One of the biggest topics for groups is the move from MobileMe to iCloud, especially since the June 30 deadline is less than 50 days away. On May 15, Dori Smith and Tom Negrino will be at the North Coast Mac Users Group (NCMUG) to discuss the benefits that come from moving to the cloud and offer tips for moving efficiently. Dori and Tom are well known for their books and presentations, and the topic is a good fit: Tom has a new book out titled iCloud: Visual QuickStart Guide.

Check it out.

http://ncmug.org/

Tom and Dori’s books are available on iTunes, including iCloud: Visual QuickStart Guide.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/icloud-visual-quickstart-guide/id483421967?mt=11

Members of Australia’s AUSOM pronounce their group’s name as awesome, and if you have been to one of their meetings you will agree that the group is awesome indeed. From their updated Discs of the Month (DOM) program, to their fifty-plus-paged monthly magazine, to their incredibly comprehensive meetings, AUSOM has something for everyone. For example, their June 2 meeting has 25 different sessions over approximately 8 hours, including a presentation by Apple trainer Kevin Blazé  who will offer tips and techniques for members who are interesting in improving their cybersecurity practices.

Wow!

http://www.ausom.net.au/

On May 23 members of the Boston Creative Pro User Group (BOSCPUG) will team up with their friends at SMPTE New England for a must-attend networking & socializing mixer to be held in the studios of National Boston Video Center in Boston. With special thanks to SMPTE member David P. Allen, the contributing Editor, Emeritus of Videography Magazine, BOSCPUG is pleased to present a special evening of retrospective and reflection with Ralph H. Baer, a distinguished Video Technologist, Inventor and Consultant.

Be there.

http://www.bosfcpug.org/index.php

(Thanks to Dan Berube of BOSCPUG for this tip!)

Mac user group members are known for heir helpfulness: ask a question and there are always folk willing to offer (or research) an answer. Newbies are welcome and long-time users always seem to find one more trick or tip to add to their arsenal.

The members of the Bay Area Macintosh User Group of Central Florida take helpfulness a step farther by offering small, hand-on classes for those with questions. By limiting each Mac101 class to 8 attendees or fewer, the group ensures that learners of all levels receive personal attention and find answers. By scheduling a Mac101 Class on the 4th Monday of every month, they ensure that every member has a chance to participate.

Visit the Bay Area Macintosh User Group of West Central Florida.

http://www.bamcentral.org/

On May 19 members of Illinois’ The NorthWest of Us will host a special OSX Lion Workshop, led by Certified Apple Expert Craig Doran. Members can register at a reduced rate and all attendees will receive a “Using Lion” ebook. The Hyatt Place is the place to be on May 19.

Visit The NorthWest of Us.

http://www.nwou.org/

The Atlantic City Area Macintosh Users Group (ACAMUG) hosted Jason Grady at their May 11th meeting. Known for O’Grady’s Power Page and his work for ZDNET/CBS Interactive’s The Apple Core, Jason always has something interesting to say about the world of technology. Members enjoyed his May presentation last year and were glad to have him back for another information-filled evening.

Learn about ACAMUG.

http://acamug.org/

Visit O’Grady’s Power Page.

http://www.powerpage.org/

On April 17, Ronnie Roche, North Coast Mac Users Group Vice President, will show attendees tricks, tips and ideas for the iPad. She will also discuss some of her favorite apps and how to use them.

Learn more.

http://ncmug.org/

Save the Date!

Mac Computer Expo 2012 – Saturday, October 6  – Petaluma Community Center

On April 17, MacNexus of Sacramento will host Jason Snell, Editorial Director of both Macworld and PC World Magazines. Jason will discuss what’s new and exciting. Of course the evening wouldn’t be complete without the usual MacNexus Apple news and rumors with RockyTheActor, Workshop and Volunteer news, Expert Help and their wonderful  Raffle. April 17 looks to be  another MacNexus night you won’t want to miss!

Check it out!

http://www.macnexus.org/

On Wednesday, March 7, members of the Naples MacFriends User Group had a special treat, as the members of the Tropical Depression Barbershop Quartet performed some beloved tunes, updated with Mac-Friendly lyrics. The quartet are also members of the Naples’ group. Interestingly, Naples MacFriends provides ten weekly special classes during the first quarter of each year, in addition to their regular monthly meetings and SIGs, in order to promote the knowledge and skills of their members. Way to go!

Hear the Tropical Depressions at the meeting (starts with a promo for the group’s performance at a public show).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGoIuBiKzVw

Learn about the Naples MacFriends User Group.

http://homepage.mac.com/naplesmug/About.html

(Thanks to Naples MacFriends president Jerome King for this great tip!)

On April 25, 2012, the Qatar Mac User Group will focus on photo management for basic users. Known as Doha iMUM, their ambassador notes that with digital cameras becoming ever cheaper and easier to use, just about everyone is a photographer these days – Mac users are no exception. During the meeting, members will learn the various top photo management apps available for Mac.

Join in the fun – Learn about the Qatar Mac Users Group.

http://www.qmacuser.com/

Doha iMum on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/doha.imum

On Wednesday, March 21, the San Francisco Cutters will be hosting a special sold-out party in honor of their 12th anniversary.  Highlights will include Ripple Training’s Final Cut Pro experts Steve Martin and Mark Spencer discussing the 10.0.3 FCP update, Adobe’s Mark Christiansen answering questions about After Effects, videos by Joanne Dorgan and Romy Randev, a tremendous raffle, sponsor tables and all of the wonderful networking opportunities that are the hallmarks of every SF Cutters event.

Thanks to SF  Cutters for all they do for the community, from posting job openings in the field of video, to making sure that artists’ works and publicized and recognized, to encouraging networking by reminding members to meet at least five new people at each event and so much more.

Learn about SF Cutters online and on FaceBook.

http://www.sfcutters.org/

https://www.facebook.com/sf.cutters1

(Thanks to SF Cutters Ambassador Claudia Crask for the anniversary party tip!)

Chris Breen, senior editor of Macworld Magazine and host of the Macworld Podcast, was the guest speaker for the NCMUG (North Coast Mac Users Group) monthly General Meeting in February 2012.  Aside from his many journalistic endeavors, Chris is also an accomplished musician, and the group enjoyed hearing him play one of his original compositions titled “We’ll Get Through.” Even better, a member took this video using an iPhone 4S.

Hear Chris Play.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUDSCBBP7AQ

Visit NCMUG.

http://ncmug.org/

Chris Breen on iTunes:

 http://tinyurl.com/24avh2s

Here is additional video taken at an NCMUG meeting in September 2010.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y3koNSFy8w

(Thanks to President Lorene Romero for this great tip!)

User group members are invited to the 37th annual Trenton Computer Festival (TCF), the oldest computer festival in the world, scheduled for March 10, 2012, at The College of New Jersey in Ewing, New Jersey.

TCF is not just another computer show. It was started by (and is still run by) computer hobbyist volunteers as a non-profit educational event. The Speaker Program, Proceedings Books and similar materials are created and operated by volunteers from several computer clubs. Attendees can enjoy workshops, the ever-popular flea market, commercial exhibits, opportunities to meet and socialize,  special exhibits, contests and more. Better yet, the 7th annual Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ (IEEE) IT Professional Conference will be held the day before, so that attendees can combine two great events into a single weekend.

Check it out!

http://www.tcf-nj.org/

See photos of last year’s event.

http://www.tcf-nj.org/images-tcf-2011/index.html

Learn about the IEEE IT Professional Conference.

http://princetonacm.acm.org/tcfpro/

KansasFest, the 23rd annual convention dedicated to the Apple II computer, returns for another year, running July 17 through July 22, 2012. Users, programmers, hobbyists, and retro-computing enthusiasts are invited to Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri, for six days and five nights of sessions, demos, announcements, contests, and camaraderie. The week kicks off with a keynote speech by John Romero, co-founder of id Software and creator of Wolfenstein 3D, Dangerous Dave and nearly a hundred other popular computer and video games. Highlights include how to build your own Apple II WordPress site, HackFest, an annual programming challenge open to coders of all skill levels, a vendor fair and exhibit hall where enthusiasts can show off, play with and buy and sell new or unusual hardware and software, programming interactive fiction in Inform 7 and so much more.

If you “remember when,” Kansas will be the place to be.

http://www.kansasfest.org/about/

(Thanks to Ken Gagne for this wonderful tip!)

One fun event at Macworld was the annual User Group Leader’s Dinner, courtesy of the North Coast Mac Users Group (NCMUG) and long-time expert event organizer Lorene Romero.

It was wonderful to see old friends and make new ones in our community (including Ronnie Roche and Amanda Lee Pearson), and it could not have happened without the generous support of event sponsors Smile Software, O’Reilly Media, TidBITS, ScanSnap (Fujitsu), Noteboom Productions and Parallels software.  So, thanks sponsors, Lorene and the officers and members of NCMUG for a dinner to remember.

NCMUG

http://ncmug.org/

On Tuesday, February 28, iMug President Les Posen will offer insights from Macworld 2012. The group will meet at the Ross House in Melbourne for the presentation. The Internet Macintosh User Group Inc (iMug), previously known as the Victorian Macintosh User Group (VMUG), maintains an active international online community in addition to its Melbourne meetings.

http://www.imug.com.au/about.php

Have you seen the iMug Museum Collection? The iMug Apple Effect was a Community Collections Exhibition held at Melbourne Museum during December 2006.

http://www.imug.com.au/museum-collection/

On February 11, the Mainline Macintosh Users Group (MLMUG) hosted Ben Waldie, President of Automated Workflows LLC and popular Macworld trainer. Ben has been known for years as the guru of AppleScript, Automator, and all things that enhance productivity, so the meeting covered everything from shopping assistants to file sharing applications to Automator and Services in OSX. Even with crummy weather hindering attendance, there was something for everyone, from the well-read techie to the new iPhone user.

Here are some pictures from the event.

Visit MLMUG and see what’s new.

http://www.mlmug.org/