Making Travel Arrangements

       "Here is an interesting observation on Mac users' choice of travel arrangements via Orbitz," David Passell notices.  "Either they think Mac users are stupid, or we just have better taste."  Might make for an interesting conversation with David.
        Here Jim Hamm jumps in and labels it correctly; it's "data mining" and it results in the Mac user being steered to a more expensive hotel.  This is what Wall Street Journal has to say.  Jim closes with, "I can't make up my mind whether to be 'ticked off' about this, or smugly smile and say, well, Orbitz does recognize 'Creme de la Creme'. . . (grin)."

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Those Helpful People at the Apple Store

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        Jim Hamm makes some observations, "Working at any retail store is tough: long hours, short pay, mostly on your feet, dealing with the public —which is tough in itself. Here's an article giving a peek at what it's like to work in an Apple Store.
        "If you've been in an Apple store you've noticed all the personnel are young — one never sees any gray hair (other than from the customers). Here's a comment from the article with a reason for this,  'Generally, an Apple employee is someone who can afford to live cheaply, is not bothered by the nonstop commotion of an Apple Store and is comfortable with technology.  People who fit that bill tend to be in their early or mid-20s, the former managers said. They typically don’t have children and many don’t have spouses, which means they are relatively inexpensive to cover with health insurance.'"

        Jim concludes, "It appears Apple store employees use this experience as a springboard to other jobs with more of a future."
        Trying to (unsuccessfully) open that link posted above a new article from Los Angeles Times dated 6-23 comes up: headline "Did NY Times Report Drive Apple to be Extra Generous to Workers?"
        This just in:  Jim Hamm sends this link about employees of Apple stores and this one from NY Times.   Click where it says Read. 
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Some Free Apps for Your Computer

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         There's that word FREE that gets our attention.  John Carter has found some free apps.  Read on.
        Are you a PC person besides a PMUG person?  You've probably noted that John is a PC officer who also heads a joint PC/PMUG Special Interest Group (SIG).  He's also our Webmaster for our PMUG site. John sends this link to a list of 50 alternatives to see if there's a free app that might be helpful for you.  When you open this page, do Command + F for Find and enter Mac in the search box.  There are 31 places where Mac is mentioned in this article.
       John says, "Don't forget to read the user-submitted comments at the end for additional insights."  Perhaps you also want to check out the Prescott PC site.

Rumor of Changes to iPhone

         The headline "Fury at Apple's 'rip-off' plan to make ALL iPhone accessories obsolete by changing design of socket" grabbed our attention. See the article for yourself.  Jim Hamm commented that he'd seen other blogs with the same rumor, "If true, it will affect us as well. We own several radios with docking stations that fit our present iPhone 4 but won't work at all with the new iPhone if the connector is changed. Do I like this? No. Do I understand that electronic devices change and, hopefully, improve? Yes. Think about all the people that had devices that played 8-track tapes. Ditto for cassette tapes. Then CDs came out. Think about all the equipment that became obsolete with the release of each new device.
        "I don't think Apple is changing devices to be mean or increase sales of new accessories. They probably have a valid technological reasons for making the change. Will be interesting to see what Apple comes out with." 
        Here Jim gives some advice, "When people complain about Apple's closed-loop system, high prices, technological advances, and marching to their own drum, I tell them if they don't like what Apple does, that's okay. Don't complain. Buy something else." 

      But, Jim, do you suppose someone will come up with an adaptor or connection device that will allow the two to work OK?  Succinctly Jim answers, "Possibly."  So, we'll watch and see. 

MiFi at WalMart?

        "Here's an interesting service that apparently will soon be offered at WalMart: MiFi with no expiration date. This type of service isn't new, but having no expiration date (if used once per year) and no monthly bill (or contract) sounds intriguing for casual use of the Internet when you're traveling," Jim Hamm says. 
        Have you heard about MiFi?  Here's an article. 

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Shared Data Plans

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        "Think back to just a few years ago. All we wanted was a cell phone to use when travelling. Then along came smart phones, then iPads, then more tablets, then shared data plans. It's all getting somewhat complex, it seems," Jim Hamm grins.  He goes on to inform us, "Verizon's new shared data plan goes into effect June 28. So far, AT&T hasn't announced when they'll make their shared data plan effective — at least as far as I know. Here's an article that gives more details and a pricing comparison. Looking at the numbers, it might be a bit tricky to pick the right plan for your family."

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Get More Storage via Dropbox

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Use Dropbox?  Jim Hamm shares this new info.  "Want more free storage — up to 3 GB more? Here's how: On your iOS device upgrade to the latest version of Dropbox, then upload pictures from your iOS device to Dropbox. Everytime you do that, you'll get 500MB more storage up to a max of 3GB. Even if you remove the pictures later on, you get to keep the additional storage. I just did this with my iPhone, and while I was uploading the pictures I got a popup box from Dropbox on my computer (which I was using while the upload was going on) stating good news: your account has just been increased to 'x' GB of storage. Don't forget to turn wifi on to speed up the transfer of pictures."  See this article.  

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Mac Will Help YOU Write!

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If you put your memories in writing they’ll last longer,
    Your life experiences may help someone else grow stronger;
Consider the challenges, troubles, decisions, success, too,
    You can pass along helpfulness by writing how you got through.
Have you written something about yourself for posterity? Not yet?  Will it be one exciting chapter of your own life story?  Will it be a very short overview of the important events of your life?  Will it be an update of something you wrote earlier as a personal remembrance? Could it be a creative piece, telling about your view of life since you turned 29 — again? 
 Let’s take a look at some of the helpful ways Mac will make it easy for you to write something for family and friends.  
  1. Jot down any ideas you have on Mac.  Don’t fuss with spelling, just write those words that pop into your head right now.  
  2. Save that document.  No, it’s not done!  But give it a name and add “v. 1” on that name so you’ll recognize it as the first version of your brainstorm.
  3. Make a folder, give it a good name.  I keep my most recent working-on folder on the desktop.
  4. You’re going to put all the versions into this same folder.  Let it rest.  Go do something else and let your clever brain do some silent push-ups.
  5. Go back to Mac and now see what you want to add to the v. 1 page.  After that do Command + D  to duplicate the previous page, and make additions and corrections to that new page.  Name it v. 2.  Save both versions. 
  6. You are having fun.  It’s creative.  Picture in your mind the person or persons you’re writing this for, and this helps you formulate the vocabulary you’ll use.
  7. Soon you’ll figure out your target date.  When does this have to be finished?  How long or short do you want it to be? 
  8. Quoting someone?  Be careful.  If quoting a friend or family member consider asking permission if you’re giving the finished piece to others.  I like to get written permission.
  9. Stating facts?  Check and see that you’ve got the info down correctly.  
  10.   Could this make a nice booklet? With BlueSquirrel’s ClickBook for Mac www.bluesquirrel.com I’ve made booklets of up to 32 pages.  The program takes your normal-size page writing and automatically shrinks it down to various sizes.  I prefer the size that’s a regular sheet of paper folded in half.  There are nice envelopes just this size for mailing the finished booklet.
  11.   Do you have photos to drag into the writing?  You’re probably looking at v. 4 by now?  Each new experimentation of layout I do as a separate version and keep all the previous versions in that master folder. With iPhoto you can fix your photos.  Click on Edit to see the tools. 
  12.   When you look at the list of what’s on your desktop click once on the title of that folder.  Do   Command + “i” and you can enter key words in Spotlight Comments on the left side at the top.   This will help you find the folder later when you put it in some other location on Mac!  
  13.   Time to play with fonts.  Do you have Font Book listed in your applications?  You’ve got LOTS of fonts there. Scroll down the list of fonts and experiment.  You might like the look of Helvetica, or might think Comic Sans MS looks nice.  If you are using ClickBook you’ll enlarge the size of the font one or two sizes larger because it will be automatically sized smaller to fit the layout you choose.  
  14. Using Pages I like to click on the Inspector and scroll over the name of the story, or the poem, or the chapter’s title.  Then I enlarge the font size and also do Text, and enlarge the character spacing.  Sometimes I also like to add more space to the line, such as 1.1 or more.  
  15.   Also, if you’ll be using ClickBook you will want to go to Graphic Inspector to see if you want a shadow or offset, opacity, or blur on the photo. Click on Metrics and unclick Constrain proportions.  If you don’t do this the people will be shrunk down to look skinny.  I stretch the photos sideways to compensate for the automatic ClickBook sizing.  
  16.   Back on Pages settings: if I’m making a booklet I may resize the left & right margins smaller and also the top and bottom settings to make them smaller.   Experiment.
  17.   All along, you save the piece as you play with it. Give each version a new v. # and put it in that same master folder.
  18. One nifty thing that you will do before that final version is printed out =  do Command + F for find, and Mac searches for any word you specify.  Did you spell Cousin Frederika’s name correctly?  Do a Find to find out.  You can also make sure that any --  got fixed it to be —.
  19. How about some clever little pasted in image?  Go to the Internet and do Google Images.  Click to bring it up.  You can scroll through lots of photos, clip art, etc.  Find something and drag it off to your desktop.  Make it larger or smaller.  Drag sideways a little to compensate for ClickBook. 
  20. Maybe your printer does color.  Mine is b&w so I find pretty paper from OfficeMax or Staples and turn the page sideways for a booklet cover.  If your writing is going to be full-page size you’ll find a lot of pretty paper. 
  21. Staple the booklet with this useful stapler,  www.bluesquirrel.com/products/staplers/ , or do 3-hole punch for a notebook, or get it spiral bound. 
Let’s have fun making word clouds. You can order t-shirts, coffee cups, posters, using a word cloud that you create. I made one for the cover of a booklet I wrote a few weeks ago. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_clouds  history, types described, 
http://www.wordle.net/  try theirs
http://tagcrowd.com/    another to try
http://worditout.com/    make personalized gifts  FREE
Use Mac to write:  keep your fingers and your brain nimble! 

This is today's PMUG handout by Elaine Hardt.  See you next time? 
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On the Road? Keep Connected

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       Maybe you'll be traveling this summer?  Jim Hamm sends some useful info.  "Here's another way of staying connected to the internet when traveling: purchase a prepaid 3G plan using the Sprint cellular service. I'm not sure how widespread Sprint cell service is, but it can be checked out prior to purchasing a plan. If WiFi might not be available where you'll be traveling, but you want access to the internet, at least this is a reasonable option without a recurring monthly fee." 

Have You Seen What's FREE & What's For Sale?

        Today it's Jim Hamm asking, "Anyone want a FREE set of Technic speakers?  They are in perfect condition, measure 36" high, 17" wide, 11" deep. . . . If you want them and can pick them up call me  or send an email to me. . . "   Go to this PMUG page to see the photo of the speakers and get Jim's phone number and email address.  And, if you have anything for sale see that page, too.
 

Report on Jim's Speech

        Could have titled this, "Jim Hams It Up," but with second thoughts a new title was chosen.  A Previous Prez,  Jim Hamm spoke at a computer club meeting in Phoenix.  Here's his report:

       "Hi . . . Here's a mug shot of me at the Great Wall restaurant yesterday in Phoenix. A group (nine) of us — including Zee and son-in-law Scott —  from the meeting were eating lunch after I had given a presentation on WiFi at a computer club meeting. A friend was wearing the hat I have on. I said I liked his hat and he said to try it on. I did, and he took my picture. I'm gonna order a couple of these hats today from Haband. The hat is light-weight and comfortable to wear. He made me give his hat back. Darn!

        "The WiFi presentation seemed to go well. I wasn't booed off stage, and I managed to dodge the few tomatoes that were thrown. I asked Zee if she was going to the meeting with me because she wanted to hear my presentation. She said no — but she sure liked going to lunch at the Great Wall afterwards. She said she'd suffer through my presentation because she knew there was a reward afterwards. . . (grin). . .   
        "The Great Wall — at 35th Avenue and Camelback — is a real Chinese restaurant. All the help is Chinese, the papers in the lobby are in Chinese, and most of the patrons were Chinese — except for a table of us 'Gringoes.' The food is very good. One of the people from the club is Chinese and he orders the food for all of us. Dishes are brought out family-style and set on a Lazy Susan. Both Zee and I especially like the 'Lemon Fish' — but all the food is great. Yum! A real surprise at the end of the meal. Normally the bill is divided among attendees and we all pay our share. For some reason, Walt — the Chinese fellow — picked up the tab for all of us. Very nice of him to do so. Walt is 80 and fun to chat with. 
        Here Jim winds it up in his own style, "This particular computer club is a Senior SIG (Special Interest Group) and most of us — son-in-law excepted — are, ahem, of the more advanced vintage...(grin). . . I was surprised to see Scott walk into the meeting — young fellow that he is. I didn't ask him if he was there because of my talk or because of lunch afterwards at the Great Wall. Some things are better left unasked."

Look Inside the MacBook Pro

        "No doubt you've been wanting to look inside the new MacBook Pro just released by Apple.  Here is a step-by-step tear-down by iFixit."  It's Jim Hamm speaking here, knowing how curious we are about those innards.
        Jim goes on to say, "Couple of things come to my mind after looking at the pictures.  First, it is a very complex device to design and build. Just look at all the components that could go wrong, but usually don't.
        "Next, Apple isn't designing product to be easily repaired.  Component parts are not easy to get to, remove, or replace.  Is this a good or bad strategy for the consumer?  That's up for debate, but it is another step in furthering Apple's closed-loop system.  They design the hardware, software, approve all apps, and now pretty much want you to bring Macs only back to Apple for repair.  There's obviously good and bad aspects to this strategy.  But that discussion is for another day.
        "In the meantime, marvel at the new offering from Apple," Jim grins.
   

Munich iPad

        Jim Hamm has an amazing find!  "Did I mention that the new iPad has some unique features that you might not be aware of?  Well, take a look at this video.  Several years ago Zee and I went to Oktoberfest in Munich and visited a tavern (maybe more than one) similar to this one.  Unfortunately, at that time there was no iPad.  We got our beer the old-fashioned way — a busty bar maid carried mugs of beer to us, six at a time."  (The closing screen shows more iPad possibilities via YouTube.)

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Mac Buyer's Guide

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        Do you know when to buy a Mac, iPod, or iPhone?  Here's help from Prez Art Gorski.  He leads off with, "Don't you just hate it when you buy an Apple product and then they release a new, better version right after?  The MacBuyer's Guide keeps track of Apple hardware updates and is a great guide to when you should buy a new Apple product."
         So we look here and find info with recommendations such as "Don't buy: updates soon"  — "Buy only if you need it: approaching the end of a cycle" — or "Buy now!  Product just updated."  You also notice the links to their categories of blogs and forums.  Take a look, you may want to bookmark this.