May Meeting Programmes: Live Interior 3D Notebook 3.0 Toast 10 Titanium Pro HKMUG Columns What you might have missed
Mac 911 Reviews: Executive Sync Parallels Desktop 4.0 Quench Your Thirsty Pocket
About HKMUG
The Hong Kong Macintosh User Group (HKMUG) is a non-prot making organization aiming at the mutual support and assistance among users. The HKMUG is the longest-serving user group in Hong Kong that is fully supported and recognized by Apple Computer International Ltd (Hong Kong). Our major communication between members is through the BBS with a 10Mb connection. We also organize a monthly gathering on every second Tuesday of the month and invite vendors to show us the latest Mac hardware and software in town. Please visit our website to learn about more benets for you when you become our member.
关於HKMUG
我们HKMUG是香港历史最悠久的注册Mac用家团体.和世界各地不少MUG一样, HKMUG以促进Mac用家交流及推广Mac使用风气为己任.除了能免费使用我们接 驳到10MB宽频的电子通讯站,下载共享软体及其他会员作交流外,我们每个月的第二个 星期二晚上还举行聚会,邀请嘉宾介绍Mac界最新软硬体.
For the latest information, please visit our web site or email to us at:
有关本会活动最新消息,请浏览本会网页或电邮本会执委: web: http://www.hkmug.org.hk/ email: committee@hkmug.org.hk To join us, please fill in our application form ( PDF ). 加入本会,只需填妥参加表格(PDF).
Copyright 1997-2009 Hong Kong Macintosh User Group. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without the express written consent of Hong Kong Macintosh User Group is prohibited
HKMUG May Meeting & Venue 五月聚会及场地
12th May, Tuesday
五月十二日 星期二
7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
(Demo to be started at 8:00pm) China Coast Bar - 3rd Floor Mariner's Club
11 Middle Road, Tsim Sha Tsui Kowloon
九龙尖沙咀中间道11号 海员俱乐部3楼
China Coast Bar
Members: $30 Guest: HK$70
Drinks & Dinner available at your own charge..
场地设置无线上网,欢迎各位带同 MacBook, MacBook Pro, iPhone 或 iPod touch 参加!
Wireless network available at the meeting venue. MacBook, MacBook Pro, iPhone and iPod touch are welcome!
Next Monthly Meeting
9th June, Tuesday
六月九日 星期二
Venue of Monthly Meeting 每月聚会地点
Mariners Club
五月聚会示范项目 May Meeting Programmes
1. Live Interior 3D
by Jonathan Foo, Revo IT
Live Interior 3D Standard edition is targeted at people who are about to begin designing a new interior for their house, apartment or ofce. The program has the ability to create two-story projects, allowing users to make different interiors for every room in the house.
length on the y as you draw it. This helps to create a wall of precise length. Apart from that, smart guides and snapping assist in preparing exact 2D plans.
3D Views
Virtual walkthroughs take you inside the interior and help you realize what needs to be changed in order to achieve perfection. You can easily move, replace and modify objects in 3D mode. The program offers 3 levels of rendering, which extends its exibility in utilizing 3D environment. Position and adjust various light sources on the y, select the color of your lighting, set daytime and control sunlight and moonlight, which
2D Plans
Various 2D editing tools let you draw walls, oors, ceilings, add text annotations and much more. In addition, you can display various measurements on your 2D plan. Thanks to automatic dimensioning you see wall
五月聚会示范项目 May Meeting Programmes
2. Notebook 3.0
by Jonathan Foo, Revo IT
can download to your iPod. And protect private thoughts with passwords, covers, and encryption.
With NoteBook, you organize your information naturally,
using a familiar notebook interface, complete with pages and tabs, sections and subsections. Add notes and other text. Drag in les and folders. Even "clip" web research, mail messages and other content into your Notebooks without leaving the application you're working in. Annotate your information with diagrams and sketches, highlighting and keywords. Take voice-annotated notes that you
Track Your Tasks
Manage your to dos, without sacricing context. Actions Items. Tasks. To dos. Whatever you call them, you probably have quite a few. The challenge is staying on top of them all. NoteBook's built-in tools make managing your to dos a snap.You can add a checkbox and due date to any item in a Notebook, so as you craft that note, clip that memo, or add that document, you can also ag it as a to do. NoteBook's patented MultidexTM makes it easy to view all of your to dos at a glance.The To Do Multidex page shows all of a Notebook's checkboxed items, giving you the freedom to sprinkle to dos across a Notebook, with the power to view them all at once.
五月聚会示范项目 May Meeting Programmes
3. Toast Titanium 10 Pro
by Hoson Pang (HKMUG EC Member)
At March monthly meeting Hoson already shown us the new Toast Titanium 10, The Pro version just arrived & Hoson will show us what's additional features in this "Pro" version For US$50 more, Toast 10 Titanium Pro comes with extra software that can enhance your media creation/formatting.
SonicFire Pro - Create your own copyrightfree music on the y.
SoundSoap - Remove unwanted audio/noise
from your recordings.
To increase our bbs server stability & implementation of better spam mail ltering, the committee decided to upgrade our FirstClass Server to latest version, tentatively scheduled someday in coming August to September, 2009. The server will be shutdown for 1-2 days & bbs service will be suspended during the upgrade process. Since all existing information could be erased from the server, so start backup your mail & data now.
FotoMagico - It sort of combines the
presentation functionality of Keynote with the slideshow capabilities of iPhoto
LightZone - It can correct or add effects to
your photos for more dramatic slideshows
Venue of Monthly Meeting 每月聚会地点
Starting from January 2009, we are back to Mariner's Club - our Monthly Meetings are being held at China Coast Barr - 3/F of Mariner's Club. The new venue also equipped with wireless network connectivity, so as usual, you can bring along your MacBook, MacBook Pro, iPhone or iPod touch to surf the net. Better still, our scheme of entrance fees remain unchange. However, drinks & dinner are on your own charge. So don't forget to come to our new meeting venue on the second Tuesday of every month! Address: China Coast Bar 3/F Mariner's Club 11 Middle Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon Entrance Fee: $30 (Member), $70 (Non-Member) Date and Time: Every second Tuesday of the month, 8:00-10:00 pm.
由2009年1月开始 ,我们的每月聚会将回归尖沙咀海员 俱乐部举行. 新场地也装置有无线上网设施.各位大可带同你心爱 的 MacBook, MacBook Pro, iPhone 或iPod touch 来 享受上网乐趣. 我们的入场费将维持不变. 场地有自费晚餐及各式饮品供应. 千万不要忘记,每月第二个星期二来我们新的聚会地点 啊! 地址: 九龙尖沙咀中间道11号 海员俱乐部 3楼 China Coast Bar 入场费: $30(会员),$70(非会员) 日期及时间: 每个月第二个星期二,晚上八时至十时
HKMUG Column: What you might have missed!
Meeting - March 10, 2009 at 08:15 p.m Venue - The China Coast Bar, 3/F, Mariners' Club, Tsim Sha Tsui. by Joseph Wong (HKMUG Committee)
Demos: Q9 - Calvin Chan of Q9 Technology showed one of the ways of inputting Chinese on the Mac - the stroke method. The rst stroke begins on the upper left hand side of the word, followed by the next stroke on the same side, then the upper right hand side of the word. Take the Chinese word for NEW. The rst stroke is a dot which corresponds to 4 on the numeric keyboard. The second stroke is a horizontal line represented by 7. Moving over to the upper right hand side for the third stroke and we have a sloping line which corresponds to 9. So we press 4, 7, 9. If the word is not displayed we need to press 0 for the next
page, and so on until the word is shown. In this case the word corresponds to position 3 which we press. The word for NEW is now displayed. If we have selected "show related words" in the preference the words for year, fresh, born, etc are displayed; and by clicking the appropriate words we can spell out new year, fresh, new born respectively. For words that do not have a right hand side simply carry out steps 1 and 2, and then press 0 to select the word, and/or press 0 again for the next page. For those who do not know the correct sequence of the strokes they can use the "form" method. Once again start at the upper left corner. Using the word NEW again the rst part is a dot which is 4. The second part looks like "to stand" which is 1. The upper right corner is a sloping line which is 9. So we press 4, 1, 9 and the word we want is in position 9 and by clicking it the word NEW is typed in our document.
As laptops do not have the numeric keyboard the following keys 7, 8, 9, U, I, O, J, K, L, M, ",", and "." are used. 7, 8, and 9 correspond to their respective numbers, while U, I, O stand for 4, 5, and 6. J, K, L represent 1, 2, and 3. M and "," stand for 0 and "." and is . itself. It is possible to nd words that sound the same as the chosen word. Just click on the upper left hand triangle of the space containing the word. Thus clicking on the upper left triangle of the word NEW you can select WAGES, BODY, STRETCH, etc. Clicking the upper right triangle will display phrases consisting the word NEW, and you can add your own as well. Just select phrase storage and type the words in the phraseb5 document and save. The next time you click the word NEW these words will be displayed on the following page. Clicking on the lower right triangle will display the meaning of the
word. It is a good way to learn new Chinese words. Pronunciation of the words chosen in Cantonese or Mandarin is also provided. 2. Roxio Toast 10 Titanium Hoson showed off the normal version of Toast 10. The Pro version might be offered at a later date. The slogan for Toast 10 is Burn, Copy, Listen and Watch. For Burn it will combine multiple video les into a single title for DVD and Ble-ray. For Copy it can extract individual clips from DVD-Video and convert to the format of your choice. Encrypted DVD is not supported. For Listen it will convert an entire audiobook CD set to a single iTunes audiobook .m4b le with chapter markers, support for pause/resume and playback speed options. For Watch you can download your favourite
Flash-based web videos and convert them to iPhone and iPod Touch formats. Select Convert, open Media Browser, and select Web Video. After the video has nished streaming just sve it to a le.
3. AGM - as there were insufcient members
to form a quorum the AGM was deferred and an EGM set up for March 24, 2009 in the premises of HK Nameplates in Kwun Tong.
Lucky Draw - Synnex Technology
International (HK) Ltd and Q9 Technology both generously donated copies of their products for our lucky draw. Roxio Toast 10 Titanium from Synnex was won by Michael Tsui, while Joseph Wong was the winner of a copy of the Q9 input system for iPhone 3G from Q9 Technology. Two other copies of the same input system will be reserved for another lucky draw at a later date. The meeting adjourned at 10:00 p.m.
EGM - was held on March 24, 2009 at 08:45 p.m. in the premises of HK Nameplates, Kwun Tong. In the Chairman's report Blanco stated that he had hoped that by returning to the Mariners' Club a higher attendance would be achieved. But sadly it had not been so. We need to bring in more members as well as keeping the current ones. So far most would join for one year and not renewing. The Treasurer's report is similar but we are still in the black. The worst case scenario is that we could manage another couple of years before going bankrupt. As HY Tam was the only non-Committee member present he proposed 1, that the entire Committee be retired, and 2, the entire Committee be re-elected for another term. The proposals were seconded, and as there were no objections the proposals were accepted. As one Committee member had left during the year a request was put to Herman
Lam to ll the vacancy and he had graciously accepted.
Lucky Draw the two remaining Q9 Input System for the iPhone left over from the AGM was offered for the draw. Once again many thanks to Q9 Technology for their generosity in donating the software. The winners were HY Tam, who has no excuse not to buy an iPhone now, and Hoson Pang.
The meeting adjourned at 09:25 p.m.
Meeting - April 14, 2009 at 08:20 p.m. Venue - The China Coast Bar, 3/F, Mariners' Club, Tsim Sha Tsui. by Joseph Wong (HKMUG Committee)
Demos: 1. Norton Internet Security 2009 as more and more Mac users have Windows on their machines, Symantec has been really considerate in that their new version of Norton has a disk for Mac and one for Windows. So both systems are covered. It removes virus automatically. Its Personal Firewall protects the Mac from hackers. Its Privacy Control prevents condential information from being sent over the internet without your permission. Its Parental Control blocks access to inappropriate web sites. On the matter of licensing the PC needs to renew annually and enter the serial number. While for the Mac it is only necessary to reinstall the
software. After installation it is necessary to schedule the time and method of scanning. For example the entire hard drive or a specic folder may be scanned daily at a certain time or manually, a CD/DVD to be scanned on insertion, etc. Location awareness allows different security levels depending on where you are is just ideal for travelers with their laptops.
2. iPhone OS 3.0 gleaned from Apple the most sought after item might be the copy and paste function and the ability to send photos, contacts, audio les via MMS. For easier mail composing and reading the landscape mode will be enabled. For stocks the landscape mode will show charts. Now all we do is to wait for its launch date.
Lucky Draw Symantec was the generous sponsor of the lucky draw prize of a copy of Norton Internet Security 2009. The surprise winner was Andrew Wong who had not attended a monthly meeting for ages. The meeting adjourned at 10:20 p.m.
Mac 911 - Solutions to your most vexing Mac problems
by Christopher Breen
Auto-enabling Safari's Private Browsing
Reader Leo Campo is interested in Safari's Private Browsing feature, but nds with it a measure of frustration. He writes: I'm using Safari 4 beta on an Intel iMac under Leopard 10.5.6. I use the private browsing feature most of the time. Is there a way to make this Safari feature the default action It gets old very fast always having to turn this feature back on every time I launch Safari, which for me, is several time a day. Regrettably Private Browsing isn't a feature you can leave on. When you quit Safari and launch it again, you'll nd that Private Browsing is turned off. And no, editing the com.apple.safari.plist le does you no good either. Safari just resets the option within the preference le when you next launch Safari. If you're running Leopard you can, however,
automate the process of enabling the Private Browsing option with AppleScript. First, launch the Universal Access system preference and enable the Enable Access for Assistive Devices option. Now, launch Script Editor (within the AppleScript folder inside the Applications folder) and enter the following script:
tell application "Safari" activate end tell tell application "System Events" tell process "Safari" tell menu bar 1 tell menu bar item "Safari" tell menu "Safari" click menu item "Private Browsing" end tell end tell end tell end tell end tell
Save the script as an application and then use
that application to launch Safari. When you do, Safari will launch and Private Browsing will be enabled.
Accessing a Mac when you don't know the password
Reader Sabrina has a common, but potentially delicate, question. It goes a little like this: I was given my mother's iMac because she passed away but I don't know the password. How can I gain access to this Mac I suggest this question is a little delicate because you could use the method I'm about to describe to access any Mac. And that may be a problem for parents who want to keep kids out of their stuff (and vice versa). On the other hand, situations such as yours (as well as problems that come up when you purchase a used Mac that hasn't been properly cleared) invite a response. That response is this in regard to OS X 10.5:
Locate that Mac's installer disc or a recent OS X installer disc (a Tiger or Leopard disc, for example). Insert that disc into the Mac's media drive and hold down the keyboard's C key to boot the Mac from that disc. When the Mac boots you'll be asked to choose a language. Do that and click the right-pointing arrow icon to continue. When the Welcome screen appears wait for the menubar to materialize and choose Reset Password from the Utilities menu. In the resulting window choose the user whose password you want to change from the Select a User pop-up menu. Enter and conrm a password in the appropriate elds and, if you like, enter a hint for the password. Click Save to make the change. Note that when you've reset the Administrator's password you haven't reset the login keychain password–that password remains as it was when it was originally set. What this means is that you'll be able to do all the things an Administrator can–install applications and
muck with all the Mac's system preferences, for example. You can't, however, access keychain items (web site passwords, for example) saved in that login keychain without the password originally used. Oh swell, I hear parents saying. You've just given my kid the key to taking over my Mac. Thanks so much! Fortunately, there's something you can do. Boot your Mac from that installer disc again, nd your way to the Welcome screen, and from the Utilities menu choose Firmware Password Utility. In the window that appears click the Change button, then enable the Require Password to Change Firmware Settings option and enter and verify a password. Click OK and your Mac is now protected with a rmware password. Which means what It means that if your kid starts up your Mac with an installer disc in the media drive and presses the C key to boot from
the disc, the Mac will ignore that key press and move to the login screen. If the kid's really savvy and presses the Option key to move to the screen where you choose a device to boot from, a padlock icon appears with a text eld below. If said kid doesn't enter the correct rmware password in that text eld, he or she won't be able to boot from the disc. However (and this is an important however), if you've logged into your Mac as an administrator and walked away from your Mac without logging out, any passer-by can then shove the installer disc into the Mac's media drive, boot from that disc by choosing it in the Startup Disk system preference, and then muck with the administrator and rmware passwords. For this reason, be sure to log out of your account before leaving your Mac if you fear for your Mac's safety. (The Log Out After X Minutes of Inactivity option in the General tab of the Security system preference can help with this.)
Making sense of OS X's folder structure
Reader Mark Walerysiak is frustrated by what he views as redundancy in OS X. He writes: I'm very happy with all things Apple but one thing I've never understood about OS X is the multiple Library folders. Today I was looking for the StartupItems folder because I had to delete something. I went to Hard Drive/System/ Library/ StartupItems. And I found nothing in that StartupItems folder. I then went to my Home folder/Library, only to nd no StartupItem folder. Finally, I found what I was looking for in Hard Drive/Library/StartupItems folder. What the heck is going on This question goes to the heart of the way OS X organizes users and directories. It breaks down this way: Items in the System folder are for OS X's use– items in its Library folder are, for the most part, placed there when OS X is installed or when the
OS is updated. Unless you're geeking out, there are few reasons to venture into this folder. The Library folder at the root level of the hard drive is often populated with third-party items installed by an Administrator. In the case of startup items, they're placed here because they may be needed by every user who has an account on that Mac. If a user doesn't have access to a particular application that uses one of these startup items–because they have a controlled account, for example–no worries. It doesn't hurt to have that item loaded. It would hurt, however, if a startup item was loaded for one account and not another. This helps explain why there's no StartupItems folder in the Library folder within your user account. (Underscoring this notion is the fact that startup items load before a user logs in.) Note that StartupItems are not the same thing as the applications you've designated as Login Items for your account. StartupItems work deeper-level background mojo than Login Items.
The Library folder within a user's folder contains, as you might expect, items that apply to that specic user–preferences, audio les, plugins, mailboxes, log les for applications used by that user, and so on. This is the folder you want to dig around in when something in your account is acting up.
Folders and Windows option. With the Delay slider below you can determine how long the Finder delays springing open a folder or volume after you've dragged an item to it. Easy and peasy though this question and answer are, it's a nice reminder of a feature that far too many people fail to use. If this spring-loaded thing is new to you, it works this way: Drag an item to a volume or folder and continue holding down the mouse button. The volume or folder will blink a couple of times and then its root folder will open. You can let go of the mouse button and the item will drop into this folder. Or, you can hold the item over yet another folder and, sure-as-shootin', that folder will also blink and then open. Continue this process until you dig down into the folder you want to access.
Senior Editor Christopher Breen is the author of Secrets of the iPod and iTunes, fth edition, and The iPod and iTunes Pocket Guide (both Peachpit Press, 2005). Find Chris' books at www.amazon.com and www.peachpit.com. Get special user group pricing on Macworld Magazine! Subscribe today at http:// www.macworld.com/useroffer.
Spring into spring-loaded folders
Today's easy-peasy x comes courtesy of reader Paul Sarlis, who writes: With older versions of OSX I could grab a le that I saved to my Desktop and hold it over my hard drive icon. When I did that the hard drive would open so that I could place the le where I needed it. Is this option still available or is there a new way to do this Yes the option–called spring-loaded folders–is still there. In your case, it appears that it's been switched off. To switch it on, choose Finder -> Preferences, click the General tab if it's not already selected, and enable the Spring-Loaded
Review: Executive Sync
by David Greenbaum
Product: Executive Sync Developer: Smith Micro
At one point in history, the word "executive" tended to stand for some type of higherend product, or a product with special features that separated it from the merely ordinary. Unfortunately, today, when we hear "executive" we think of corruption, bribes, and incompetence. Executive Sync tends to use the newer, less appealing meaning of the word. Executive Sync (US$29.95) promises to sync les "to servers running Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, and more" as well as "keep your work or personal les up-to-date between home, ofce, and on the road." It does...but not really. I had inaccurately assumed the product was similar to Sugar Sync or Drop Box: I specify the computers I want synced and this happens in the background. I was wrong.
Executive Sync runs only on a Mac and the way it syncs is by mounting volumes from Windows, Linux and other operating systems. If you want to sync with a Windows machine, you must network your Mac to the PC and Executive Sync treats the Windows machine just like another disk. SMB le sharing is not a simple task for the average user. More importantly, in order to sync les you must be currently networked to the system you want to sync les with. Unlike other programs that sync through the Internet, Executive Sync requires you to remember
to sync the les before you leave the ofce. Not sure how handy that is "on the road." In theory, you could set up a complex VPN so you could connect to your home or ofce computer from the road, but that is technology that costs signicant money and I doubt the average person has any type of setup like that. If they did, they would have probably write their own software to sync les. Inaccurate marketing aside, Executive Sync does synchronize les between two folders mounted on your Mac. The program was able to nd subtle differences between two folders and keep them in check. It does not do this automatically. You must manually start the program and run the sync. While there is a scheduling option, the scheduling only allows you to make sure the les are in sync at the time of scheduling. If the les are out of sync, you won't be notied until the program runs again. Not only does this make it less convenient, but the program is quite slow. I synchronized two folders on my MacPro with about 40 GB of les and it took almost
four hours. While running, the program was a processor hog and I couldn't do much else. The nal nail in the cofn of Executive Sync is the fact there is virtually no tech support for the product. It is distributed by Smith Micro, which has no technical support information for the product. When you click the link for tech support, it simply takes you back to the product information page. The product is not listed in their tech support forums or contact pages. The help section of Executive Sync is acceptable, but can never replace technical support if you have an issue that goes beyond what is covered in the help. Ultimately, the product does the basics of what it says: synchronizes les between two folders. The user interface was straightforward and easy to understand and the installer was the standard drop into the application folder. The program lets you pick which folders you want synchronized and allows you to save the settings. However, the marketing is misleading as to the scope of what
the product does and the inability to get technical support on the product makes it a program that is best to avoid when so many other higher quality options exist with more features. Pros: Does accurately synchronize folders Cons: Misleading marketing, extremely slow, no tech support
Rating:
Originally published and written for the Lawrence Apple Users' Group 2.0 http:// www.laugks.org/news and published by the author at http://www.clickheretech.com.
Review: Parallels Desktop 4.0
by Maria O. Arguello
Product: Parallels Desktop 4.0 for Mac Company: Parallels Holdings, Ltd URL: www.parallels.com System Requirements: Any 32- or 64-bit Intel-based Mac; 1GB of RAM; 100 MB free disk space; Mac OS X 10.4.11 or later. Test System: MacOS 10.5.6, MBP 2.53 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 GB RAM.
You have a beautiful new Intel Mac but you need Windows for those apps that cannot run on a Mac. Not a problem. Buy a copy of Parallels Desktop 4.0 plus Windows XP or Vista or Linux. By the way, Windows 7 is due to come out this summer (2009). If you are a new Windowson-Mac user and have licenses for apps that you have run on a Windows machine, you can continue to use those software licenses and do not need to spend money for a Mac version.
Parallels Desktop is an essential application for Mac users who work in Windows. Many new features have been added since my review of its earlier 3.0 version. Its remarkable virtual operating system density, low virtualization overheads and outstanding management have earned it several awards and I highly recommend it. Its best feature is that it allows you to run Windows on your Mac without rebooting. It's also fast due to its new improved virtualization engine. It supports 64-bit Windows with up to 4 CPUs and 8GB of RAM. Compared to Parallels 3, in which installation was a truly horrible experience, this installation was refreshingly easy. You can install Windows XP or Vista without any fuss. I installed Windows XP. I immediately liked the interface but changed the background wallpaper to one of my favorites — a beautiful island scene surrounded by clear blue water. I copied and pasted text and shared les easily between Mac OS X and Windows. When I
connected my GPS, Parallels asked whether I wanted to attach the device to my Windows environment or my Mac environment. When my system detected the iPhone, it popped up a window asking me whether I wanted to attach the iPhone to Windows or to the Mac. I chose the Mac, and the iPhone automatically started synching normally with iTunes on the Mac. There are several ways to access Windows and the Mac OS--Full Screen, Window, and Coherence. All of these modes existed in Version 3. Version 4 adds another mode called Modality in which the Microsoft OS desktop can be made very small, and partially transparent, while completely preserving all the details of the full desktop. This is designed for operations that can run mostly unattended, but which you need to keep an eye on (such as installing the latest Windows Service Pack). It may come in handy at times. To secure your data, you can take snapshots of your Windows conguration and roll back
to those images if necessary. You can also program the app to take snapshots automatically at half-hour intervals. This is analogous to Time Machine Lite since it provides a way for Windows to preserve statuses. Another feature is Safe Mode. When activated, Parallels takes a snapshot. You can make changes and then can save or revert to the snapshot. With this version you get one free year of Parallels Internet Security by Kaspersky. I installed it. You also get Acronis Disk Director Suite for disk management, and Acronis True Image Home for backup. The included User Manual is very helpful. I did not do any scientic speed tests, but from my experience with older versions, this version has a signicant speed bump. There were fewer spinning beach balls when opening apps. If you're a Mac user running Leopard, use
Spaces. Keep Parallels in one Space and your Mac OS in another. With a key combination you can switch workspaces and you don't have to worry about minimizing windows or hiding applications. There are other choices to run virtualization software on your Mac: VMWare Fusion ($80), and VirtualBox v 1.6.2 (free). My recommendation: If you're a power Mac user, this is not going to satisfy you at all. You cannot run Windows games. If you do, they will run slowly. A better solution to have the full benet of your Mac hardware is to install Windows via Boot Camp. And no matter what you need Windows for, you have to worry about viruses. I spent a lot of time running the Anti Virus program when it indicated that I had 3 security risks.
2008 Maria O. Arguello. Maria is the vendor liaison of Macintosh Users Group of South New Jersey (MUGSNJ). To see more reviews go to http://mugsnj.org ]http://mugsnj.org UGSNJ, PPUG, and SJAUG. She is the Apple User Group Regional Liaison for the Northeast United States (CT, DE, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT). Originally published and written for the Lawrence Apple Users' Group 2.0 http:// www.laugks.org/news and published by the author at http://www.clickheretech.com.
Rating:
Review: Quench Your Thirsty Pocket
by Petrie Frank Remember when eBay hit the scene Quick money to be made from stuff lying about the house. At rst, a simple marketplace. But now, bells and whistles, templates, special lighting hardware to capture the best pictures of your item for sale! I just want to sell something! "Thirsty Pocket offers [an] innovative selling and shopping solution to eliminate the complexities and lengthy time required to post and purchase items on other on-line sites such as eBay and Craigslist. Smartphone users no longer need these cumbersome, awkward sites. Thirsty Pocket provides pain-free posting and convenient, fun shopping." Get back to simplifying tasks. Isn't that what Apple is about And particularly with the iPhone
The Pulp
Thirsty Pocket is an almost embarrassingly simple way to sell items with little time or effort involved. It 'one ups' the simplicity of Craig's list while adding photos (shot from your iPhone, no less) to your classied ad. First, pick your item to sell. Second pick a category. Push the button to take a picture of said item for the ad (if you insist you can pull one from your photo library). Third, push the button an put it up for sale. That's it. Honestly. Simpler than Craig's List!
The Rind
Nada. Nada. Nada.
Summary
This is another one of those iApps that are what I refer to as 'electronic paper clips.' They're indispensable. And if you don't have an iPhone, Thirsty Pocket will be available to other phones and internet devices shortly. Keep checking the site. So, Thirsty Pocket. Free. Dead simple. What are you waiting for
2009 Frank Petrie - Macsimum News contributing editor, Freelance writer, Curmudgeon Email: mailto:phranky@mac.com iChat: phranky Archive: home.comcast.net/~phranky
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Where to Buy
Apple Premium Reseller:
New Vision Technology Limited
Shop G26, Park Lane Shopper's Boulevard, 143 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. Tel: 2736-3266 http://www.newvision.com.hk/ 11:00am - 10:00pm Tel: 2885-1088
Broadway Times Square Shop
Shop 714&715, Times Square, 1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Business hours: (Sun-Thur) 11:00am - 9:30pm, (Fri-Sat) 11:00am - 10:00pm Tel: 2506-1330
Learning Center:
Mactivity 麦客居
Room 807 Witty Commercial Building, 1A-1L Tung Choi Street, Mongkok, Kowloon Tel: 3583-0621 http://www.mactivity.com.hk/
Broadway Causeway Bay Shop
Shop F02-06, Hang Lung Center, 2-20 Paterson Street, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Business hours: (Sun-Thur) 11:00am - 9:30pm, (Fri-Sat) 11:00am - 10:00pm Tel: 3427-9819
Authorized Reseller:
Hong Kong Island 2C Company Ltd
Shop 1028, 10/F, Windsor House, 311 Gloucester., Causeway Bay. Tel: 2504-2128
Cablex Computer Accessories
Shop 1102-1103 , Windsor House, Causeway Bay , Hong Kong. Tel: 2504-3877 http://www.cablex.com.hk/
Designer Group Company
Shop 1118 - 1121, 11/F In-Square, Windsor House, 311 Gloucester Road Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Business hours (Mon - Sat) 12:00 noon - 8:00 p.m. (Sun & Public holiday) 12:00 noon - 6:00p.m. Tel: 2504-4122 http://www.designergroup.com.hk/
2C Company Ltd
Shop 250, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai. Tel: 2882-3377
Broadway Taikoo Shing Shop
Shop 012 Cityplaza, G/F., 18 Taikoo Shing Road, Hong Kong. Business hours: (Sun-Thur) 11:00am - 9:30pm, (Fri-Sat)
Designer Group Company
Shop 2012 On Podium Level Two, IFC Mall Central Hong Kong.
Business hours (Mon - Sat) 10:00a.m. - 7:00 p.m. (Sun & Public holiday) 12:00noon - 6:00p.m. Tel: 2295-4488 http://www.designergroup.com.hk/
Fortress (Taikoo Shing)
Shop No. 418, 4/F, Cityplaza South, Tai Koo Shing, Hong Kong. Business hours (Mon to Sat) 10:30AM - 08:00PM (Everyday) 11:30AM - 10:00Pm Tel: 2568-2280
Designer Group Company
Shop 903C, 9/F., Times Square, 1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Business hours Monday to Sunday (11:00am - 9:00pm) Tel: 2506-1338 http://www.designergroup.com.hk/
Jadason Technology Ltd.
1113, Citic Tower, No.1, Tim Mei Avenue, Hong Kong. Tel: 2310-8989 http://www.jadason.com/Jad_Tech/JTL.html
Fortress (Central)
Lower G/F, Melbourne Plaza, 33 Queen's Road, Central, Hong Kong. Business hours (Mon to Sat) 10:30AM - 08:00PM (Sun and Public holiday) 10:30AM - 07:30Pm Tel: 2121-1077
New Vision Technology Limited
233 Computer Zone 298, 298 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong. Tel: 2836-6690 http://www.newvision.com.hk/
New Vision Technology Limited
Shop A, UG, Winway Building, 50 Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong. Tel: 3157-0979 http://www.newvision.com.hk/
Fortress (Causeway Bay)
Shop No. 718, 7/F; Shop No. 819, 8/F Times Square, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Business hours (Mon to Fri) 11:00AM - 10:00PM (Sat to Sun) and (Public holiday) 10:30AM - 10:00Pm Tel: 2506-0031
PCCW
Shop G3, G/F McDonald's Building, 46-54 Yee Woo Street, Causeway Bay, HK. Tel: 2881-8898
PCCW
G/F, 161-163 Des Voeux Road, Central, HK. Tel: 2543-0603
PCCW
G/F and M/F, No.118 Queen's Road Central, Central, HK. Tel: 2888-3326
SanBase Limited
Shop 119, 1/F., Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Rd., Wan Chai. Tel: 2893-9119
Kowloon 2C Company Ltd
Shop 46, G/F, Golden Shopping Centre, 146-152 Fu Wah St., Shamsuipo. Tel: 2725-9861
Senco Masslink Technology Limited
10/F MLC Tower, 248 Queen's Road East, Wanchai, Hong Kong. Tel: 2511-5760 http://www.sencohk.com/
2C Company Ltd
Shop D1-D2, 2/F, Star Computer City, Star House, 3 Salisbury Road, TST. Tel: 2730-4382
Ultimate PC & MAC Gallery Limited
Room 1101, The In-square, Windsor House, 311 Gloucester Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Tel: 2881-6320 http://www.upcmac.com.hk/
2C Company Ltd
Shop 203A, 2/F, Mongkok Computer Centre, Mongkok. Tel: 2332-8127
Ultimate PC & MAC Gallery Limited
Shop F, Ground Floor, World Trust Tower, 50 Stanley Street, Central, Hong Kong. Tel: 2899-2236 http://www.upcmac.com.hk/
AD Computer Company Limited (ofce)
Unit 16, 16th Floor, Hewlett Centre, No. 54 Hoi Yuen Road, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Tel: 2856-9128 http://www.adcomputer.com.hk/
Ultimate PC & MAC Gallery Limited
Shop B, G/F, Devon House, TaiKoo Place, 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, HK. Opening hours: 10am-8pm (Monday - Saturday) Tel: 3107-0805 http://www.upcmac.com.hk/
Broadway Mongkok Shop
Shop 13, G/F., Good Hope Building, 13 Sai Yeung Choi Street South, Mongkok, Kowloon. Business hours: (Sun-Thur) 11:00am - 9:30pm, (Fri-Sat) 11:00am - 10:00pm Tel: 2385-5993
Ultimate PC & MAC Gallery Limited
G/F, 99 Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong. Tel: 2110-9710
Broadway Telford Plaza Shop
Shop G42-44, Telford Plaza I, Kowloon Bay, Kowloon. Business hours: (Sun-Thur) 11:40am - 9:30pm, (Fri-Sat) 11:40am - 10:00pm Tel: 2753-7309
Designer Group Company
Unit 2 on Level 5, MegaBox, Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong. Business hours :Monday to Sunday (11:00am - 8:00pm) Tel: 2359-0005 http://www.designergroup.com.hk/
Fortress (Kowloon Bay)
Shop No. G45-51, Telford Plaza, Phase 1, Kowloon Bay, Kowloon. Business hours (Mon to Thur) 11:00AM - 09:30PM (Fri to Sun and Public Holiday) 11:00AM - 10:00PM Tel: 3101-9205
Fortress (Mongkok)
Shop 4-6 On G/F & Lower Levels 1 & 2, Wai Fung Plaza, 664 Nathan Road,Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. Business hours (Mon to Fri) 11:00AM - 10:00PM (Sat to Sun and Public Holiday) 11:00AM - 10:30Pm Tel: 2787-2625
Inconix Technologies Ltd.
Shop 318, 3/F, Mongkok Computer Centre, 8 Nelson Street, Mongkok, Kowloon. Tel: 2110-0002
Fortress (Tsim Sha Tsui)
G/F-2/F, Mohan's Building, 14-16 Hankow Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. Business hours: (Everyday) 10:00AM - 11:00Pm Tel: 2311-2318
New Vision Technology Limited
A8, 2/F., Star Computer City, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. Tel: 3156-1131 http://www.newvision.com.hk/
New Vision Technology Limited
L5-7, Level 5, apm, 418 Kwun Tong Road, Kowloon. Tel: 3157-0977 http://www.newvision.com.hk/
Fortress (Tsim Sha Tsui)
Shop No. 333A, 333B, 335-7, 3/F., Ocean Center, Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. Business hours: (Everyday) 11:00AM - 08:30PM Tel: 3101-9205
PCCW
G-1/F, 168-176 Sai Yeung Choi St., Mongkok, Kln. Tel: 2394-8131
Fortress (Kowloon Tong)
Shop No. 1, Level MTR, Festival Walk, Kowloon Tong, Kowloon. Business hours (Mon to Fri) 11:00AM - 10:00PM (Sat to Sun and Public Holiday) 11:00AM - 10:30Pm Tel: 2311-2318
PCCW
Shop G3, Miramar Hotel, 118-130 Nathan Road, TST, Kln. Tel: 2739-3992
Ultimate PC & MAC Gallery Limited
Shop 205 , 2/F , Mong Kok Computer Centre, 8 Nelson Street, Mongkok, Kownloon. Tel: 3591-8901 http://www.upcmac.com.hk/
Viewcon Systems MegaShop
14/F., 579 Nathan Road, Mongkok, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Tel: 2728-3865 http://www.viewcon.com/
PCCW
Shop No.616, Level 6, Phase 1, New Town Plaza, Shatin, NT. Tel: 2883-9808
PCCW New Territories Broadway Shatin Shop
Shop A132-A136 Level I, New Town Plaza, Phrase III, Shatin, N.T. Business hours: (Sun-Thur) 11:40am - 9:30pm, (Fri-Sat) 11:15am - 9:30pm Tel: 2693-0832 Shop 2060, 2/F Tuen Mun Town Plaza, Phase I, Tuen Mun, NT. Tel: 2888-0286
PCCW
G/F, 78 & 80 Castle Peak Road, Yuen Long, NT. Tel: 2479-3344
Designer Group Company
Shop 640, Level 6 New Town Plaza Phase I, Shatin N.T. Business hours: Monday to Sunday (11:00am - 9:00pm) Tel: 2692-2488 http://www.designergroup.com.hk/
Designer Group Company
Shop 5P022, Level 5, Terminal 2, Hong Kong International Airport, Lautau, Hong Kong. Business hours; Monday to Sunday (11:30am - 8:30pm) Tel: 2769-1288 http://www.designergroup.com.hk/
Benets for HKMUG Members
BBS
All members are entitled to use our Electronic Bulletin Board System (BBS) for FREE. You can get a free email account, 50MB of online storage, hundreds of shareware, freeware, software updates and hardware drivers, and tech-support by mutual help among members in a friendly and easy-to-use environment.
JOIN US
To join us, just ll in our application form. If you mail back the application form to us, please enclosed your membership fee by crossed cheque payable to "Hong Kong Macintosh User Group." Every member is entitled to a membership kit that includes a free CD-ROM. It contains the FirstClass Client software for logging into our BBS.
DISCOUNTS
Special discounts are offered to our members by various local vendors. Occasional special discounts are also offered during our monthly meetings and through our newsletter.
Membership Fee
The annual (12 months) membership fee is HK$300 The annual (12 months) senior citizen / student membership fee is HK$200 (*Photocopy of proof of eligibility required) However, the easiest way to become our member is to come to our monthly meeting to ll in the application form and pay the annual membership fee at our reception counter. Then you can enjoy the discount on the entry fee to our Monthly Meeting and get the membership kit at the spot!
MONTHLY MEETING
Every second Tuesday of the month, our monthly meeting will be held with demos and experience sharing by vendors and members, or even tutorials on the latest software. You can even win special souvenirs that you cannot buy in stores! Members can enjoy a 50%-off discount on entrance fee!
HKMUG 会员福利
电子通讯站
免费使用我们的电子通讯站(BBS)是我们每位会 员的必然福利.在BBS上,会员可以拥有自己的 电邮户口,50MB线上储存空间,数以百计的免 费及共享软件,软件升级及硬件驱动程件等,以 及BBS上众多讨论区中用Mac老手的经验交流, 保证能提供最贴身的技术支援服务.
立刻加入
欢迎您!要加入本会,您只需填妥参加表格. 若您选择把表格邮寄给我们,请连同支票(抬 头请写「香港苹果用户协会」或「Hong Kong Macintosh User Group」)一并寄回.
会费
每年会费(十二个月)为HK$300.长者及学生 均享优惠会费,每年(十二个月)为HK$200. (请连同表格寄上证明文件影印本.) 每位会员均可免费获得一枚本会光碟,内有用作 登入本会电子通讯站的FirstClass Client软件. 其实最方便快捷的方法是来参加我们的每月聚 会,即场填妥表格及缴交会费,便可即时享用会 员优惠入场费及获取登入电子通讯站的户口资料 和光碟.
折扣优惠
我们的特约经销商为我们的会员提供购物优惠, 在每月聚会及透过我们的月报还会提供特别优惠 计画! 每位会员会获得一张会员证,以便从特约 商号取得购物优惠时使用.
每月聚会
每个月的第二个星期二晚上均是我们聚会之时. 每月聚会中,我们会邀请各经销商或热心会员为 我们示范最新的软硬件,分享用Mac经验甚至开 班教授最新软件用法.我们也会在月会中举办 抽奖.奖品更经常包括在市面不能买到的Mac纪 念品!会员参与每月聚会均可享有入场费五折 优惠!
HONG KONG MACINTOSH USER GROUP 香港苹果用户协会 Membership Application Form 会员申请 表格
Name Address _____________________________
First
Membership ID No.:_______ For Staff Use Only
Please Print or Write in Block Letters
_____________________________
Last
_________________
Middle
______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Home ______________ Office ______________ Fax ______________
Telephone:
Pager/Mobile ______________
Email Address: _________________________________
HK ID/Passport No. ______________________ (Please attach a copy of you ID card for verification) How do you want your name to appear on the Membership Card (Max. 22 characters, space included)
I prefer to collect the membership kit at the coming monthly meeting. (Please allow 4 weeks for processing.) I prefer to receive the membership kit by mail. (Please allow 8 weeks for processing.) How did you learn about our group (Please tick all those apply): HKMUG Web Site Experience in Using Macs: New User Less Than 1 Year 1–3 Years More Than 3 Years HKMUG Online Newsletter Friends Web Page / Newsgroup Vendor (Please Specify: __________________________) Others (Please Specify: ____________)
Company Information: (Optional) Company Name _____________________________________________________________________ Business Nature _________________________ Signature ____________________________________ Position ___________________________ Date _____________________
DD / MM / YY
Note: To save processing time, we highly recommend our applicants to register during our monthly meetings. An applicant can get the HKMUG BBS connection information and get access to our BBS immediately if they register during our monthly meetings. The annual membership fee is HK$300. Elderly and students can enjoy a special annual membership fee of HK$200 with a photocopy of proof of eligibility. Our monthly meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month. To confirm the date and program of meeting, please visit our web site for the latest information. HONG KONG MACINTOSH USER GROUP Postal Address: Hong Kong Macintosh User Group, GPO Box 2109 Hong Kong General Enquiry and Technical Support: committee@hkmug.org.hk Official Web site: http://www.hkmug.org.hk/ FirstClass BBS URL: fc.hkmug.org.hk via TCP/IP