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User Group Leaders, are you looking to run a better meeting? These how-to articles guide you through a variety of topics.
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User Group News Bulletin
How To: Writing an Effective Review: A first Look
We have all read bad reviews. Whether it is the biased writer with an axe to grind or an under-the-table commission to earn, the boring writer who uses ten words where one would do, or the deadline writer who is rushed for time and uses a company’s marketing literature to mask lack of knowledge, a bad review wastes our time. Still, there are basic guidelines that can help you write an effective review.
Know your Audience
Just like preparing to give a presentation to your user group, your first step is to identify your audience. What matters to your audience? Are they new to the product or long-time users interested in the latest release? You want to be sure that your review offers value to each segment of your readership. read more…
April’s Featured Vendor: Nisus Software, Inc.
Nisus Software, Inc. has been delighting users almost as long as the Mac has been around. In fact, Nisus (pronouced Nice Us) Software Inc. was founded back in 1983 as a software development company named Paragon Courseware. In 1993, the name was changed to Nisus Software, Inc. due to the name recognition of their popular word processor, Nisus Writer. Today, Nisus Writer Pro is a powerful and elegant word processor for OS X. An intuitive interface, powerful writing tools, and unmatched compatibility make Nisus Writer Pro the choice of serious writers everywhere.
Nisus Writer Pro starts with an intuitive, customizable interface that allows you to write how you want to write. Create great looking documents quickly using their exclusive style sheet view. Polish documents with their sophisticated, yet easy to use tools, including powerful find (including regular expressions), or add shapes and call outs using the drawing tools. Collaborate with others using track changes and comments that are compatible with Microsoft Word. You can write in just about any language supported in OS X (including right to left languages) thanks to the multilingual support built into Pro.
This month Nisus has a wealth of materials, including a number of short YouTube videos, that can make for a great meeting presentation. Better yet, check out this month’s offers for a special offer that can make your meeting even better! No matter what you write, from a simple letter to a sophisticated thesis, Nisus Writer Pro will allow you to create stunning documents with ease.
Social Media and User Groups: An Introduction
By Rick Ortiz, Apple User Group Advisory Board Chair
Apple User Groups are a place for individuals with similar technology interests to meet and network with each other and make connections. Typically user groups meet in person on a monthly basis at a designated location to discuss topics related to Apple products. User groups were the first stage of social media. What social media has done, is take the in-person networking of people and bring it online into the internet digital world, allowing for a broader connection for individuals and groups.
If user groups served as the foundation for what social media has become, then it is important for user groups to continue to evolve and allow their network of members to make connections online as well. There are a number of social media resources available to user groups. We will take a look at some of the more popular online social media resources, such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. We will discuss what each one offers and how it can benefit your group. read more…
Leader Special Offer – EverWeb by RAGE Software: Free to Apple User Group Leaders
Nicholas Pyers Presents: Don’t Carry the Burden Alone!
Does your group rely on a small group of long-time volunteers for every task? Groups often lose members when individuals feel like they are being asked to single-handedly carry a large portion of the group’s work. In February, Nicholas Pyers of AppleUsers.org offered some wise advice on how to share the burden by bringing more members into the circle. A quick read will show that his plan is both workable and a great way to build community within your group. Check it out, and while you are there, check out his many other valuable tips for running your group: http://www.appleusers.org/ugr/dont-carry-the-burden-alone/40 Years in 40 Seconds
A quick look at a wonderful journey: 40 Years in 40 Seconds
March’s Featured Vendor: VueScan from Hamrick Software
Hamrick Software was founded in 1991 by Ed Hamrick who wanted to find a way to produce better quality scans with his scanner. He found a great solution, initially helping over 100,000 users. With over 400,000 users and nineteen years of experience, VueScan is the world’s most widely used 3rd party scanning software. In fact, MacWorld UK nominated it for Best Imaging Software a few years back. A quick look at their reviews and testimonials lets you know that the product is something special. Better yet, VueScan now supports over 2,500 scanners.
Get a $10 (US) discount if you visit VueScan and purchase within 24 hours. Why not use VueScan as your group’s next meeting topic by using the resources below? Best of all, they have a special license offer for user groups worldwide – found in this month’s Leaders section. read more…
Survey Thanks: The People Who Help Build Our Community
In a little over a two weeks Apple will have its 40th anniversary, and we asked each group who responded for the name of the member who had the longest continual membership in their club. The amazing thing is that many of the names offered were founding members who still retained membership, and many are well known in our community. These people are some of the folk at the heart of why we meet. Of course, there are many more who are not listed here.
Some groups started as computer groups, others formed when the first Apple started our story. Still others formed because of a perfect joining of technologies, such as creative pros at the Adobe Technology Exchange of Southern California who found that Adobe’s graphics products and Apple’s hardware and interface opened a new possibilities. Of course, new products brought new clubs, from Warren’s AppleWorks User Group, once over 15,000 members strong, to those Powerbooks, iMacs, iOS and everything in between.
Thank you to each of the people below for helping our community create something truly special. read more…
User Group Survey: 30 – 40 Years of Delights and Surprises
In a little over a two weeks Apple will have its 40th anniversary. Whenever you stepped into the Apple stream, something amazing was happening. The survey found groups who were there from the start (sometimes a little before) and one group that had Andy Herzfeld and Woz as founding members! AUSOM noted that they currently have over 600 members: 62 members who have had continual membership since they joined in the 1980s. And 145 who joined in the 1990s.
Here are groups who have been meeting continuously for 30 to 40 years. Wow! read more…
User Group Survey: 20 – 30 Years of Fun and Friendship
In a little over a two weeks Apple will have its 40th anniversary. Whenever you stepped into the Apple stream, something amazing was happening. An amazing variety of groups responded to our survey, from the Netherlands to Australia, and from folk who had been continuous members for more than 40 years to founders who started their groups 7 years ago.
Here are groups who have been meeting continuously for more than 20 years. Congrats! read more…
User Group Survey: Up to 19 Years of Building Community
In a little over a two weeks Apple will have its 40th anniversary. Whenever you stepped into the Apple stream, something amazing was happening. The survey found groups who have been building community for up to 19 years, often based on new technologies and devices.
Here are groups who have been meeting continuously for up to 19 years.
Fun: Four Vintage Computer Festival Events
Have you attended a Vintage Computer Festival? Each Festival is family-friendly and offers a hands-on exhibition hall where you can see and try computers from the 1960s-1980s. Add in keynote lectures, technical classes, special attractions and each is an unforgettable experience.
From April 2016 through September 2016. there are four festivals planned. Is there one near you?
April 2-3, Atlanta region
VCF Southeast read more…
February’s Featured Vendor: Flexibits
Michael Simmons and Kent Sutherland are the team who create Flexibits products, apps that are flexible and enjoyable. Their popular Fantastical 2 is a smart, convenient and flexible calendar that uses natural language processes for creating new calendars and provides a CalDAV engine for adding your iCloud, Google, and Yahoo calendars (and others). Their Chatology helps users find their chats instantly. What sets Flexibits apart? A major focus of Flexibits products is removing frustration, making users lives better and more productive.
Apple Anniversary: 40 Years of Delights and Surprises
In a little over a month Apple will have its 40th anniversary. You may be a long-time fan who remembers that first Apple I or even the Lisa. Perhaps your first Apple was a Mac Plus or an LC II. Whenever you stepped into the Apple stream, something amazing was happening. In 1976 the Apple II had color graphics and there was that marvelous VisiCalc. Later, the WYSIWYG interface opened up a new world for those of us enduring the challenges of DOS a command line interface. By 1985 you could combine the Apple LaserWriter with Adobe’s PageMaker and become a desktop publisher.
While the Macintosh Portable was more luggable than portable, those 1991 PowerBooks running System 7 were a joy. Over the years, your first PDA might have been a Newton, you might have photos from your first Apple Quick Take, or you may have even had a device that ran the PiPP!N platform, but when that first iMac DV and iMovie came along, it was amazing, letting home users record and edit video without the need of expensive video equipment and years of training. Logic, iDVD, Final Cut Pro, and GarageBand weren’t far behind and each gave creatives new ways to create. By 2001 we had iTunes, Apple Stores and iPods; it is hard to remember how revolutionary the iPod was in a world of boom boxes and cassette players now that the world uses iTunes for everything from music releases to podcasts to iOS apps and everything in between. In 2008? we met the iPhone and haven’t looked back. What about 2010? We got the iPad, and Apple just kept on inventing. Today we have the Apple Watch and entire feature movies filmed on iPhones. read more…
Apple Anniversary: 40 Years of Community
A little over 40 years ago Apple changed our lives, and probably changed yours as well. Officers and members often talk about the user group community, and outsiders are confused: What community? How can you be friends with someone you have never met face to face? What can you truly have in common with a person from halfway around the world? Still, people such as Amaya in Spain, Graeme in New Zealand, Graham in the UK, Nicholas in Australia, Rick in Myrtle Beach, Lynn in Tulsa, Chise in Japan and so many more bring our community to life. Some user groups did not start out as Apple groups. For example, one of my first groups started out as a HAM radio club and later became an Apple group. Others started when that first Apple found its way to their hearts. Still others started because of the first Mac or creative endeavors.
How old is your group? Does your group have members who have been involved for many years? Be sure to participate in this month’s survey.
Survey: Looking for the Oldest User Groups and Members
Has your group been meeting for many years? Does your group have a member or members who have participated for an amazingly long time? In light of this year’s 40th Apple anniversary, we are looking for long-standing groups and long-time members, so that we can feature these groups and members in the March edition of Apple’s User Group Bulletin and the Apple User Group Resources blog.
Your group may have started in 1976 with the first Apple, or it may have started in the ’60s as a computer enthusiast club or a technology group. Maybe yours was a Heath Kit chapter or an amateur radio club in the ’50s? Perhaps your group began as a creative pro group in the 1990s. Let us know.
Survey closes on March 12 and is limited to the first 100 responses.
Nicholas Pyers Presents: Working with Presenters After the Event
Nicholas Pyers of AppleUsers.org offers the fourth installment of his Dealing with Presenters series. While the first article covered Approaching Potential Presenters, the second offered tips for Confirming Presenters, and the third talked about Working with Presenters On the Night, the fourth, Working with Presenters After the Event, is especially interesting because it explains what your group should do after the presentation. As he notes, most groups do not engage in these important actions – actions that can can have an important effect on your group’s relationship with current and potential presenters.
Check it out!
http://www.appleusers.org/ugr/working-with-presenters-after-the-event/
What is an Apple User Group Ambassador?
As a leader for your user group, you may have seen some benefits and vendor offers listed throughout our site. The question that most often comes up from user groups, is how they can take advantage of these benefits. The answer is by having an Apple User Group Ambassador.
An Apple User Group Ambassador is the role assigned to one individual from each recognized Apple User Group in the Apple User Group Locator (database). Leaders from each user group choose a member from their group who will serve in this role. The Ambassador for the group serves as the link and primary contact to the Apple User Group program.
What benefits does your user group receive from having an Apple User Group Ambassador? Below is a list and links to items to assist your groups ambassador.
Apple Sales Web (ASW) – ASW provides Ambassadors with access to the latest Apple product information, PDF print- outs, and Keynote presentation resources that you can integrate into your meetings.
Apple Sales Training Online (ASTO) – ASTO allows Ambassadors to stay up to date on Apple products and information by taking courses and earning points. ASTO courses can help you to prepare presentations for your meetings.
Apple User Group Bulletin (AUGB) – A monthly newsletter for user group leaders with a summary of the latest news, vendor discount offers and announcements for the Apple User Group community.
Apple User Group Discussion List (AUGD) – An Apple email discussion list where you can ask questions and interact with other user group leaders from around the world.
User Group How-To Articles – These are topics specifically geared towards leaders in assisting them with their user group.
User Group Vendor Discount Offers – Short-term discounts on new and proven products offered exclusively to user group leaders and members
If your group does not have an ambassador, leadership has changed, or you want to find out more about the ambassador program, a guide for user group ambassadors can be found here. If you need further assistance, visit our support site and a user group support team member can assist you.
How To: Stimulate Questions (and Answers) at User Group Meetings
Written By Tom Piper
Our members are often too timid to ask questions at meetings because they’re afraid it might appear “dumb” or embarrassing. We just started a new way to elicit questions in advance of our monthly meetings which has become very successful.
Five days before each meeting, we email a notice to all members which reminds them of the topic, location and website information. Now, we have added the following:
(see NEW requests below . . . the iTunes card drawing will offered ONLY to those responding with questions)
• Meeting Question, what do you need to know?
(to submit, just highlight the Meeting Question above, click Reply, enter your questions, and click Send to email back your responses BEFORE January 5)
This has produced about a dozen questions for each meeting. These questions are projected on the screen for easy viewing, and the responses by our “gurus” often stimulate other related questions from attendees.
We are so pleased that this technique has gotten more people involved, and many warm comments have been offered afterwards.
For more information, feel free to visit our website at www.applejac.org, or contact me directly at macquest@mac.com.
Meeting Ideas: Everything changes with iPad
Need a presentation for your group’s next meeting? Ask your group’s ambassador about Apple Sales Web (ASW) and Apple Sales Training Online (ASTO). From prepackaged demos to Apple materials that you can use to create customized presentations, ASW and ASTO have it all.
This month, take a look at the “Everything changes with iPad” campaign, highlighting how iPad—together with incredible apps from the App Store—can change the way users can do what’s important to them every day. Go to ASW and click on the Quick Training button to see what’s on offer.
Topics include:
