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User Group News Bulletin
AWUGU Meeting Report about Gadget Gift Guide by Tom Piper
AWUGU Meeting Report about Gadget Gift Guide
by Tom Piper, Coordinator
This Apple World User Group University (AWUGU) online gathering of Apple user group leaders was held at 5:00pm CDST, on November 20, 2023, via Zoom. We had 22 participants for Gadget Gift Guide. The 73-minute video can be viewed at https://youtu.be/de4SCdVgGbE (unlisted on YouTube).
This session opened with my welcome, plus a quick review of the meeting protocols. This was followed by a series of suggestions about items to be placed on the Gift Guide. Many questions and comments were then added.
Related to this topic of Gadget Gift Guide, a bonanza of product suggestions were provided by user group leaders in the Chat Room with the following links:
Nicholas Pyers Presents: End of Year Tasks for User Group Members
Many groups do not meet from late December to early January, but there are things you can do while your group is on hiatus. Nicholas Pyers, Apple User Group Advisory Board member and popular presenter from AppleUsers.org, offers thoughts on ways to thank those who have served your community in the past year and ways to plan ahead for an even better year ahead for your group and members.
http://www.appleusers.org/ugr/end-of-year-tasks-for-apple-user-group-leaders/
Taking his advice regarding thanking those who have made our user group experience better, we’d like to say thank you to Nicholas for his many articles over many years. We look forward to taking his advice on planning for the year to come and thank him for all of the expertise and wonderful resources he has provided over the years.
Nicholas Pyers is known for AppleUsers.org, the Apple Users Spotlight, his clever puzzles, and long-time championship of all things Mac.
Learn more at:
Meeting Idea: Apple’s Privacy and Security Features
Your members have privacy concerns and a privacy and security meeting topic could be a hit. Apple builds in privacy at every level to help users keep their information secure. From Passkeys that can replace passwords with an easier and safer sign-in method, to Intelligent Tracking Prevention, Privacy Report to Password monitoring, Social widget tracking prevention, Fingerprinting defense, Private Browsing, Location fuzzing, Random identifiers, end-to-end encryption, and so much more, privacy is an integral part of the Apple ecosystem.
Start your meeting with the clever Privacy on iPhone video and go from there:
News to Use: “How Ted Lasso Did It” Night at LACPUG
The 6,000+ member strong LA Creative Pro community will hold their next meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 29 at the Gallery Theatre in Hollywood. And, the meeting’s topic is a winner: they are having a How Ted Lasso Did It night, featuring editors Melissa McCoy and A.J. Catoline. But wait, there’s more: the team from DigitalFilm Tree who did the VFX, Color, PreVis and GeoDailes will be there too. Still not sure? Stump the Gurus and the World Famous Raffle will be part of the evening’s entertainment.
Learn, network, and increase your skills.
Apple Support on YouTube: Use Point and Speak on iPhone or iPad
Need a quick topic to include with your meeting? Apple Support on YouTube often has quick, fun, and easy-to-implement tips that your members will enjoy. For example, in under 1 minute your members can learn how to use Point and Speak in Magnifier on your iPhone or iPad with LiDAR to have text read to you. Just point your finger at signs, keypads, labels and more to hear them read out loud to you. The technique works great for users, including users with low vision or blindness.
How to Use Point and Speak on iPhone or iPad
Ambassadors, November is a great time to use Apple Support on YouTube
(Thanks to Apple Systems Engineer and artist Dave Marra for this great tip!)
Blast From the Past: Apple User Groups on the Apple User Group Connection
The Apple User Group Connection Archives offer a fun look back at past announcements, products, and meetings. The January 1988 video offered a look at Apple User Groups. The narration is pretty awful, but it is fun to look back at groups many of which are still active today. The speakers include members from Mac Nexus, AzApple, DBug, SMUG, and more. In fact, there is an incredibly young Raines at BMUG, lots of 80s fashions (sigh) and discussions about the ways that user group provide expertise, from classes, to meetings, to newsletters, BBS boards, and gatherings, user groups were a large part of the Apple community then and today too.
Check it out.
Meeting Ideas: Be Prepared
You may remember the Scout’s Motto: Be Prepared. Sill, do your members know how to prepare for account recovery, how to add a legacy contact, or even how to prepare a device for sale or trade in? Why not base a meeting around preparedness? An account recovery contact can help make sure that you always have access to your account, even if you forget your Apple ID password or device passcode. A Legacy Contact is someone you choose to have access to the data in your Apple account after your death. And before you sell, give away, or trade in your Apple device, you will need to transfer information to your new device, if any, then remove your personal information from your old device. Interested in buying a pre-owned phone? Apple Support has guidance and a checklist for that too!
Each is easy to do and there are great resources to help you be prepared for a great meeting.
How to add a Legacy Contact for your Apple ID
Set up an account recovery contact
What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your iPhone or iPad
Learn how to inspect a preowned iPhone.
Ambassadors, October is a great month to check out Apple Support
(Thanks to Rick Ortiz, User Group Advisory Board member, amazing freediver who recently achieved two national freediving records, user group leader, and owner of The MacPro for this great idea.)
AWUGU Meeting Report about Sports Streaming by Tom Piper, Coordinator
AWUGU Meeting Report about Sports Streaming
by Tom Piper, Coordinator
This Apple World User Group University (AWUGU) online gathering of Apple user group leaders was held at 5:00pm CDST, on October 16, 2023, via Zoom. We had 24 participants for Sports Streaming (see Zoom JPG image and PDF attendance list in shared AWUGU folder). The 68-minute video can be viewed at https://youtu.be/wVfyEF1LUkM (unlisted on YouTube).
This session opened with my welcome, plus a quick review of the meeting protocols. This was followed by an interesting presentation by Steve Welsh (OMUG) about Sports Broadcasting Concerns (see his slideshow in shared AWUGU folder). Many questions and comments were then added.
Related to the topic of Sports Streaming, a few observations were shared and suggestions were provided by user group leaders with the following links in the Chat Room:
- Tom Piper: https://theathletic.com/2799058/2021/08/31/sports-tv-cable-streaming-broadcast-mess/ and https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/media-and-entertainment/immersive-sports-fandom.html and https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony-Control-Smartphone-Simple/dp/B00BQ5RYI4
- George Brooks: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=harmony+remote&crid=CBD01JZ31RGG&sprefix=harmon%2Caps%2C97&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_5_6
We are very pleased with this tenth meeting of 2023. Files related to this meeting (including chat, agendas, reports, announcement links, slideshows and videos) are available on our AWUGU shared folder: https://www.icloud.com/iclouddrive/0kF7XwYI98VG0fqvL86PJm02g#AWUGU.
After a brief discussion, it was decided that “Gadget Gift Guide” would be the topic on November 20, 2023, at 5:00pm Central Daylight Saving Time (all current AWUGU registrants will receive an invitation to all future meetings).
To become a participant, any interested Apple User Group leader must first register with the AWUGU Coordinator by emailing their name, location, and user group name and web link to macquest@mac.com. Registration must be received by November 18 in order to receive a Zoom Meeting invitation.
Maui Apple Users Society: Apple User Group Assistance and Refurb Program
A key component of user groups and user group members is service to community, and the Maui Apple Users Society will be donating refurbished Apple computers to victims and families of the Maui wildfires. From Ireland’s ClubMac’s computer donations, to Pittsburgh Mac’s Computer Reach user groups worldwide have responded when disasters struck. Is your group doing community-focused service? Let our editors know.
Fun Blast From the Past: James Burke and HyperCard
The Apple User Group Connection Archives offer a fun look back at past announcements, products, and meetings. If you are a fan of British science and technology journalist and historian of science James Burke’s Day the Universe Changed and Connections, August 1988 had Mr. Burke explaining HyperCard and interactive video for the User Group Connection. This was 35 years ago, so the video reminds viewers to be kind and rewind 🙂
What a gem.
HyperCard and Interactive Video – August 1988
(I taught the full Day the Universe Changed series to undergraduates as part of a course on Descartes for more than a few years, so Mr. Burke is dear to me.)
The Day The Universe Changed – Infinitely Reasonable: Science Revises the Heavens
Meeting Discussion Topic: Apple Watch Tips
Apple Senior Systems Engineer, talented artist, and long-time user group favorite Dave Mara recently shared a great video covering Apple Watch tips. I bet there are at least a couple that you haven’t seen, and all ten are ones your members will find interesting and helpful. The tips can make for a short meeting discussion, and your members can share other tips they use most.
10 helpful Apple Watch tips you should know
But wait! There’s more!
You can even show your members how to use Assistive Touch on Apple Watch.
News to Use: LACPUG Looks at Assistant Editors and AI
The 6,000+ member strong LA Creative Pro community will hold their next meeting on October 25 at the Gallery Theater in Hollywood. And, the meeting’s topic is a winner: Assistant Editors and AI Night. With popular host Michael Horton, Zack Arnold (ACE) – founder of Optimize Yourself as well as a 20-year veteran editing film & television, TV Assistant Editor Ashley McKinney, Film and TV Assistant Editor Scott Jacobs, and VFX Editor and Co-Founder of the Master the Workflow Richard Sanchez, the lineup is superb.
Still not sure? Stump the Gurus and the World Famous Raffle will be part of the evening’s entertainment.
Learn, network, and have fun.
Apple Support on YouTube: Communication Tips Can Make for a Great Meeting Idea
Need a few quick topics to include with your meeting? Apple Support on YouTube often has quick, fun, and easy-to-implement tips that your members will enjoy. For example, recent topics include how to use Check In to let a friend or family member know when you reach a destination or have arrived safely, how to design and personalize a Contact Poster that will appear on your friends’ devices when you call them, how to update your contact photo, how to create a voice that sounds like you, and so much more. You can even use FaceTime on your Apple TV 4K.
How to use Check In on your iPhone
How to personalize your Contact Poster on your iPhone
How to use FaceTime on your Apple TV 4K
How to set up and use Personal Voice and Live Speech on iPhone and iPad
Ambassadors, October is a great time to use Apple Support on YouTube
AWUGU Meeting Report about Apple Announcements & Streaming Services by Tom Piper, Coordinator
By Tom Piper
This Apple World User Group University (AWUGU) online gathering of Apple user group leaders was held at 5:00pm CDST, on September 18, 2023, via Zoom. We had 31 participants for Apple Announcements & Streaming Services (see Zoom JPG image and PDF attendance list in shared AWUGU folder). The 73-minute video can be viewed at https://youtu.be/vehbOkQdKA4 (unlisted on YouTube).
This session opened with my welcome, plus a quick review of the meeting protocols. This was followed by an attempted 6-minute version of the Apple Announcements (available in the AWUGU shared folder) plus a series of shared information by many participants. Discussion continued with wide-ranging comments about streaming services.
Related to the topic of Apple Announcements and Streaming Services, numerous observations were shared and suggestions were provided by user group leaders with the following links in the Chat Room:
Nicholas Pyers is Named to the Apple User Group Advisory Board
Nicholas Pyers
This month we welcome Nicholas Pyers to the Apple User Group Advisory Board. Nicholas is known for his website AppleUsers.org, which is full of resources for user group leaders including: back issues of the AppleUsers Spotlight – a former digital magazine, his clever puzzles, an diverse range of Discs of the Month; and for being a long-time championship of all things Mac and Apple – having started his computing life in 1986 with an Apple II; and now has multiple Macs, iPhones, iPads and an Apple Watch. You may also know him from his award-winning articles in the AUSOM newsletter or from his many contributions to the international user group community — including having his Macros.NKP (automation of the Apple II version of AppleWorks) published in US publications.
Following on from a long tradition of providing in-person presentations to Australian and International Apple User Groups, in more recent years, Nicholas has been a regular presenter at the online Apple Worldwide User Group University.
In addition, Nicholas is known for his passion of cruising, with plans to see the world by cruising the seven seas. Despite his ‘protests’ of: “I have ZERO interest in trains or motorsports”, Nicholas is also the event co-ordinator of a full sized “hobby” railway in his adopted home town of Junee, NSW, Australia and the publicity officer for a local motorsport park. Professionally, he currently a grants writer working with not-for-profit community groups to raise funds for local projects and infrastructure.
Nicholas has recently accepted a position with the Apple User Group Advisory Board and will be bringing his talents to Board activities to help develop a Speakers Bureau that will assist user groups find presenters and topics for their meetings.
https://www.appleusers.org/dotm/
https://www.appleusers.org/magazine/
https://www.nicholaspyers.com/articles/macros-nkp-v9-0/
https://www.nicholaspyers.com/presentations/
https://www.peteshobbyrailway.club/
Meeting Idea: Carbon Neutral
You may remember back in 2021 when Apple announced that by 2030, every single Apple product around the world would be carbon neutral, from design to manufacturing to shipping, usage, and recycling. And, over the last few years Apple has put their efforts toward that goal. Before the Wonderlust event, Apple had already been carbon neutral across all corporate operations and made incredible advances in recycling and and processes that benefit the environment. At the September 12 Wonderlust event, Apple announced their first fully carbon neutral product, the 2023 Apple Watch, silicon and leather-free watch straps, working with suppliers to ensure best practices, and more.
Check it out!
Apple unveils its first carbon neutral products
Meeting Ideas: AirPods Pro with Adaptive Audio, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro on YouTube
Your members probably watched Apple’s Wonderlust event on Tuesday and want to learn more about the announcements. The good news is that Apple’s YouTube channel has a link to the resources you can use to create a great meeting. For example, there are links to a tour of iPhone 15, AirPods Pro with Adaptive Audio, the Wonderlust event, and so much more.
Check them out!
Shot on iPhone 15 Pro | Olivia Rodrigo “get him back!”
Fun Blast From the Past: Macintosh Jeopardy Part Two
The Apple User Group Connection Archives offer a fun look back at past announcements, products, and meetings. April 1991 brought one session of MacWorld Macintosh Jeopardy. Want to see contestants answer questions from categories that include “Guys Named Guys” and “Love That Jean-Louis”, and answers that include one of Woz’s earliest computers named for a beverage and the only animal in the standard Geneva font? Check out a tough competition starting around 1 hour and 30 minutes.
See how many questions you can answer:
User Group Connection April 1991
Meeting Idea: Accessibility Features for Movies and TV Shows
Groups have had a positive response to accessibility as a meeting topic. Apple’s Accessibility home page says that the true value of a technology is not measured by how powerful it is, but by how much it empowers the user, and every Apple product contains amazing and empowering accessibility features right out of the box. From being able to take a perfect group selfie without being able to see the screen, to VoiceOver, display accommodations, Live Listen, closed captioning that displays far more than text, LED iPhone notifications, Switch Control, customized gestures, AssistiveTouch, Guided Access, typing feedback, text-to-speech, fitness algorithms for wheelchair users, and more, there are features to make every user’s tasks easier.
Dave Mara, Senior Systems Engineer for Apple, accomplished artist, and user group favorite recently posted an accessibility link with some great tips regarding ways to check if movies and TV shows have accessibility features in the Apple TV app, including audio descriptions, closed captions, and subtitles for folk who may be deaf or hard of hearing. Your members can check from their iPhone or iPad, smart TV or streaming device, Mac, AppleTV, or PC in the iTunes Store, and there are some great tips for how to turn the features on and off as well.
This could make for a great quick preso at your next user group meeting.
Check if movies and TV shows have accessibility features in the Apple TV app
Meeting Idea: New Features in iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma
Are your members interested in what’s new with iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma? Apple recently released documents listing key new features for iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma. These docs could make for an interesting and informative meeting.
Check ’em out:
Thanks to Steve Welsh, founder and President of the Oregon MacPioneers User Group, and past member of Apple’s User Group Advisory Board, for this tip!
