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Tuesday, July 5, 2005

Help On the Way For Mac Users; Group To Teach About Computers

By Emily Van Cleve
For the Journal
    You got a new Macintosh computer and don't know how to do anything except check for e-mail. Or maybe you've had a Mac for a while and have questions about how to use some of its more sophisticated software.
    Help is closer than you think.
    The Santa Fe Macintosh User Group, a nonprofit group founded in 1994 by some local computer buffs, is the place to go to expand your knowledge of the Macintosh computer and its related technology. Giuseppe Quinn is the perfect president of the group because his enthusiasm for Macs knows no bounds.
    "I think the Mac computer has creative soul," he said. "I own Apple stock. My personal mission as president is to enable people to use a tool that can help make their dreams come true."
    Quinn got his first Macintosh computer, a laptop that cost around $5,000, in 1995 so he could figure out how to make movies in his living room. "One of Many," the movie he made with wife, Danielle Reddick, was shown in last year's Santa Fe Film Festival.
    While a few of the club's members share his movie-making passion, many are simply happy to be able to make their own business cards or burn a CD. Quinn and other club officers, board members and general members who are also Mac whizzes are delighted to help answer questions and solve problems.
    SFMUG meets the first Thursday of the month in the Jemez Room at Santa Fe Community College. There are 170 dues-paying members and a core group of 50 to 60 people who regularly show up for meetings. The first 45 minutes are devoted to answering questions from beginners. The more advanced Mac users get a chance to pose their questions when the beginners are finished.
    "Lots of people want to know how to use Photoshop," Quinn explained. "It's the number one program used by most of our members on a regular basis. We always devote at least a couple of our meetings to Photoshop."
    The business meeting begins at 7 p.m. and includes club news and information about any future events of interest to group members such as the release of a new software program. From 8 to 9 p.m., there's a special presentation that changes monthly. During July's meeting, Quinn will discuss an aspect of Macintosh's new operating system called Tiger. Another topic of discussion is the process of automation, which allows Mac users to automate particular repetitive tasks. Member Robin Williams, an author and Mac expert who has written a user manual for the Tiger operating system, is scheduled to talk to the group in August.
    Every year, the group presents a new Macintosh laptop computer to a Santa Fe High School senior who really needs a new computer. This year's recipient of a new iBook, Kimberly Vialpando, was editor-in-chief of Capital High School's school newspaper and a former intern at the Albuquerque Journal. She plans to study business at the University of New Mexico in the fall.
    "I didn't own my own computer before I got this one," she said.
    "I learned how to use both Macs and PCs at school because I've been involved in the school newspaper and in broadcasting. This computer will really help me at college and in the future."
    Annual dues to SFMUG are $35, and individual meetings cost $4 for nonmembers. Quinn encourages anyone with questions about the group to e-mail him at info@santafemug.org.
   
If you go
    WHAT: Santa Fe Macintosh User Group
    WHEN: Meetings every first Thursday of the month. Next meeting Thursday: 5:45-6:15 p.m.— questions from beginners; 6:15-7 p.m.— questions from advanced Mac users; General meeting 7-9 p.m.
    WHERE: Jemez Room at Santa Fe Community College, 6401 Richards Ave.
    HOW MUCH: $4 for individual meeting; $35 annual dues
    INFORMATION: info@santafemug.org