Newsletter to Members
August 2007
Annual General Meeting Monday 6 August, 6.30pm
Level 3 Theatrette, Webster Building, UNSW Kensington
Our August monthly meeting is also our AGM.
Our main prize this month is a 2GB silver iPod nano, superbly gift boxed by Apple, and there are lots of other prizes as well. Plus a sumptuous supper on offer in the break. We hope you can make it.
Come along and support your committee. If you would like to stand for a committee position; if you have any ideas to help run the club; if you can spare a little extra time each month to share the work with other committee members – you will be very welcome.
Topics raised in the Q&A session at our monthly meetings are summarised on our web site for members’ easy reference.
Click here for July Q&A. You can also view Q&A pages by clicking the Q&A text link at the top of our home page.
New FileMaker 9 Product Line
FileMaker has announced immediate availability of FileMaker Pro 9, a major new version of the award-winning desktop database for Windows and Mac OS, with over 30 easy-to-use breakthrough features.
The new FileMaker 9 product line, which the company called its most dramatic new offering in years, includes FileMaker Pro 9, FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced, FileMaker Server 9 and FileMaker Server 9 Advanced.
www.filemaker.com.au
FileMaker Pro 9 – Key Features:
- Create a database in minutes even if you've never used a database before.
- Gather all your information, from business cards to Excel files to images to SQL data, in one place.
- Instant access to the information you need with easy-to-use search and sorting features.
- Build reports and email them to your colleagues as Adobe PDF or Microsoft Excel files.
- Design complete scalable solutions for your organization and automate repetitive tasks.
- Share information on a network or over the Web with both Windows and Mac users
- Dynamically combine data from the Web with the information in your database (third party drivers required)
- An innovative new PHP Site Assistant enables non-programmers to create PHP-driven websites.
FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced: Provides advanced customising and functionality for individuals who frequently modify their databases OR administer their organization's databases.
Min. System Requirements:
Mac OS X 10.4.8 on PowerPC G3, G4, G5 or Intel-based Macs; or Windows XP Pro, Home Edition (Service Pack 2) on Pentium III 500MHz or faster.
Pricing:
FileMaker Pro 9: Full Retail $499 incl GST;
Upgrade from FileMaker Pro v7, 8 or 8.5 $299 incl GST
FileMaker Pro 9 Advanced: Full Retail $799 incl GST;
Upgrade from FileMaker Pro or Advanced v7, 8 or 8.5 $495 incl GST.
https://store.filemaker.com.au
WWDC07 Keynote: QuickTime Version Available Online
Back in June, Steve Jobs spoke to over 5,000 attendees as he kicked off this year's annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) with a Keynote containing Leopard's features, Safari for Windows, iPhone and more.
See what all the excitement was about with the streaming QuickTime movie version available here:
www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/wwdc07/
TIP: If, like me (since upgrading to QuickTime 7.2), all you get is a small QT ‘ref.mov’ window with a blue QT logo and little blue balls rolling incessantly to and fro, here is the fix:
- Go to System Preferences > QuickTime > Advanced tab
- Under Transport Setup choose "Custom"
- Change Transport Protocol from UDP to HTTP and use Port 80.
It should work now. And, if you have broadband and QuickTime Pro (by purchasing a Registration Code online*), you can select View > Present Movie (Shift-Command-F) to see a superb full-screen high quality presentation with playback controls – just wait a second or two for the stream to adjust to full-res quality.
*A Registration Code can be downloaded from the US Apple QuickTime site for US$29.99, or you can buy QuickTime Pro 7 retail from the Apple Australia Online Store for AUD$44.95 incl GST here.
Save for later:
What if you want to save it and watch parts of it later? Streaming QuickTime movies cannot be saved as a complete standalone QT movie, even if you wanted to (this one is 1hr 23 mins duration!). Instead, in QuickTime Player go to File > Save As… and select ‘Save as a reference movie’. This creates a small 2K alias, which when double-clicked will go back and find the original streaming QT movie on Apple’s server and open it in QuickTime Player. Now you can easily scrub through to whichever part of the presentation interests you, again and again. – KD
Apple Reports Third Quarter Results
Record June Quarter Revenue; Mac Sales Set New Record
CUPERTINO, California—July 25, 2007—Apple® today announced financial results for its fiscal 2007 third quarter ended June 30, 2007.
Apple shipped 1,764,000 Macintosh® computers, representing 33 percent growth over the year-ago quarter and exceeding the previous company record for quarterly Mac® shipments by over 150,000.
The Company also sold 9,815,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 21 percent growth over the year-ago quarter.
"We're thrilled to report the highest June quarter revenue and profit in Apple's history, along with the highest quarterly Mac sales ever," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "iPhone is off to a great start—we hope to sell our one-millionth iPhone by the end of its first full quarter of sales—and our new product pipeline is very strong."
Adobe eSeminars for August
There's no need to leave your desk to develop your knowledge of Adobe products. Register for one of these online eSeminars and have the experts provide you with the answers in a live, interactive environment via Acrobat Connect.
The eSeminars are conducted by Adobe staff and key industry experts. So whether you're involved in design, photography, web development, printing, or in another industry using Adobe products, there's an eSeminar for you.
All eSeminars start at 12 noon Sydney time and last for one hour, or may run longer depending on the level of interest.
| Flash Professional | AUG 2, Aug 30 | Dreamweaver CS3 | AUG 9 | |||
| After Effects | AUG 3 | Premiere Pro | AUG 10 | |||
| InDesign CS3 | AUG 6 | Illustrator CS3 | AUG 14 | |||
| Acrobat for Small Business | AUG 8, Aug 27 | Fireworks & Contribute | AUG 16 | |||
| PHOTOSHOP CS3: | CS3 Web Premium | AUG 23 | ||||
| – Photoshop CS3 for Photographers | AUG 7 | Flash for Video Professionals | AUG 24 | |||
| – Montage techniques using Photoshop CS3 | AUG 13 | Better Understanding RAW | AUG 28 | |||
| – Photoshop Extended for Post Production | AUG 17 | CS3 Design Premium | AUG 29 | |||
| – Photoshop (General) | AUG 20 | |||||
| – Darkroom techniques with Photoshop CS3 | AUG 21 |
Register here (follow categories by genre).
MyFirstMac: Help For Mac Newbies
If you know someone who is just getting started on a Mac, here’s a new site you can recommend. MyFirstMac, created by long-time TidBITS subscriber Chris Kerins, offers crisp, concise articles that are perfectly targeted to the person who is considering a Mac, has just purchased one, or is still getting comfortable. Major sections include Before You Buy, Getting Started, Switching from Windows, Mastering the Mac, News, Your Stories, Q&A, and a series of short "How Do I...?" tutorials.
The presentation is clean, user-friendly and very ‘Mac’ in look and feel. A great feature is the easy to use blog function, where anyone can comment on whichever article is featured on any given page.
If you’re a seasoned Mac user, you will be unlikely to learn much you didn't already know, but MyFirstMac's content is ideal for your colleague or relative who's been asking about the Mac. And if you want to contribute, MyFirstMac is looking for pros to answer questions and write articles.
Old Macs go to another dimension
Ken Driver
Our local shopping centre car park had an Apple-organised Computer Recycling Collection last weekend, so I bit the bullet and decided to responsibly dispose of two old Macs that were gathering dust: a Power Mac 7500 and the original 'pizza box' LC that has been in my shed all these years; plus the LC's 12-inch monitor, three ‘blind’ mice (ie. pre-optical), PC and Mac keyboards, various serial-based peripherals, assorted cables and even a couple of old mobile phones – one of which resembled a house brick compared to newer models. I know I'm going to regret this one day, but also threw in everything SCSI ('cos it's all USB now) – Zip drive, Jaz drive, Syquest drive, a 30MB external hard disk, and umpteen SCSI cables small and large.
It all went into a huge shipping container destined for who knows where. I am assured each item is dismantled manually (Macs in particular are treated ‘humanely’ and with due reverence, they say!). Liberated materials are sorted into various product streams: metals, plastics, glass, cables, packing, etc. and the components will eventually be melted, moulded, and reincarnated into another life somewhere. Farewell old friends!
The operation has moved to Melbourne for now, but Nathan from Apple said to check this web site for any future programs:
www.apple.com/au/environment/recycling/program/
Adobe angers Print Industry
Extracts from Print21Online.com:
Worldwide furore over American partnership between Adobe and FedEx Kinko's.
Anger has continued to mount throughout the international printing and graphic arts community, ever since Adobe headquarters in the USA announced its plans to include a button in the latest Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader 8.1 connecting users direcly to FedEx Kinko's printing services.
Millions of users of the free Adobe Reader software will be able to submit PDF jobs for print exclusively to a local FedEx Kinko store direct from Reader.
In Australia, Printing Industries CEO Philip Andersen said he was surprised and disappointed with Adobe's alignment with one international print provider at the expense of tens of thousands of print companies globally who, together with their customers, use Acrobat as a defacto industry standard.
The Graphic Arts Services Association of Australia (GASAA) was the first industry group to contact Adobe’s Regional office in Australia, to seek clarification from Adobe of its plans for the region. Adobe was able to confirm with GASAA that the special arrangements with FedEx Kinko are confined to the North American market.
Mark Cokes, Marketing Manager Pacific, Adobe Systems said "The intent of the FedEx Kinko's partnership was to provide a more streamlined service for consumers who are existing Kinko's customers and value a quick and simple online print option. We acknowledge our mistake of not doing a better job communicating our plans to the entire eco-system of our print partners. This is one of our oldest and most valued groups of customers. We are actively seeking a resolution to this issue through direct dialog with our customers and with the organizations that represent them."
Following a specially convened Adobe Forum Meeting on 17 July in the USA between Adobe CEO Bruce Chizen, members of his marketing team and industry representatives, it was reported that Mr Chizen acknowledged Adobe had made an error of judgement. Adobe promised that it would come up with a solution by 1 August.
Meanwhile, as outrage towards Adobe grows, the floodgates have been opened for InDesign competitor QuarkXPress to make a comeback. According to a spokesperson from Quark, loyalty is growing.
Quark® Interactions Tour '07
8 August 2007, Australian National Maritime Museum, Darling Harbour
A free Quark road show featuring presentations on QuarkXPress 7 and Quark Interactive Designer.
During the one-and-a-half-hour session, participants will discover a wide range of new page layout and design features in QuarkXPress 7 – from transparency and Photoshop® support, through to OpenType®, Quark Job Jackets™, and working collaboratively with Composition Zones™.
Quark will also demo its integration of the award-winning Quark Interactive Designer to add motion, sound, and interactivity in their designs with output to SWF (Flash®) files.
The event is specifically designed for printers, designers and creative pros currently using previous versions of QuarkXPress who have yet to make the move to QuarkXPress 7. Space is limited. Register here.
Free use of QuarkXPress® for students worldwide
Quark Inc has announced the company now allows students to use their QuarkXPress education licenses to produce creative materials for the marketplace while still in school. Students can also continue using their education licenses for the current version of QuarkXPress after graduation for commercial design and production. Quark has also extended this policy to education licenses for Quark Interactive Designer and Quark Print Collection.
Quark now also enables students to upgrade to the latest version of QuarkXPress after graduation at the commercial upgrade price – eliminating the need for purchasing a full copy of QuarkXPress. In addition, students are able to use their Education licenses for QuarkXPress on either Mac or Windows.
Quark has recently introduced a variety of additional programmes in communities around the globe to support the education of young designers, including new pricing for students and educators, training, wider availability of student licenses through resellers such as Amazon and Apple Online, and curriculum development.
Quark products are distributed in Australia by Scholastic.
Latest Take Control eBooks
1. Get the Last Word on Mac OS X Terminology
We Mac users sling technical jargon around every day, but if you've ever felt uncertain about what a term actually means, help is here in "Take Control: The Mac OS X Lexicon." The eBook is a mad romp through over 500 Macintosh- and Internet-related terms. You'll learn how to figure out if your optical drive can write to a double-layer DVD, why 404 and 501 are interesting numbers, how to work with the three main types of dashes that you can type on a Mac, and much more.
We're not talking about some dry old dictionary here – these definitions are loaded with useful tips, practical advice, humour, and empathy. If you enjoy the serendipity of discovering useful tips in unexpected places, you'll love this eBook.
For a sneak preview, you can download a 3-page PDF excerpt (264K) of the start of the M section. (Why M? Because M is for Macintosh, of course!)
Written by veteran Macintosh authors Andy Baird and Sharon Zardetto, the 191-page eBook extends the familiar Take Control design with handy alphabetic navigation tabs on every page, oodles of custom graphics, and over 2,000 internal links. Want to learn more about a particular entry? Margin icons link to hand-picked external Web sites, TidBITS articles, and other Take Control titles.
Save 10% off the US$15 list price right now with the MUG discount embedded in this link.
Book Details:
"Take Control: The Mac OS X Lexicon" by Andy Baird and Sharon Zardetto
PDF format, 191 pages, free 39-page sample available
Publication date: July 19, 2007
2. Install and Run Windows on an Intel-based Mac with Ease
If you want to install Windows on your Intel-based Mac soon, or if you've installed Windows but aren't happy with how it's working, you can find up-to-date help in the 148-page "Take Control of Running Windows on a Mac," (v2.5) by Joe Kissell.
This revised eBook is completely up-to-date and loaded with all the details you need to run Windows on a Mac successfully with Apple's Boot Camp 1.3 beta, Parallels Desktop 3.0, the release candidate of VMware Fusion, and the free public beta of VirtualBox. It also now covers both Windows XP and Vista and includes real-world advice about installing Windows, dealing with tricky peripherals, sharing files between Windows and Mac OS X, backing up a Windows installation, avoiding Windows malware, and more.
Save 10% off the US$10 list price right now with the MUG discount embedded in this link.
Book Details:
"Take Control of Running Windows on a Mac" by Joe Kissell
PDF format, 148 pages, free 29-page sample available
Publication date: July 11, 2007
Learn Mac OS X basics in a friendly, informative environment. Presented by AMUG Sydney.
Saturday 11 August, 10am-2pm.
Room 136C (Computer Lab), Ground Floor, Webster Building, UNSW Kensington.
- One Mac per person
- No questions too silly
- Use one of the Uni's iMacs or bring your own Notebook
- Get Apple's latest Software Updates on CD, without the big downloads
- Get MacFixIt's "Year of Fixes" archive Help files
- Free for AMUG members
To book, phone Rob on 9387 2069 or email sydamug@mac.com
If you do not wish to receive any future editions of this online newsletter, please send an email to AMUG Sydney.