make for a good meeting topic.
MacBook Pro – Then and Now (L578071A-en_US) and MacBook Air – Then and Now *L581386A-en_US) offer comparisons of previous and current generations, letting your members know what has changed and what is the same. Then, MacBook Pro – First Look (L578070A-en_US) and MacBook Air – First Look (L581388A-en_US) provide the full specs for the newest in the MacBook line.
Ambassadors, August is a great month to use Apple resources in your meetings.
June’s Feature Vendor: Matias
Matias has quite a following in the Mac User Group community because of their reputation for high quality products and for rescuing lost or abandoned technologies. For example, they make some of the best wired keyboards available today, as well as a product line of wireless keyboards, and their iRizer and iFold portable ergonomic laptop stands. They are also known for their Dvorak Pro keyboard, Half Keyboard for one handed typing, and Half-qwerty Keyboards. While they have been producing award-winning products for 30 years, they still offer the same level of truly personal and truly excellent customer service. Best of all, they are offering a generous user group discount for Apple User Group officers and members in this month’s Bulletin and Blog.
Visit Matias.
Apple Product Placement: Your Favorite Devices on Your Favorite Shows
Is your group looking for a short and fun presentation? You may want to visit the Product Placement Blog, which has a section covering appearances of your favorite devices on your favorite TV shows and movies… 97 pages of appearances. From an iPhone 5S on House of Cards to an amazing number of Apple products in Season 1 of Trinkets, it is a fun browse.
Meeting Idea: Today at Apple Presents Photo Lab: Disrupting the Portrait
Have you ever wondered why some photos catch the eye while others are pedestrian and boring? If so, your group might enjoy two new photo series from Today at Apple. Photo Lab: Disrupting the Portrait, Co-created with Christopher Anderson offers a look at ways to rethink the subject, obstruct the lens, and stylize your shots, all based on ideas from award-winning photographer Christopher Anderson. And, with Photo Lab for Kids: Fun Family Portraits your members can learn how to use iPad and iPhone to capture action, understand how background and lighting can make for a great shot, add fun text and art to a picture, and more.
https://www.apple.com/today/
TAAMUG: Bring and Brag Makes for a Great Meeting Idea
The Toowoomba Apple And Macintosh User Group Inc. (TAAMUG) has an interesting idea for a low stress and fun-filled meeting: A Bring and Brag session. Although they meet in Toowoomba, Queensland, TAAMUG’s membership comes from surrounding communities as well, including some more than an hour away. What brings them together once a month? Friendship and learning in a relaxed setting, where long-time experts and newbies are equally welcome. Sounds like fun!
Visit and learn.
Meeting Ideas: iMovie for iOS and iMovie for Mac, iOS 13, iPad OS, WatchOS 6
WWDC was amazing this year, with so many exciting announcements. Needless to say, your group will want to learn about the changes that are coming and the features that will help them get more from their Apple devices. The good news is that ASW has your back with specification sheets and presentations that provide the information you need. Why not use iMovie for iOS and iMovie for Mac – First Look (L544682A-en_US), watchOS 6 Preview – First Look (L585042A-en_US), iOS 13 Preview – First Look (L585037A-en_US), or iPadOS Preview – First Look (L585034A-en_US) for your group’s next meeting topic? You will be glad you did!
Ambassadors: June is a great month to use Apple Resources.
UG Leader Support Ticket System
Many user group leaders may have been wondering what happened to our online Support Ticket System. Due to some updates from our web host, some of our backend services had some issues. We are glad to announce our ticket system is back up and running for your User Group Support and Leader questions. We apologize for the downtime. If you need to reach us and/or need to submit a support ticket, you can find the link here.
Michael Horton: 19 Years of Creating Community for Creatives
For more than 19 years Michael Horton, founder of the LA Creative Pro User Group (LACPUG), has brought storytellers together, and during NAB 2019 he was presented with a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award on the Faster Together Stage. Way back in 2000 Michael was interested in bringing people together to meet, learn about technologies that can help creatives tell their stories and create their art, and create community. He started the LA Final Cut Pro group in 2000, was instrumental in groups moving from a single tool to a focus on the greater creative pro community, and was a co-founder of the CPUG Network and their SuperMeets. Over the past few years, there have been wildly popular SuperMeets in London, Austin, Amsterdam, San Jose, Boston and San Francisco, each with its World Famous Raffle and each offering another opportunity to enhance the lives and expand the networks of creatives across the world.
Congrats to Michael – Can’t wait to see what he will do over the next 19 years!
Michael Horton Lifetime Achievement Award at NAB 2019 read more…
May’s Featured Vendor: PioData, Makers of iXflash Drives
You may not be aware of PioData or their parent company, Vinpower Digital, but you have probably used their products quite a lot over the years. They were originally known for their automatic OEM CD, hard drive, optical drive, and DVD duplicating machines, as well as standalone drives. Over time they established their own line of CD, DVD, and Blue-ray disks, and provided disks for many popular vendors.
In 2015, Vinpower incorporated a line of compact and intuitive Apple MFI certified Lightning & USB 3 back-up and storage flash devices specifically designed for Apple iPhones, iPads, and iPods, allowing users to both back-up their photos and videos and expand the storage capacity of their Apple iPhones and iPads. Best of all, the devices also act as traveling media libraries where the user can watch movie/video content, listen to music/audio files, review documents in many popular formats, and more. Their current PioData offerings include duplication hardware for desktop and laptop computers, tablets, and servers, and electronic storage products for Apple devices.
Meeting Idea: HomePod on ASW and Apple Support’s YouTube Channel
Looking for a short presentation on the newest HomePod for your group’s meeting? Apple Support’s YouTube channel and ASW have all the information you need to make a great group presentation.
Apple Support’s YouTube channel offers a series of videos on HomePod, including how to adjust HomePod settings, how to use Siri to play music on HomePod and How to use touch controls on HomePod. Each video is under 2 minutes, easy to follow and interesting.
ASW offers HomePod – Product Presentation L574599A-en_US) and HomePod – First Look (L574596A-en_US).
Ambassadors: May is a great month to use Apple resources for your meetings.
