appleJAC Macintosh Users

Apotop AP-U2: Stylish Flash Drive

a review by Tom Piper

The MacBook Air has a very nice right-angle rounded powerplug that fits snugly to the case. With such a trim fit, it would be nice to have other accessories that fit the same way. At Macworld/iWorld 2013, I found another great solution.

The Apotop AP-U2 Apple Addicted Aluminum USB 2.0 32GB Flash Drive has an elegant aluminum body, ultra-compact stylish design which is small enough to fit into my pocket (or someone’s purse) and designed especially with Apple Mac users in mind. This is one of the smallest USB drives in the world today.

The unique aluminum design is aimed at Apple Mac users as it compliments the design of most MacBook and PowerBook notebooks, along with Apple desktop systems. It is also ideal for using with systems like car radios, multi media players and other devices where you do not want to use a large USB drive. The AP-U2 protrudes only 7mm from the USB port when inserted.

I like the looks and feel of this flash drive which is made of the same precision aluminum alloy as the MacBook Air, waterproof and powerful, its small and light weight (16 x 18 x 67mm, and 5g), and supports Mac OS 9.0 or later, Windows 8/ 7/Vista/XP, Linux kernel 2.4 or later). It is convenient and fast, working well with my other devices.

I recommend the Apotop AP-U2 which can be purchased for $39.99 at http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=0DF-001N-00001&ParentOnly=1&IsVirtualParent=1, and other locations.

Plastic Bottles for IC School

appleJAC MUGH holds its monthly meeting at Immaculate Conception School in Jefferson City. IC School is collecting plastic bottles.

They can recycle non-alcoholic plastic bottles with a "1" in the recycle icon, and "Pete" under it, like water, soda, iced tea, fruit juice bottles. (NO milk bottles)  They also recycle aluminum cans.

They may be left in the front of school on the bench, or behind the Sisters' convent at 1205 East McCarty (red brick house with the awnings). 

The school is competing -- trying to get enough of these to receive $25,000. We appreciate IC School allowing us to use Kennedy Hall, so when you come to the next appleJAC meeting, be sure to bring your empty plastic bottles for the school.

President's Place

by Tom Piper, 2013 President

A new year has just begun, filled with promise and opportunity. Of all those New Year's Resolutions, how many are you still keeping now that the first week has past? As the incoming appleJAC President (for the 15th time), I am hoping that we can reach out to even more Apple product users, particularly those with iDevices like iPhones, iPads and iPods.

At the last meeting, Sue Snell (along with friends) did a wonderful presentation about Card Making, and demonstrated how others in our group have incredible knowledge to share. We hope to see more of these kinds of shared education from more members. A dozen officers were elected at the last meeting to serve for 2013 (see left column below), and develop exciting and informative meetings for the next twelve months. Door prize winners included:

• Top X Notes             Julie Smith
• Top X Notes             Larry Garvin
• Top X Notes             Tom Vaughn
• Top X Notes             Ros Moulton
• Top X Notes             Trish Alexander
• Chip clip                  Marian Petrides
• Chip clip                  Greg Breuer
• Chip clip                  Gale Fuller
• Apple ornament        Sue Snell
• Office 2011 (book)   Julie Koeningsfeld
• AirPort router          Jim Stevenson
• Apple stress ball       Shubbha Miller

The next meeting is an invitation to our attendees to sharing the techie treasures that they received this past Christmas Season (and to tell us what you got others). George and I will also provide some interesting tips and tricks for Mountain Lion computer users and iOS6 iDevice users (Joe can't attend this meeting). We will also introduce many of the topics to be covered at future meetings.

Come to our January 8, 7:00pm meeting, and bring along a friend or two to enjoy the warmth and knowledge of our members. Its a beautiful day in OUR neighborhood . . . 

 

President's Place

As the year 2012 draws to an end, so does my term as President of this illustrious club, appleJAC Mac User Group. I appreciate everyone’s patience and support as I navigated my way through the Board and group meetings. 

I want to thank the appleJAC Board for all of their help in guiding me through the year, so “THANKS” to you all.

This has been an exciting and informative year with the introduction of new operating systems like MacOS 10.8-Mountain Lion and iOS 6. Along with software was, of course, hardware in the form of the iPhone 5, 15" and 13" Retina Display MacBook Pros, updated Mac mini, iPad 3/4 and iPad mini, new iPod nano and touch, and the beautiful new 27" iMac.

Our last meeting with over 20 Tools in about 60 minutes was a lot of fun, and very educational. The following doorprizes were won by these members at this last meeting:

• $10 iTunes card          Jan Watson
• Photoshop Elements    Gale Fuller
• wood Apple                Peggy Landwehr
• Apple clip                  Sister Josetta Eveler
• wood Apple               Julie Koenigsfeld
• stress Apple               Dustin Stark
• Apple clip                  Greg Perry
• MobileMe                   Rosalind Moulton
• stress Apple               Dan Walsh
• iPhone 4 case             Brian Fuller
• stress Apple               Winnie Krause
• stress Apple               Paul Van Horn

We have seen a number of fine presentations about new equipment, gadgets and software, and visited several new locations for our meetings. December will be no exception as Sue Snell shows us how to create our own cards, and we’ll talk about the many uses of social media.

With my term drawing to a conclusion, before you is a slate of names (listed below) of members who have been nominated and volunteered to serve in various positions on the Board of Directors. You will be asked at the Dec. 4th meeting to make your selection for Board members to serve a one-year term (and to make a Bylaws change to discontinue the Librarian position ... see prior article). If you choose, you can nominate someone additional, or volunteer for a position at that time.

• President              Tom Piper
• Vice-President      Joe Mertzlufft
• Secretary              Trish Alexander
• Treasurer              Sue Snell
• Webmaster            George Kopp
• Member-at-Large   Peggy Landwehr
• Member-at-Large   Greg Breuer
• Member-at-Large   Dan Walsh
• Member-at-Large   Marian Petrides
• Member-at-Large   Larry Garvin
• Member-at-Large   Dustin Stark

Once my nerves settled a bit, I enjoyed the role as President. I hope that each and every member was able to glean useful information or helpful tips from our gatherings.

And, just a reminder to everyone, this is YOUR club, YOUR user group. We work very hard to have timely and useful information to show you every month. We are a group with varied interests and know that yours may be different than what we, as presenters show. To keep current and pertinent, we ask that you, too, do a brief presentation about a program, tool, gadget, or other Apple-related item about which you are excited. An involved membership is good for everyone; we all can learn from each other.

So, join us, won’t you, on Dec. 4, 2012, at 7:00pm in Kennedy Hall at Immaculate Conception School to see how to use your own photos to create personalized cards, discuss social media and participate in our annual business meeting.

Let’s see what’s shakin’ from the Apple tree.

 

Proposal to Update appleJAC Bylaws

The appleJAC Macintosh Users Group Board of Directors is proposing to update the corporate Bylaws by removing the Board position of "Librarian".

A vote of the membership will be taken at the December 4, 2012, Annual Meeting to confirm and accept these changes.

The motivation for this change is because the physical contents of our Library has become very dated. No members have requested access to any of its contents for the past several years. Thus, without a viable library, a Librarian is no longer needed to administer its contents.

If a need emerges for this task, or any others, a Member-at-Large position will be assigned that function in the future.

To view the specific changes being proposed, click on appleJAC Bylaws ver 9 which will download the 4-page PDF file with all deletions as overstrikes and new language underlined (all in red).

FotoMagico 4: Bringing Creativity and Vitality to Slideshows

a review by Tom Piper

“Presenting a PowerPoint Slideshow” has almost become synonymous with boring and uninspiring. How about a tool that can change all of that, and make your information compelling, entertaining and informative?

Crafted by photographers for photographers, award-winning FotoMagico 4 is the slideshow tool of choice for thousands of photographers. You can turn your pictures and movies into a powerful story with a few simple clicks, then present it live in high resolution, or share it in a variety of formats, including on your iPad, iPhone, website or a DVD for your customers or peers. All with one powerful tool.



This FotoMagico 4 is easy to learn and easy to use because, as a photographer (amateur or pro or aspiring), you want to focus on the images, not the tool. You can achieve impressive results very quickly, and your slideshows are presented in the best possible quality whatever output method you choose. With brilliant transitions, layers, titles, music, narration and sound effects, FotoMagico 4 gives you the creative tools to create a magical slideshow immediately.



In the latest new version 4, your creative possibilities have been greatly enhanced with the addition of up to 6 layers of photos, videos or titles which can be animated independently. The audio can now be displayed as a waveform which lets you sync sound and images more accurately. You can create template shows to get your work done even faster. And your slideshows look even more brilliant on the new MacBook Pro with Retina display.


One peek at their demo slideshow was enough to blow me away. The control over sound, music, videos, transitions and other affects was both daunting and inspiring. I could again feel the old creative juices flowing as I witnessed the potential these tools offered. My presentation on balance will now have the energy and style I’ve long hoped for. Ten minutes at their website quickly describes and illustrates the many colorful and exciting opportunities which are offered in a variety of venues. And, with each new version, it continues to get better and better.


This program’s excellence was recognized by the Apple Design Award 2008 Best Mac OS X Leopard Graphics and Media Application Runner-Up, as well as Best Creative Application 2007, MacGeneration Trophés and Apple Design Award 2006 Best Mac OS X User Experience Runner-Up. 


This incredible tool can be yours for only $99 at http://boinx.com/fotomagico/. If you would also like the complementary FotoMagico Remote for iPhone, you can control your show with your fingertips by spending 99¢ at the iTunes App Store. Need one-to-One Coaching? You can get up to speed with tips and tricks from tech support pros, be more productive, and get your work done faster for only $99.99. This is a tool which can rejuvenate your message in wonderful new ways.

Uniea iPhone 4 cases: Vibrant Color, Style and Durability

a review by Tom Piper

Were you as excited as I was to get your new iPhone 5? Did you quickly find out that a new case was critical to protect its elegant complexion? Its important to know that you can preserve your sense of fashion while guarding your investment from damage.

The Colorama Folio for iPhone 5 Slim Hard Flip Case from UNIEA is an excellent choice for your longer yet slimmer new iPhone 5. It brings color and style together with rich textures and design for a case that is truly worth the incredible smartphone it protects. A combination of rich PU leather features several vibrant color options (white, pink, orange, purple, green and black) that really “pop,” while a metal-reinforced back gives remarkable protection and sturdiness on such a thin leather case.

The interior of the case is lined with a soft microfiber that protects your iPhone 5 from scratches, while cleaning the screen every time the folio cover is in use. It measures 12.6 x 6 x 1.3 (cm) and weighs only 13 Gram. The external surface has a pressed hexagon pattern to give a comfortable, stylish texture. The flip-open folio cover protects the screen from dust, scratches, and smudges.

I’ve been using this case for some time now, and find it delightfully convenient, and easy to pocket. It fits well in my belt holster, and the flip cover swings to the back out of the way when talking on the phone, or charging the power. It is sufficiently tactile in the hand, and is very tight fit on phone body. Access to all ports and buttons is unobstructed, and the weight is barely noticeable. Its really got a very nice feel to it.

Priced at only $29.95, it can be purchased at http://www.uniea.com/for-Phones-case/iPhone-5-case/286.aspx.

An even simpler solution is the Harmony Series for iPhone 5 UV Glossy Hard Shell Case which brings together quality and protection in a stylish case that will look great with all of your accessories and personal style. The design features a bold, geometric square design (black, grey and pink) that is both modern and simple, while an innovative UV protection keeps the design scratch-free and looking fresh, even after heavy use.

A slim yet protective polycarbonate construction with precision cutouts make the Harmony series cases a perfect match for your iPhone 5. Sized at a minimalist 12.6 x 6.05 x 0.95 (cm) and weighing a mere 13 Gram, it snaps on easily with a glossy UV coating that protects the look of the graphics, even after heavy use. The strong yet slim ABS polycarbonate construction protects while adding minimal bulk to your smartphone with IMD printing that highlights the unique graphics.

The Harmony series offers users precise cutouts for all of the iPhone 5’s critical components: camera lens, dock connector, and switches, for a case that blends in perfectly with the smartphone’s unique design. This case is a very snug fit with a very polished feel (it can seem slippery under certain conditions). It gives the iPhone a very elegant look.

Nicely priced at $24.95, this case is also available at http://www.uniea.com/for-Phones-case/iPhone-5-case/286.aspx where you can view a wide variety of types, patterns, colors and styles to pick from. UNIEA also markets an excellent selection of iPod touch cases, tablet cases (iPads 2, 3, 4, mini), laptop and accessory bags, and device chargers.

I’ve used a number of UNIEA products and have found them all to be very functional, stylish, durable, reasonably priced, and excellent protection for my valuable iDevices. I recommend their products without hesitation.

Spike in Phishing attacks expected this Holiday Season

by George Kopp

We have all seen them. An email from a company or person that we deal with all the time that really looks real but just doesn't make sense. Perhaps it is from a long time friend who you know well but the tone of the text just doesn't sound right. Maybe it is from a company you have purchased from in the past thanking you for a recent purchase you did not make. Before you click that link, stop and think.... Could this be a Phishing attack?

Phishing occurs when an email is sent to you, enticing you to click on hyperlinks or attachments embedded in the email. The thief will appear to be a known, trusted sender in an attempt to trick the recipient into clicking on a link or to take false action. Often times the email may include a company logo that is well known and trusted. Once clicked, the hyperlink(s) cause you to visit websites serving malware or websites masquerading as trusted websites in order to gather information that can be used later by the thieves.

Now there is a new and more directed threat... Spear Phishing! (click for security definition)

Spear phishing takes phishing one step further by targeting a specific user or job function. Prior to a spear phishing attack, thieves research their intended recipients by scouring public information. They will utilize this information to draft a more believable, deceptive message.

Spear phishing attacks are quite clever and more direct so they are often hard to determine if the email is real or a phishing attempt. This email may make reference to friends or neighbors. It may talk about your children by name. It could describe the kind or location of your home or office. All of this information that makes it sound real is available in public records on the internet for the thief to use. Before taking action on any email, like clicking an embedded link or opening an attachment, always take the time to think about the purpose and legitimacy of the email.

If you are ever in doubt about the legitimacy of an email, don’t hesitate to delete the suspicious email and contact the company by other means. When in doubt, look up a phone number or email address to contact the company and do not use the links in the email as a means to make contact.

appleJAC Meeting Tools

The November 6 meeting demonstrated over two dozen cool "tools" . . .

How to learn more and acquire most of them can be accomplished by clicking on the following links:

Download Tom's Tools

Download George's Tools

Download Joe's Tools

From Where I Sit

An IT perspective by Greg Breuer

The "cloud" is really just the mainframe revisited. Everything was on the mainframe. You ran a dumb terminal that was nothing but an output via the screen, and input via the attached keyboard. I did my assignments in a room full of green screens. This was 20 years ago. I compiled Fortran and submitted my work to the mainframe at night.

When I heard about the cloud it did not feel right from the beginning because I knew there are computer people out there we call hackers that are smart guys that write code which exploit software. They write code to take advantage of operating systems, software that people use and security systems keep data secure. That is what worries me. That is what makes me question the validity of the cloud. What I see is in ten years somebody being arrested because they for ten years have been stealing people's private data. Having my data being stored on a computer in Florida through the Internet causes me concern.

A PRO of the cloud is that people will share resources. You will not have to have an IT staff because your Data Center will be maintained by a vendor in a faraway place via the Internet. If the bottom dollar is the goal then moving to the cloud is is a smart choice. The biggest cost of any enterprise is hardware and software used to run a business. With someone else doing it, then you are going to save money, and the profit margin is what you are after.

I see the cloud again as a possible way for someone bad to get to my personal data. I don't have any data that is going to cause me any trouble, but the fact that my data is not private and personal causes me issues. This may turn out to be a Ford/Chevy thing or a Coke/Pepsi thing, but 20 years down the road I think a little bit different about my data. I want control of my data. The fact that some software may take my data without me knowing it, and putting it on the Internet bothers me. If I indeed have control of my data, then the issue is moot. There is no issue. There is a savings because someone else is buying the hard drive that I use to store my data.

Another thing I worry about is the fact that vendors who have software stored on the hardware they own may start charging exorbitant prices for the hardware for the storage that you could get yourself a whole lot cheaper. If the cloud could be private, then I probably would not have any problem; but the fact is vendors have been caught storing data that they have no right to have. It was done in the past, and they may do it again.

Perhaps I am paranoid. Perhaps this is a moot point. Maybe this will never happen, but it still causes me concern. When a vendor decides for me what is best, that is when I question the why.

President's Place

by Julie Smith

Wow, how the month has quickly passed since our most recent meeting, a wonderful “Macs in Business” meeting at TRYPS Theater in Columbia. Many thanks to our gracious host, Jill Womack, who delivered a very passionate presentation about what they do and hope to bring out of the children with which they work. We had a great turnout. Thank you to those of you who made the trip.

Winners in the August drawing for iTunes cards were:
Julie Smith, Dan Walsh and Dustin Stark.

Our next adventure takes us to Callaway Rural Electric, 1313 Cooperative Dr, Fulton, MO 65251. At this meeting, Joe Mertzlufft and Dan Walsh will show us a couple of their favorite Mac Apps. Then, George Kopp will highlight for us some of the new features of Mac’s newest operating system, Mountain Lion; and later in the evening, Tom Piper will let us know how to capture and save images (still and video) from your computer screen.

It promises to be an informative evening, and we look forward to the meeting location. Thanks to Charlie Bland for making it a possibility. I look forward to seeing a good crowd and new faces.

Enjoy your Labor Day holiday, and come on out and see us Tuesday evening (see map below agenda). By 6:20 pm, shared rides will leave the Commuter Parking Lot at the Jefferson City Airport exit of Hwy 54 (on the airport side, turn left onto frontage road to access it).

 

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Liquid-Armor: No Hassle Screen Protection

a review by Tom Piper

How do you protect the screen on your iPhone or iPad or iPod touch? I’ve used the plastic screen films for years, and struggled with proper alignment, difficult mounting, eliminating bubbles, and other problems. Now, I’ve discovered a better way.

LIQUID-ARMOR from Dynaflo is a remarkable Nano coating technology that shines and protects your portable device screen like nothing else I’ve seen. With one simple application of their unique anti-static and weather-resistant formula has produced a surface that repels dust and stains for up to 6 months.

With only a couple of squirts per application, I now have a scratch-resistant surface that features screen protection up to twice as strong as traditional screen protection film. LIQUID-ARMOR preserves touch screen sensitivity, sharpness and vividness producing a display which is anti-static and high gloss, as well as water spill-resistant and dirt repellent. This is a great solution to protect the glass of smartphones, tablets, LCD/LED screens on cameras, laptops, and TVs, and more. 

The kit includes a 10ml pump bottle plus two premium microfiber clothes made of 100% microfilament and polyhedron cross-section yam specifically designed for removal of residue and application of the liquid (spray on cloth, not on screen, to apply). It will not cause scratch or damage the surfaces, and is machine washable with PH-Neutral cleaning agent. 

Application is simple, quick and easy . . . clean the glass with the microfiber cloth (I used a liquid cleaner first, then the cloth), apply solution with pouch cloth (2 sprays for iPhone, 5 for iPad), stroke in one direction only, let sit overnight, buff surface with microfiber cloth 24 hours later (allows time to thoroughly bond with surface). The result is smooth and hard, with a great gloss finish. Although designed for glass, I’ve found this also protects the metal back of my iPad and Logitech Ultra-Thin keyboard (not a claim by the company). I also applied to the back of my iPhone 4S since it is glass. Dynaflo recommends reapplying another coat to surfaces every 4-6 months (there seems to be enough liquid here to last for several years for my devices).

I will report back again in 4 months on how these surfaces stand up under normal wear-and-tear conditions. Meanwhile, you can get your LIQUID-ARMOR kit at www.dynaflousa.com for $19.99 (previously $24.99). My initial impressions are very positive . . . this looks like a much better solution than the films I used to use, plus the iPad protection.

MIMOBOT Flash Drives: Cute Quality Memory-to-Go

a review by Tom Piper

I use USB flash drives to move music, movies, photos and much more from computer to computer, from me to friends and family, and from my active to my archived memory. At Macworld Expo I discovered an incredible collection of such storage devices which are fun, memorable, reliable and collectable.

Leading a revolution in the personalization of digital devices and data storage, MIMOBOT (pronounced “mee-mo-bot”) is the world’s original and premier brand of character-based USB flash memory drives. MIMOBOT takes the standard boring old flash drive and spins it on its head by combining our love of gadgets, designer toys, and all things pop-culture. MIMOBOT is a hi-tech piece of art and an expression of your tastes, interests, and personality which I really appreciate.

From themes like Star Wars, DC Comics, Hello Kitty and Transformers, to designers like tokidoki and FriendsWithYou, to their very own Core Series characters, and Design Challenge creations, Mimoco has you covered, whatever your passion may be. Scrolling through their broad array of designs is bound to put a smile on your face reflecting their novelty and whimsical spirit.

In addition to being the coolest flash drives you've ever seen, MIMOBOT drives are also incredibly functional and the best way to transport and store all your docs, pictures, tunes, and other personal data. They are compatible with Macs and PCs and hi-speed USB 2.0, and pre-loaded with Mimory and MimoDesk personalization suite of wallpapers, icons, screensavers, avatars, and more exclusive character-based content.

But, according to their website, to find out the real origin story of MIMOBOT flash drives, you have to be willing to travel way beyond the Milky Way to Planet Blõôh in Galaxy 4210. I found all of my answers at http://www.mimoco.com/mimobots where MIMOBOTS are available in 2GB, 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB capacities ranging in price from $17.95 to $109.95.

I highly recommend this company and their products. Not only are the prices reasonable, but their USB flash drives will provide you excellent function and many smiles while you use them. I cherish my C-3PO, R2-D2 and Darth Vader Unmasked MIMOBOTs. and plan to expand my Star Wars collection, perhaps adding a Batman and Megatron for variety. Which ones would you like to get?

 

Stealth Mouse: the Smooth Alternative

a review by Tom Piper

Are you seeking a new mouse experience that is quiet and silky? Does it need to be light-weight and quick? I may have found the solution for you.

The Manhattan Stealth Touch Mouse is the first mouse that features all “touch” technology. That’s right, no buttons, no scroll wheel, just a touch-sensitive surface that recognizes preprogrammed fingertip movements. This extraordinary mouse can also be used as a presenter for Keynote, PowerPoint or PDF presentations using simple finger gestures which control back, forward, select, swiping and scrolling. You control everything with either a tap, swipe or slide of your fingertip with this petit cursor controller which is only 1.18” x 2.36” x 3.54” and 2.8 oz.

Using innovative Curve-Touch technology, the Stealth Mouse allows for wheel-free scrolling and fingertip control on the touch-sensitive surface. 2.4 GHz technology offers wireless freedom with effective range up to 10 m (33 ft.) and can be used as a normal mouse or a presenter. Auto power management helps extend battery life and on-board storage compartment protects USB receiver from loss and damage. It has a compact size and ambidextrous shape with low-friction base that smoothly glides over work surface. With Plug and Play installation, Windows and Mac compatibility, and a Lifetime Warranty, this is a cool choice as an alternative mouse.

I’ve used the Stealth Mouse now for two weeks as my only cursor controller. The light weight, quiet action, smooth texture, and soft gliding motion are very nice. It is shorter but thicker than my Magic Mouse, and with a much lighter “feel”. It took a lot of getting used to because of the need to double-tap to grab an icon or place the cursor, and vertical scrolling was jerky (there is no horizontal scrolling). The blue emblem light is cool, it works great as a free-hand slideshow control, and it works with almost any computer.

Learn more about the Manhattan Stealth Touch Mouse at manhattan.icintracom.com. It can be purchased for $69.95 at numerous outlets such as www.cyberguys.com. Are you ready for a new mouse?

ScrapBook for iPad: A New Concept in Telling Your Story

a review by Tom Piper

According to the dictionary, a “scrapbook” is a book of blank pages for sticking clippings, drawings, or pictures in. Is that how you have kept your memories of vacations, special events, and such with paper and paste? There is now a better way with your iPad to do this and so much more.

From Left Coast Logic comes an innovative new called ScrapBook. It is a new way to tell your story in an easy and simple way. You can create flip books with photos, voice attachments, interactive maps, detailed notes and even to do lists with alerts. Whether you want to show an adventure you’ve been on, or plan the next one, this is the app to help you organize, create, and relate, in portrait or landscape mode.

ScrapBook encourages you to create multiple books, resize items with your fingertips, mix notes/journals/photos/voice/maps, drag&drop to place items anywhere on any page, create and present in portrait or portfolio mode, tap any map to interact with Google Maps, make ScrapBooks to commemorate your vacations, trips or your plans for the next one . . . make ScrapBooks to store and build your ideas, and to present your ideas to others.

If that’s not enough, the Notes in Scrapbook are the same as those in their award-winning app SmartNotes which rose to #1 in the business category last year. Each SmartNote has features to attach multiple photos and voice notes of any length, plus To-Do’s with pop-up alerts . . . its even great for journaling.

Within five minutes of activating this app on my iPad, I was posting notes, to-dos, photos, and voice recordings about my Easter weekend with the simple click on the “+”. Resizing and repositioning items were just a pinch and a swipe away, and adding a new page was done in a flip. Quick and effective, this is exactly how easy it should be.

To learn more, go to http://www.leftcoastlogic.com/blog/scrapbook/. Regularly $4.99, it is on special at the iTunes Store for only $2.99 until April 21. This is another fine product from the folks who also brought you SmartPad, SmartNotes, SmartPlans, SmartCal, SmartTunes and SmartTime for iOS devices.

Mac/iOS Combo Apps: Maximize Wi-Fi Productivity

a review by Tom Piper

For the last two years, I’ve wanted (but have not been able) to record my iPad or iPhone screen to do training videos without using a video camera to capture it. It also seemed to me that we should be able to live broadcast my video camera to my iPad. And, when will I be able to touch-control my Mac screen (without using a Wacom tablet)? The power of AirPlay has helped to now make all of this possible.

AirPlay wireless streaming (originally called AirTunes 2004-2010) was designed to make it easy to tap into your iTunes library through Apple TV. You just open iTunes on your laptop or Apple portable device, and select Apple TV in the AirPlay menu. You can then control the volume remotely, and even stream the music simultaneously to additional AirPlay-compatible components. You can also send music or video from your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad (even play games on your TV using your iPhone as the controller, hearing the soundtrack through your audio system). I have found that I can also play Internet radio stations through iTunes, or sound from my iPhone or iPad apps — including music services such as Pandora Internet radio, Rhapsody, and Last.fm. 

Apple TV gives you a virtually unlimited selection of high-definition movies, TV shows, video, and photos to explore. This wireless digital media receiver can play music from your computer, show photos from your iPhone, even access your media collection stored online in the iCloud. The newest Apple TV can stream full 1080p high-definition video and audio. You'll enjoy your favorite TV shows, movies and even photo slideshows in breath-taking 1080p resolution. And, with the ability to deliver Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, your movies and shows will sound as good as they look, all for only $99.99.

But, if you have an iPad 2, the new iPad or iPhone 4S, you're not just limited to audio. Your device also has AirPlay Mirroring functionality (introduced in 2011 as part of iOS 5) which means you can wirelessly stream what's on its screen to your TV screen through the Apple TV. Show everyone what's on your device, even when you zoom in or change from portrait to landscape. This concept has been adapted into some really cool apps, four of which I’m describing here because they are cutting-edge innovative multi-device approaches that expand utility and functionally in unique ways that enhance the thrill and excitement of our Mac and iOS device investments.

AirBeam turns your iPhones, iPod touchs or iPads into a realtime audio and video surveillance system. It streams live video and audio from the cameras and microphones of any number of iPhones, iPod touchs or iPads. You can watch the stream on any other iDevice, Mac or Web browser, even on multiple screens simultaneously. Use your iDevices as luxury baby monitors, for serious surveillance, to keep an eye on your pets, a FPV cam in your remote control toys, and hundreds of useful (and not so useful) things you can do with it. Even if you have just a single device, AirBeam is an awesome tool for motion-controlled video recording. This universal app is available on the iTunes Store for $3.99.

Air Display can satisfy your wish for an extra display for your Mac (or Windows) computer. You can use your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch as a wireless display, to extend your computer desktop. Air Display works in both landscape and portrait configurations (you just rotate your screen, and it automatically reconfigures). This makes a laptop much more useful by adding the iPad's 1024x768 display which nearly doubles the screen area of a laptop (except the 2009 15” /17” MacBook Pros) or netbook. Air Display not only gives you a wireless computer screen extender, but also works as a tablet input device. You can use your finger to draw directly on the screen's surface such as with a calculator, painting tool, music control surface, iWorks Inspector, email location, and more (simple gestures allow you to operate the right mouse button and scroll wheel too). This program is available at the Mac App Store for $9.99.

Reflection allows you to use AirPlay to mirror your iPhone 4S, iPad 2 or new iPad to any Mac running OS X 10.6+, wirelessly. I can now easily demo iOS apps on any Mac running OS X Lion using AirPlay Mirroring on iOS 5, and record it using QuickTime, ScreenFlow or other screen recorders. I can now enable/disable an iPhone or iPad “wrapper” (this preserves the look of the device around the screen), change the color, record the screen, and more. Amazingly, I can also display any iOS game on either my 27” iMac or 17” MacBook Pro screen, even show my iPad  2 and iPhone 4S on the screen at the same time (no, you can’t “touch” them, is display). A free trial version (fully-function for 10 minutes) is available at www.reflectionapp.com, and the full purchase price is $14.99.

AirParrot will place our Mac's screen on your Apple TV. You can choose the display the AirPlay device will mirror to in order to enjoy your video and audio. Also adjustable is the quality versus speed performance, show the mouse cursor, and adjust that nasty overscan. This program is built from the ground up to support the great things in OS X Lion while also supporting OS X Snow Leopard. A free trial version (fully-function for 10 minutes) is available at www.airparrot.com, and the full purchase price is $9.99.

These are amazing Mac and iOS apps which fully utilize the power of Wi-Fi through Airplay and Apple TV to achieve a new level of productivity. And, they are FUN to boot!

 

NatureSpace: Tranquility in Your Pocket

a review by Tom Piper

Do you remember as a child when you laid in the grass with the sun in your face and the wind blowing the grass and trees around you, and birds calling in the distance? Or, sitting near a stream with the gurgle and burble of water rushing over the rocks? Or, other tranquil sounds that quieted your spirit, calmed your mind and relaxed your body? Your iOS devise can bring those feelings back again!

NatureSpace Holographic Audio has brought a great catalog of soothing sounds to your iPhone, iPad or iPod. Like dreaming while awake, their recordings create the illusion of being transported to another place. Not just the sounds of nature, but the spaces of forests, canyons, rivers and open fields which induce a “being there” experience. Created with recording techniques designed specifically for headphone listening, they reach deep into your subconscious and the dreaming begins.

As their website (www.naturespace.com) depicts, “Nature’s living, changing, 3-D sound field is captured with accurate depth, distance, space and position. Above, below, behind, and all around, you’ll wonder why you’ve never heard anything like this before. Pristine natural events and environments are arranged and orchestrated into Journeys and Natural Spaces. Always shifting and changing, they go far beyond static nature recordings. Designed to entertain and relax you, they pull you in and become yours.

This is a relaxing experience intended for your earphones. The sound can be optimized for your earbuds (there is a button for that), but I prefer the larger over-the-ear type which help convey the more subtle and expansive sounds, particularly at more modest volume settings. With my eyes closed, reclining in a comfortable chair, without distractions, I soon achieve the “being there” experience which this app emphasizes. The result is a truly relaxing state of tranquility which is most satisfying.

The catalog of sounds comes in two categories. The Natural Spaces are either a singular recording edited down to compress the timeline, or have subtle layering to create an idyllic ambience. There is plenty of room for your mind to wander around through the space as the transitions from busy to calm occur slowly and naturally, with less activity in the foreground. They are designed with the listener maintaining a fixed perspective in the scene. These include Evening at Lake Unknown, Songbirds of Daybreak, Sea of Tranquility, Flew Bayou, and nine more. 

The Journeys are event-oriented recordings, either something occurring around the listener, or the listener's perspective actually moving through different spaces. They have a wider dynamic range and are more theatrical than the Natural Spaces. Some are enhanced with sound design techniques and subtle film scoring methods to enhance the contrast between tension and release. These include Thunderstorm, Zen Wind and Water, The Wolves, First Morning Migration and four more. Each track provides a description of its contents while playing.

NatureSpace is a free app from the iTunes Store and comes with 6 free tracks. They have thought through this process very well, and provides excellent resources in their app to learn more and communicate with the company. Each track is generally 10 to 13 minutes long with 6 tracks to a bundle ($9.99 each, downloadable). Individual tracks are available for $0.99, $1.99 or $2.99 each. All purchases can be made from inside the app. This is a very fine collection of sounds to compensate for our busy everyday lives.

MacPhun Quality: Color Splash Studio/Snapheal/FX Photo Studio

a review by Tom Piper

We’ve been taking pictures for a long time with our SLR and digital cameras, and now its even easier with the high-resolution iPhones and iPads. Once imported into our Macs, there are a variety of simple manipulation tools (like iPhoto) plus some high-end applications like Adobe Elements. What we need now is a set of powerful tools at more reasonable prices.

MacPhun LLC has produced some innovative and robust tools to manipulate, enhance and share your treasured photo images. Three of their Mac applications stand out with features and capabilities of great value to many of us.

Color Splash Studio is a most powerful, comprehensive and intuitive application to help create amazing photography by applying selective colors. Some of the features and tools include integration with latest versions of iPhoto, Photoshop & Aperture, high-end algorithm for fast and most impressive image processing, monochrome layers include grayscale, sepia and blue tone, adjustable vignette/brush/grayscale/sepia/color/blur, support of practically all image formats, and high resolution support. It goes far beyond “old school” color splash (selective colors) apps and doesn’t put any limits to your photography creativity for only $1.99.

Snapheal is a superhero for your photos which will erase unwanted objects, fix skin imperfections, delete text, perform complex image edits in a matter of clicks and seconds. 
With this useful application, you can remove unwanted objects from the image, delete people from the photos, make skin imperfections vanish, erase unwanted text (watermarks, text on signs, etc), dramatically enhance photos with clone & stamp tool, lighten dark areas, sharpen images, add blur, and adjust saturation, gamma, light levels, shadows and much more. The built-in video tutorials are great with video tips on how to use each and every tool. 

The 10 most essential tools to make your photos look perfect. All this power in an amazingly intuitive and stylish user interface, which lets you preview the results, compare resulting image with original, switch between tool panels with a click and what is most important understand how to work with the app in no time. Snapheal was created to help you make perfect photos easy for only $14.99.

FX Photo Studio PRO will take you to the brand new level of photo creativity on the Mac, no matter whether you are a professional photographer or just a hobbyist. You can combine and layer any of the 172 effects to create the perfect looking image. It has a completely customizable interface that allows you to preview each effect, compare original and resulting images, label favorites and even save combinations of effects as presets. The new masking and color splash tools allow you to apply effects and colors to a part of the image only, giving even more creative freedom to your photography. 

Effects include Lo-Fi, Grunge, Art, Vintage, Tilt-Shift, Sketches, Hollywood FX, Color Splash, Blurs and many more. With this set of professional editing tools you can improve and enhance your pictures even further. The elegantly simple design provides easy access to every photo processing tool you'll need, without cluttering your screen and allowing you to focus on your image. You can import pictures from Aperture or iPhoto library, load images from any folder on your Mac or digital camera, export images in a variety of formats to iPhoto or folders on your Mac or share via most popular social networks, and even an enhanced denoise tool. This innovative and powerful FX Photo Studio Pro is available for only $39.99.

Macphun markets itself as having inspiring software, all of which can be found at http://www.macphun.com/. I’ve only looked at these three, but they also have PhotoPal, Perfect Photo, Silent Film Director, Cartoonatic, ArtCamera, DoodleCam Focusold, MyWisdom, ArtPuzzle HD, Predator Vision and much much more. All of these are practically-priced and well-developed products that can be of excellent value for us. Indeed, these are the powerful tools we’ve been looking for at reasonable prices, and their frequent updates keep making these tools better and better.

Recent Malware: What To Do About It

by Randy B. Singer (see attribution at bottom)

There are a couple of new Trojan Horses going around that are quite nasty. The one that is receiving the most press is called Flashback.

Article: Mac Flashback Trojan: Find Out If You’re One of the 600,000 Infected <http://gizmodo.com/5899352/mac-flashback-trojan-find-out-if-youre-one-of-the-600000-infected> Find out if you are already infected by the Flashback Trojan, and it tells where to go to find instructions on how to eliminate this malware if you are. (Don't be too upset by the title of that article. I've yet to hear a single firsthand account of someone being infected by Flashback.)

A simpler method (i.e. non-command line) than the F-Secure steps to check to see if you are infected by Flashback is this little app that runs the test for you. It just posts a dialog that says whether or not you're infected. It does not make any attempt to remove the trojan. You can download it here: <http://rsdeveloper.com/downloads/test4flashback.zip>

Apple has already pushed out an update to Java that includes a patch to make your Mac immune to Flashback. Once you either find out that you aren't infected with Flashback, or you find out that you are infected with Flashback and you eliminate it, it would be a very good idea to go ahead and update Java to acquire immunity to Flashback.<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5228?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US>

There is another Trojan Horse going around that is carried via a Microsoft Office document. Don't confuse this with the Flashback Trojan. Apple has already pushed out a patch to protect you against this Trojan also. Apple updated XProtect with a definition to catch the Office vulnerability. They refer to it as "OSX/Mdropper.i." This should have happened automatically in the background on your Mac if your are running OS X 10.6 or higher (i.e. Snow Leopard or Lion).<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT465> (There is no version of XProtect included in versions of OS X prior to OS X 10.6/Snow Leopard.)

In addition, if you have Microsoft Office installed, it's a good idea to install the Microsoft updaters for Office. These include a patch against this Trojan also:<http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads>

Now, the question that always comes up is: Do I need to install anti-virus (AV) software at this point? Most ordinary Mac users do completely without any AV software, and yet you just about never hear about a Mac user being infected with Malware. There are still no actual viruses (defined as self-propogating software) for the Macintosh. I’ve told you, above, how to deal with the latest malware threats without the need for AV software. So not much has changed that would require that we all run out and purchase AV software.

I’ve run what is usually the most highly rated (in magazine comparison tests) AV software program for the Mac for over a decade: Intego’s VirusBarrier ($50) <http://www.intego.com/virusbarrier> just to be able to tell clients that I am running AV software. (Clients don’t understand that a Macintosh isn’t the same thing as a Windows computer. And I don’t want to bother to try explaining the difference to them.) In all that time VirusBarrier has never actually protected me from anything of any consequence. While VirusBarrier is excellent, some users have (rarely) reported that it can cause nasty software conflicts (as can any AV software that runs constantly in the background). And since VirusBarrier always running in the background on your Mac, even though it is mostly unnoticable, there is some (minor) level of performance degridation (and once again, this is true of any AV software that is always running in the background).

So, instead, you may want to download and regularly use this free product: ClamXav (free) http://www.clamxav.com/. ClamXav doesn’t run constantly in the background like most other AV programs. (So it shouldn’t cause any software conflicts or slowdowns.) It can, however, be set to run on a schedule. It is easy to use, and it is comprehensive. So it is a good choice to install on your Mac, even if AV software really isn’t necessary for your Mac.

___________________________________________
Randy B. Singer (via Apple User Group Digest)
Co-author of The Macintosh Bible (4th, 5th, and 6th editions)
Macintosh OS X Routine Maintenance
http://www.macattorney.com/ts.html
___________________________________________

President's Place

by Julie Smith

When thinking about what to write for the April President’s Place, a series of random thoughts entered my head. They range from what do pro golfers do for fun and relaxation to the elementary question: “why do you drive on a parkway and park in a driveway?” The golfer question has always been of particular interest, maybe only to me, as over the years I’ve read a number of interviews with professional athletes who seem to play a lot of golf when they are not practicing or playing their professional sport. I’ve always wondered, what, then, do pro-golfers do when not playing or practicing their sport? That’s just how my mind works.

I remember over the years seeing pictures of animals in costumes and wondered why people would do that to their pet. Well, now I have pets and am like a proud parent when their child wears a cute costume or accessory.

Yes, I have become one of those people of which I made so much fun for years.

Now, before you wonder where I’m going with all of this, please follow along . . . 

I think the same could be said for a group such as ours. I remember, back before I started using a Mac, that PC users used to make fun of Mac users and talked about how simplistic the computers and users were. I have discovered through the last few years, especially after joining the appleJAC Mac Users Group, that we see our computers as less of an inanimate object, but more an extension of ourselves.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I suspect a good number of you enjoy using your computer for work and fun, and quite frankly, somewhat miss it if you don’t have the opportunity to use the equipment as often as you might like. That includes the revolutionary iOS devices (iPod, iPhone, iPad) that have become commonplace.

Now that those devices have permeated nearly every sector of life, be it work, play or study, so has the explosion of available apps for these devices. Which is why we are devoting our next meeting to them.

Join us at 7:00pm, Tuesday, April 3, 2012, at Kennedy Hall at Immaculate Conception Church, for an informative demonstration of the latest in Mac OS and a few of our favorite apps.