Category Archives: News

May 27 Meeting

The Lomita VFW is closed for now. On May 27, SBAMUG will hold a virtual meeting via Zoom.  Invitations will be sent to all on our email list:  everybody@sbamug.com. To join the meeting, click on the link provided in the email. This will allow you to install the free Zoom app. The invitation will include a meeting id and a password, which you may or may not need.

If you are not on our email list, you can join by following the instructions at https://www.sbamug.com/our-sbamug-email-group/

The meeting will start with Beginners Q&A at 6:30 pm as usual. This will be followed by the President’s address. The main presentation to begin around 7:30 will be on a topic that is yet to be determined.

April 29 Meeting

The Lomita VFW is closed for now. On April 29, SBAMUG will hold a virtual meeting via Zoom.  Invitations will be sent to all on our email list:  everybody@sbamug.com. To join the meeting, click on the link provided in the email. This will allow you to install the free Zoom app. The invitation will include a meeting id and a password, which you may or may not need.

If you are not on our email list, you can join by following the instructions at https://www.sbamug.com/our-sbamug-email-group/

The meeting will start with Beginners Q&A at 6:30 pm as usual. This will be followed by the President’s address. The main presentation, beginning around 7:30 will consist of a discussion of Quicklook led by Arnold Silver. Quicklook is a Mac tool for previewing nearly any kind of file without opening the file.  Then there will be a talk on Zoom itself led by Kent McDonald. You will learn about Zoom features, options and security precautions.

 

 

Feb 26 Meeting

Our next meeting will be Jan 29. The meeting will start with the beginners Q&A session at 6:30 pm as usual. The main presentation will be at 7:45 pm or thereabouts in which George Wilde will discuss Parallels Desktop. He says:

“Do you want to run older 32-bit applications or even PowerPC applications on your latest Mac that may only operate with macOS Catalina (macOS Version 10.15)?

Or perhaps you might want to run a Windows program on your Mac?

Well, you probably can by using Parallels Desktop.  Parallels Desktop is a powerful Mac program that can emulate a Virtual PC running earlier versions of macOS, Windows, and even Linux Operating Systems.  It allows running versions of software designed for these systems – on even the latest Macs.

I will be demonstrating how you can run older 32-bit applications and even PowerPC applications which are incompatible with macOS Catalina on a MacBook Pro that comes with macOS Catalina pre-installed.  I will also show how you can run the latest Windows 10 software on this MacBook Pro – and the performance is excellent.

Parallels Desktop gives you the capability of essentially having multiple computers on your single Mac.  Even if you don’t envision a need right now, I think it’s worthwhile to know how to use Parallels Desktop, should your situation change, or you are asked to help someone else.”

Jan 29 Meeting

Our next meeting will be Jan 29. The meeting will start with the beginners Q&A session at 6:30 pm as usual. The main presentation will be at 7:45 pm or thereabouts in which Jim Pernal will discuss the latest Mac Operating System Catalina (10.15)  The presentation will include the requirements for using this system, how to upgrade, why you should upgrade, and finally a few of the new features in the system with some demos. Will discuss the fact that Catalina can run only 64 bit programs, and the new Sidecar feature.

October 30 Meeting

Reunion Genealogy Software, by Joan King

In 2012 I gave a presentation on Reunion version 10, a genealogy program for the Mac with separate apps for the iPhone/iPod Touch and for the iPad. Today Reunion is up to version 12 on the Mac and there is single app, Reunion Touch, that runs on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. I will show you what you can do with version 12. There are many different charts and reports you can create to share your information with others.

September 25 Meeting

Mesh Routers

At the September 25 meeting of SBAMUG, Kent McDonald will explain the rationale for using mesh routers to provide improved Wi-Fi coverage in your home. An actual installation with a single access point in a large, five bedroom home is described. The Wi-Fi signal strength is mapped throughout the house to see where the signal strength is inadequate. A mobile-phone app is used to map the signal strength. A mesh network is then configured to provide good signals everywhere in the house. A three-node mesh network is selected and installed; then the new network is mapped to show that the Wi-Fi signal is indeed strong everywhere inside the house with the new equipment.

Aug 28 Meeting

Table Top or Potpourri

The main presentation will be a table top (several simultaneous presentations) or a potpourri (one presentation at a time). A possible topic is Pinterest/Social Media led by Nancie Silver. Other topics will be chosen between now and Aug 28. If you have any preference for the format, or suggestions for the topic and/or presenter, send an email to info@sbamug.com. Your suggestions may not incorporated into this meeting due to time constraints, but will certainly be considered for future meetings.

July 31 Meeting

July 31 Meeting

Mac Shortcuts, by Kent McDonald

Mac operating system software provides numerous shortcuts that enable users to perform routine tasks more easily. However, we need to refresh our bag of tricks occasionally since our daily routines evolve over time. At our July 31 SBAMUG meeting, Kent McDonald will review the Mac shortcuts that you may have forgotten, or just were not available in earlier versions of Mac software. The presentation will draw upon material from online sources such as MacMost, Mac journals such as MacLife, and Don McAllister’s ScreenCastsOnline videos. You may be very happy to discover a couple of shortcuts that you will use every day. We will also share our favorite shortcuts with the rest of the members present, so think about that.

June 26 Meeting

What’s Coming from Apple this Fall, by George Wilde

The first week of June featured Apple’s annual weeklong World Wide Developers Conference with more than 100 presentations aimed at the over 1000 developers attending the conference. However, the first morning of this conference featured an Apple Keynote Address announcing significant software updates coming to all Apple devices this fall.

I will be presenting a top level overview of what Apple publicly announced that may affect SBAMUG members, including the major new features of iOS 13, iPadOS 13 (yes, iPad now has an OS of its own), macOS 10.15 Catalina – the successor to macOS Mojave, watchOS 6, tvOS 13, and changes to HomePod, and CarPlay. During my presentation I will indicate what devices each of the updates work with. However, just because you can upgrade to the new software, should you? This is particularly a good question to ask regarding macOS Catalina, because many of your older Apps may not run on it. Catalina is no longer compatible with 32-bit Apps and includes security and privacy features that may require changes to some other Apps. I will discuss how you can identify all of your existing 32-bit Apps to ascertain what potential problems you may have.

Subscriptions to computer software and services has become a major source of income in the computer industry. Apple is introducing several new subscription services in addition to the several subscription services that Apple already has. You will have to pay monthly or yearly fees to use these new services. I will discuss the subscription services that Apple currently has as well as those it will be offering in the near future.