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Past General Meeting Archive

Following is a record of the leading edge information programs and distinguished speakers brought to you by NYPC dating back to September 2000.  

If you spend a few minutes reviewing all the interesting  programs and speakers NYPC has produced in the past two years, you will know why you should join NYPC.

Simple Cell Phones, Smart Cell Phones,
Very Smart Cell Phones
PDA's and Mysterious Wireless Devices

Thursday, March 16th, 2006

PS 41
116 West 11th Street
Just west of 6th Avenue

Free and open to all

Doors open 6:00 PM
Announcements/Q&A 6:30 PM
Presentation 7:00 PM

Whatever device you have, the chances are you will leave this meeting saying, "I didn't know it could do that!"

This meeting is about getting a lot more from portable technology. If you are reading this, you probably own some kind of cell phone and some version of a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). In a few short years these items have truly become ubiquitous and eminently practical.
Jeff Hawkins invented the Palm Pilot in 1992; the Treo smart phone was released in May of 2002. Palm refers to the Treo's as "communicators" because they do so much more than "plain-vanilla" phones. They combine a pager, a PDA, and a cell phone in an elegant package.

Whatever device you have, the chances are you will leave this meeting saying, "I didn't know it could do that!" Or perhaps you are just wondering if it is worth upgrading or buying your first wireless gadget. There are a lot of choices, and it can be very confusing indeed. Well, this meeting will help you choose and use the best tool to get the job done. [That is the magic of NYPC: chances are someone else has explored what you need to learn.]

At this meeting we'll
*Project various cell phones and PDAs onto the big screen
*Compare and explain features
*Ask and answer questions such as: Do you want the smallest thinnest phone, with basic features, and what do you need to give up in this format? Would you prefer a separate big-screen PDA and a very small phone? Will you download and listen to music or Pod Casts? Do you want everything in one box? Do you need email on the go, or will you never use this? Are you on a tight budget and will a free phone make you happy? Do you need a phone just for emergencies?

Perhaps you are a business user with heavy-duty needs such as email, SMS, photos. When you travel to other countries you need to stay in contact, and you need high security on your data transmission. Do you need VPN, GSM, CDMA, SMS, dual band, quad band, PDA, or screen reader? Do you have a clue as to what these terms mean, or do you even need to know anything about them?

Our two presenters, Ted Cohn and Jose Marinez, will guide us through this realm of truly useful technology. Ted is the co-chair of our Palm SIG and the chairman of the wireless SIG, which has been concentrating on the Treo's. Ted's first computer was a Palm Pilot, and his second computer was another Palm to back up the first one.

Jose is a consultant who makes various wireless components work as they should for individuals and companies worldwide.  

I was an early adopter and my first Palm Pilot was so primitive that it had to be upgraded so I could beam to another unit. I have always been enchanted with the elegance of Palm's design philosophy. The Palm programmers referred to this as "the Zen of Palm."

Ted and I will be teaching NYPC Treo courses. Mine, on March 23rd, is titled the "Zen of Treo."  Most people can start making calls as soon as a new Treo is charged, but many will miss the ease of doing so much more. The Treo has the best logic of any phone/PDA that I have seen. It is a joy to use.

Ted, the Grand Master of the small format, will take you into internet radio, web surfing, advanced text messaging, watching videos, and Bluetooth add-ons. Ted's course, on March 30th, is called "Treo Nirvana: Beyond the Phone."

Then, for a very thorough view of cell phone possibilities, Ted and Jose will teach a three-session course on "Mastering Cell Phones," starting March 27th.  This will be a logical extension of tonight's topics.  There is a lot of really intriguing, useful stuff to know about cell phones.

Tonight's Q&A alone is worth the price of admission, which after all is free. What a bargain!  Dick Tracy and Mr. Spock would be pleased--and you will be too.

By Bill Ginsberg - Shameless Treo Evangelist

Cleaning and Degunking Windows

With our Panel of Experienced Gunk Busters

Thursday February 16th 2006

Ps 41 116 West 11th Street

Just West of 6th Avenue

The Meeting is Free and Open to All

Doors open at 6:00 PM

Announcements 6:30 PM

Presentation at 7:00 PM

You may not have ghosts in your computers but virtually everyone has acquired computer gunk and our panel of experienced Gunk Busters will be here to help.

At some point just about everyone has notice that their computer starts acting a little weird. Have noticed that your computer seems to be running slower? Or it may be slow to react to your commands. Your favorite applications don't seem the same, and some programs may hang or even crash your computer, and when you surf the web those pop up ads seem like a swarm of gnats.

In computer time the good old days can be last month, or if you are really unlucky last week. Just visiting a few innocuous web sites can load up your cookie jar. There are good cookies and bad, you may find it helpful that Amazon recognizes your return and saves you retyping your basic info but you may have hundreds of useless cookies that at best just slow things down and at worse phone home with personal info you would rather keep personal. The good news is that there are various programs that really help in managing and deleting cookies. More good news, some very good ones are free or low cost.

Then there is spyware that many consider far worse than viruses. This stuff can really gunk up you computer and or you life. This has become a big topic and a rapidly expanding problem our Gunk Busters will address.

Well let's take a step back and look at that new Dell or HP you just bought. It probably came with slew of programs that you will never use. They were put there so the maker could brag about how much free stuff they were giving you. Some gift! If you don't use them, unnecessary programs just gunk up the works, gobble storage space and slow you down. One of our Gunk Busters, Michael Horowitz, teaches a whole course on cleaning and improving your brand new computer. “So You Bought a New Computer, Now What.” You can look at Michael's site for more info.

http://www.michaelhorowitz.com/

As time goes on, even if you are careful, stuff accumulates that you may not need. Do you still have drivers for printers that died, or special programs you never used that came with a digital camera you lost? These may be still be in your start up program. Go have another cup of coffee while your computer boots up. Then there are temp files that should have be removed automatically but survived. Have you noticed that very often in life nothing lasts like the temporary?

A recent popular book “Degunking Windows” from Paraglyph Press includes many good and useful procedures. Many of which you probably know, but when was the last time you defragged?

Some of our Gunk Busters think this book is too simple, but hey these guys are Nerd's Nerds. Our panel will share their favorite Tips, Tricks and Traps and you get to ask questions.

Aren't you glad you belong to NYPC?

And if you are not a member yet hopefully this Free meeting will convince you to join.

By William Ginsberg

Thursday, January 19th

FREE Computer Mini-courses!

Want to learn something new? Want to keep your skills up to date? Attend NYPC’s evening of mini-courses!

PLUS Ebay Live!

In the auditorium, Fred Kahn, Ebay guru and Power Seller, will give live demos of selling on Ebay. What a great opportunity to learn what selling on Ebay involves!

Ps 41 116 West 11th Street

Just West of 6th Avenue

The Meeting is Free and Open to All

Doors open at 6:00 PM

Announcements 6:30 PM

Presentation at 7:00 PM

This month’s general meeting offers you the chance to meet the people who teach at NYPC. NYPC can offer classes at below market prices, thanks to the generosity of skilled instructors willing to offer their services at a discounted rate. At this General Meeting you can meet many of these teachers, see how they present, and even ask them questions.
They will sit at tables in the cafeteria and give "micro-classes" (about 40 minutes each) in various areas of their expertise. You can go from table to table to learn from them. (Arrive early to look over the schedule of presentations.)
Micro-classes will include:

• Leftonred Atanycorner telling why an antivirus program is not enough to protect your computer
  
• Mike Ostrowe discussing what’s involved in upgrading your computer...or building a new one
  
• Marge Earthlife showing how Excel can help you in daily life
  
• Michael Horowitz giving some tips on backing up your computer
  
• Mark Halegua showing Open Office
  
• Mary Ginsburg showing how to enhance your photographs
  
• Jacob Brickman describing ways to get started with Linux
  
• Len Ginsburg demonstrating various options for bookkeeping
  
• Michael Horowitz describing why your new computer is not ready when you unpack it
  
• Mary Ginsburg showing Word styles
  
• Leftonred Atanycorner explaining why your computer runs sluggishly
  
• Mark Halegua introducing the capabilities of Knoppix on a CD

Thursday December 15th, 2005

An Evening of Technical Resources

Jen-Clausen of Smart Computing Magazines will show their Technical Resources for Effective Computing...Online and in Print

Mike Ostrowe will be our guide to: Finding tech bargains Online. Pay less for the stuff you need.

Mary Ginsburg, a professional researcher: Will show how to find technical books & other literature online.

PS 41 - 116 West 11th Street

Just West of 6th Avenue

The Meeting is Free and Open to All

Doors open at 6:00 PM

Announcements 6:30 PM

Presentation at 7:00 PM

Among the many technical resources available to computer users today, the family of online and print publications by Sandhills Publishing is one of the most comprehensive and accessible. This includes several monthly magazines dedicated to providing solid, useful information to improve computer use, plus companion websites where current and past articles are available to subscribers of any of the print publications. In an era where people depend more and more on the Internet for information, we might even view the magazines as convenient print-outs of technical websites.

The online article archive on the websites contains more than 20,000 articles from the magazines, many web-only articles, previews of articles yet to come, links to outside resources, and other helpful tools. This impressive content is growing daily. The user may browse any website, perform an effective search there, or search for topics or authors across all the sites. Such a search brings up entries from the computing dictionary and encyclopedia, plus articles from all the magazines.

Each site has a Forum and a Web Log. Each (except CPU) has a Daily Tip (with Archives). Smart Computing and CPU have chat rooms. All have terrific product reviews and great technical articles. A really neat feature is the ability to set up a "Personal Library" of pointers to articles for future reference; this may be organized into multiple folders and accessed again and again.

A Guided Tour

At our December General Meeting, Jen Clausen of Smart Computing Magazine will show us how to get the most out of these resources, both online and in print. She will tell us what the magazines offer and demonstrate the extensive content and powerful search capabilities of the websites.

Magazines and Websites

The members of the Sandhill (named after the Sandhill crane) family are:

Smart Computing (www.smartcomputing.com)

This is aimed at the general computer user, from beginner to intermediate, and provides a wealth of in-depth articles, tips, and tutorials on all aspects of computer use, ranging from buying advice to troubleshooting and repair of both hardware and software. Each issue focuses several articles on a specific topic: Software Troubleshooting in January, 2006, for example.

The Guide, Learning, and Reference Series are part of the Smart Computing site.

Each issue in these series features over a hundred pages on a specific computing topic. The Reference Series includes substantial volumes on such topics as Google (September 2005) and PC Errors. Older, but still useful, articles from the no longer published Guide and Learning series are still available in the archives.

Computer Power User (CPU) (www.computerpoweruser.com)

With an emphasis on high-end personal computing, CPU targets "tekkies"--knowledgeable users with a fairly sophisticated level of expertise. It assumes that readers want "the latest and greatest" and have the knowledge to upgrade or build to obtain it. Each issue of CPU has a "Spotlight" theme, focusing on a single advanced topic, such as ATI graphics chips and cards (December 2005). Features include technology news, reviews, instructions, and tips. One monthly feature is "The Bleeding Edge Of Software: Inside The World Of Betas." There are also occasional special issues, such as the recent "PC Modder."

PC Today (www.pctoday.com)

This publication emphasizes mobile technology and serves travelers, small businesses, and home users.

CE Lifestyles (www.celifestyle.com).

Dealing with consumer electronics, it has many articles about cell phones, digital cameras, MP3 players, digital TVs, and more.

Processor (www.processor.com) is a trade publication distributed to data center managers and other IT purchasers. It provides product and industry news.

Free Samples and Prizes

Jen will bring free copies of Smart Computing for all attendees. There will also be a drawing for free subscriptions. This is a terrific opportunity to learn more about this great tech resource.

Benefits of Subscribing

You can search these websites, find tips, and read some articles, without being a subscriber. In most cases, however, you find a partial article, followed by the words, "You must be a subscriber to PC Today, Smart Computing, or Computer Power User magazine to view the entire article." (Subscribers to CE Lifestyles have access only to CE Lifestyles content.) The subscription is well worth it! Notice that a subscription to one magazine grants you full access to all the sites!

Your Subscription Helps NYPC: If you use a special code to subscribe to a publication, NYPC will receive a free subscription (to use in a drawing, etc.) for every five subscribers. The codes are: Smart Computing - 11689, CPU - 320. You may order online at any of the websites given above, or pick up a subscription form at the General Meeting

Thursday November 17th 2005

B & H Digital Photography
Holiday Buying Guide

PS 41 116 West 11th Street
Just West of 6th Avenue

Doors open at 6:00 PM

Announcements at 6:30 PM

Presentation 7:00 PM

The meeting is Free and open to All

The holiday shopping season is just around the corner and digital cameras and associated gear make great presents.

At holiday gatherings people snap pictures and pass the camera around so everyone can admire, laugh at or demand the immediate deletion of the photos just taken. Digital photography is becoming part of the holiday festivities in a way film never could.

Once someone has started with digital photography buying them a gift is easy, there is always some new accessory, program, lens, memory card etc.

But buying cameras and accessories can be very confusing. There are many different companies and far too many choices. Its harder than buying a computer.

Dave Bromer and friends are coming from B& H Photo to tell use about this Holiday Season's batch of cameras, scanners and printers. Dave is a serious photographer and is very knowledgeable about the equipment B & H sells; he is also a terrific presenter.

Dave will talk about options from inexpensive "first" cameras to professional level cameras. He is great at separating important features from marketing hype.

Attendees will receive B & H flyers entitling them to special prices on selected items purchased during the month of November.

B & H has donated three $50 gift certificates which will be raffled off as door prizes!

If you plan to buy anything related to digital photography this Holiday Season you can't afford to miss this meeting.

B & H Photo is conveniently located a block from NYPC at 34th Street and 9th Avenue. They are one of the world's leading sources for camera and video equipment; and the salespeople are very nice. For more information see:

www.bhphotovideo.com

Thursday October 20th, 2005

“Adaptive Technologies”

Dragon Naturally Speaking V.8
(Speech Recognition Software)

Jaws
(A Remarkable Screen Reader)

PS 41 116 West 11th Street
Just West of 6th Avenue

The meeting is Free and open to All

Doors open at 6:00 PM
Announcements 6:30 PM
Presentation at 7:00 PM

Jonathan Klausner will demo several remarkably improved “Adaptive Technology Programs.” Jonathan is a very experienced, knowledgeable trainer in this field. He works with Journalists at the New York Times, Bloomberg News and other publications. He trains doctors and Patients at Mt Sinai hospital in New York and a number of New Jersey hospitals as well as many individuals, and he has done so for many years.

Dragon Version 8 is a speech recognition program that lets you dictate at about 120 words per minute. This software has been greatly improved, it really works with very few errors, and now there is short learning curve. You do speak naturally and no longer have to pause between each word. Training the program to recognize your voice has been greatly streamlined and you can begin to be productive in a short time. The more you use it the better it gets, the program learns your patterns.

Obviously the program is particularly useful for people with various forms of disabilities, such as Carpel Tunnel Syndrome, or if someone has a tremor, or difficulty in controlling their hands and indeed for people who are paralyzed. It is also very useful for those of us who cannot type 120 words a minute.

Jaws is an amazing program that can read anything on your screen including web pages. It is the most popular screen reading program worldwide. This is a wonderful for people with low vision or for people who are blind. This is truly enabling technology.

Jonathan has a close relationship with Dragon Naturally Speaking and he will offer substantial discounts at the meeting.

With “Adaptive Technologies” abilities no longer need to be limited by disabilities

Please check our web site again for more information on this meeting.

By William Ginsberg

NYPC Program Chairman

Web Sites

NYPC

http://www.NYPC.org

Jonathan Klausner

http://www.cvv.com

Dragon Naturally Speaking

http://www.scansoft.com/naturallyspeaking/

Jaws

http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_jaws.asp

Thursday September 15th 2005

Gene Barlow, long time friend to User Groups, will demo Optimal Desktop Pro, Acronis Privacy Expert Suite, and Acronis True Image.

The Church of the Covenant

310 East 42nd Street

SE corner of 42nd Street and 2nd Avenue

Doors Open at 6:00 PM

Transportation:

(42nd Street cross town bus, Lexington avenue subway to 42nd Street, or walk 2 blocks East from Grand Central Station)

For many of us the internet has become a daily part of our lives. We spend hours communicating with family and friends, managing our finances, researching our ancestors, planning our vacations, and shopping for things we need. There is so much good stuff out there that we can easily become overwhelmed trying to organize what's on our computer and what we searched for just a little while ago. If you can't find it, you can't use it. How many times have you gone back to Google to find again what you found last week? Well Gene Barlow is going to help.

Optimal Desktop Pro is a neat program to get you back to where you have been, start your favorites with a couple of clicks and finds stuff you have misplaced on your hard drive, or out there in cyberspace. It makes it easier to find an RSS feed or a letter you started writing last week. The program uses Cabinets, Drawers, and Sections to set up and tailor your desktop to find things by name, icon or color. This is much better than the usual browser bookmarks. The Optimal program is particularly nice if you switch to and from multiple programs. In the next version I would like it to find my car keys.

For many years we were bothered by hackers who just wanted to prove they were smarter than Microsoft by getting past the operating system's security moat. Mostly they were just showing off and generally not destructive. The game turned nasty with viruses and worms like Melissa and Sasser that not only affected individual computers, but also shut down business and public service networks.

The bad guys, the Black Hat Hackers, have been selling their wares and services to identity thief networks. They write and distribute Spyware programs to slip onboard our computers - uninvited and unnoticed. This is the invasive dark side to the net. Unchecked spyware can phone home with personal information residing on our computers.

A good defense starts with understanding the enemy. Gene will describe the bad stuff, how it gets to us and what we can effectively do about it. Antivirus programs are great and essential, but they are no longer enough. There are other protection options available and many of them are really simple. It is important to know what works so you can go forth on the net and have fun. One good tip from Gene is worth the price of admission, which after all is free. What a bargain!

Once more, what are the three most important things for happy computing?

Backup! Backup! Backup!

For most of us the truth is if backup is not really easy, we are reluctant to do it, we put it off, and it just does not get done. Gene will demo Acronis True Image which has a friendly Windows interface, and a nice way of setting up various types of automatic or scheduled backups. For instance, you might want to set up a total monthly backup to an external USB drive, and incremental or daily backups of just the files that have changed since the last backup.

Even if you have backed up all your data restoring all the programs to your hard drive is a painful lengthy procedure. Wouldn't it be nice to just restore the operating system and all those weekly updates, plus your programs and your data from one True Image?

Yes I know this could always be done with a DOS batch file, but DOS and I were never good friends, and I will be very interested in an easier, readily understandable approach. I hope to find it in Gene's bag of tricks.

True Image received the Editors Choice Award from PC Magazine 3 years in a row.

The Barlows will be offering substantial discounts for everyone who attends, and there will be a raffle. Someone might be able to back up their entire hard drive for one dollar.

NYPC's General Meetings are free and open all.

By William Ginsberg

Remote Control of Computers

Thursday, July 21, 2005

Note: Our Summer Location

Fordham University, 140 West 62nd Street, Room 205

Just West of Amsterdam Avenue

1, 9, A, C, B, or D to 59th Street/Columbus Circle

6 PM: Doors Open for Networking and "Meet the Geek" Q&A

6:45 PM: Presentation begins

When NYPC was founded hardly anyone had a computer. Nowadays many people have more than one television set, more than one radio and more than one computer. One computer might be at work and another at home, or even in another room. Computers have become such a useful commonplace tools that many of us want to extend their reach and utility. Business networks have been around for quite a while, but they require considerable care and maintenance generally by pros.

So what about remote access and remote control? The good news is that this is available and it is not that difficult, well not that difficult if you have an experienced guide. Our guide will be Michael Horowitz. Michael has taught many courses at NYPC and Hunter College including “Defensive Computing,” “Backing Up Your Computer,” and “Networking Fundamentals.” These courses are explained in detail on Michael's website. http://www.michaelhorowitz.com

Here are some examples of how remote computing is being used. A financial consultant uses his laptop to access his office computer so that he can work from home or at a client's home or office. A parent helps maintain a college student's computer, or the other way around. Tech support, or a technologically inclined friend can make a “House Call” and watch as you re-create a problem. A picture, or a screen shot, may be worth a thousand words.

With a friendly “House Call” you can allow a trusted tech or family guru to connect with your computer and actually see and control everything on your computer as if he were sitting in front of your screen. I said friendly visitor because you obviously don't want to let evil doers or snoops dropping in uninvited, and of course this issue will be addressed. A number of programs enable remote computing including one built into Windows XP.

Programs and Topics Michael will cover include: what is remote control, and why you might use it. Classic remote control vs. web based control, and firewall issues.

Some of the programs to be discussed include: LogMeIn.com, MyWebExPC, VNC. There will also be a demo and discussion of NetMeeting and Microsoft Remote Desktop. Each program has its strengths and kinks.

NYPC holds great General Meetings for Free,

This is truly one of New York's Best Bargains.

by Bill Ginsberg

Thursday, June 16, 2005

Fordham University, 140 West 62nd Street, Room 205
1, 9, A, C, B, or D to 59th Street/Columbus Circle

6 PM: Doors Open for Networking and "Meet the Geek"
6:30 PM: Q & A
7:00 PM: Presentation begins

Music to Go
Digital Audio Music and Podcasting

A Raffle and an Auction

Podcasting Explained and Revealed

And the Lascivious Biddies in Person

In New York and at NYPC Expect the Unexpected, things change and this time for the better; in fact far better.

We asked David Lerner of Tekserve if he would contribute a small item for our next meeting on Digital Audio and he donated several small items; including a couple of 1GB iPod shuffles and a Mac Mini computer. Thanks David, you are a class act.

There will be a raffle for one of the Shuffles and an Auction for the rest. That means someone may walk away with a $150 dollar iPod for one dollar! Well if you buy multiple tickets it will increase your chances and really help NYPC pay our rent. The Mac Mini computer retails for $500 and some bidder will go home very happy with a bargain.

Tekserve is also sending Luis Sosa, a Mac techie, to demo and explain the way Apple's iTunes organizes music files. How do you get music from your CD to an iPod, and how to buy songs from the iTunes Music Store? There are several versions of the iPods and Luis will describe the differences.

If you are short of time there is even a service that will transfer your CDs to MP3 format on a new CD for you. This makes it really quick and easy to upload your CDs to a portable player. The cost is about a dollar per CD and we will receive a 15% discount.

Luis will also talk about Audible.com which is a service that provides audiobooks on line. Tekserve will hand out cards for a one free month membership. You can carry a whole novel on the train in a neat looking box that is smaller than a pack of cigarettes. Talk about Pocket Books to go!

Our regular NYPC stalwarts, Lefty, Laura, and Mahesh will be on hand to add a PC view to transferring all of the above and more to this amazing new technology.

Lascivious Biddies? What are they and how do they fit in to Digital Audio to Go? Well they are in the forefront of Podcasting and they are a lot fun. Podcasting has come on with a rush and has received a lot of notice in the press and the media. Paste the link below into your browser and you can see and hear the Biddies on CBS News with Bob Shaffer. http://biddiesmusic.com/04-26-05_Biddies_CBS.mov Google "Biddies" and up they come with lots more info.

Beyond the cool technology they really sound good. Time Out New York describes “The band’s mix of wordy lyrics, winsome four-part harmonies and ebullient bounce may harken back to the more agreeable aspects of the swing and lounge revivals.

Podcasts are the cutting edge and very much the main stream. Beyond music you can download and listen to Leonard Lopate, Brian Lehrer, Studio 360, and the BBC on WNYC. NPR has even more. News, talk, and Lascivious Biddies, who could ask for anything more?

This meeting has a lot going for it; don't miss the fun and the bargains.

Tekserve
http://tekserve.com/

iPod Shuffle
http://tekserve.com/sales/products/ipodshuffle.html

Mac Mini
http://www.tekserve.com/sales/products/macmini.html

Biddies on CBS News
http://biddiesmusic.com/04-26-05_Biddies_CBS.mov

Biddies Press Clippings
http://biddies4ever.com/vpk/vpk-clippings.html

By Bill Ginsberg

Thursday, May 19th, 2005

Robot Village http://www.robotvillage.com, a cool robot store in Manhattan that specializes in all things robotic presents ROBOTS, a 3-part presentation:  

* David Greenbaum, inventor/mechanical designer and owner of Robot Village, will demonstrate some the shop's products including Parallax's Boe-Bot robot, and the Lego Mindstorms Invention system.  

* Next, he will show a DVD clip and talk about Penelope, the world's first vision- guided, autonomous surgical robot created here in New York by Michael Treat, MD., M.S. and his amazing team of engineers, mathematicians and computer programmers, at Robotic Surgical Tech, Inc.  

* The final special presentation entitled "Living With Robots", will be given by Robert Malone, a former design Professor at Parsons School of Design and Pratt Institute, author of The Ultimate Robot Book, and Chairman of the Automation Hall of Fame. This presentation touches upon fascinating questions such as: "What will happen when robots enter our lives?" "Can a robot survive the corner of 34th Street and 7th Avenue?"

Thursday, April 21st, 2005

PS 41, 116 West 11th Street, just West of 6th Avenue

6 PM: Doors Open for Networking and "Meet the Geek"
6:45 PM: Q & A
7:00 PM: Presentation begins

All about Digital Pictures of People

All about Digital People Pictures with two Pro's: Bob Rowen, a Portrait Photographer and John O'Donnell a Graphics Expert.

Portrait and head shot photographer Bob Rowen will talk about taking digital photos of people, getting flattering results and tips and tricks you can use yourself when using your digital camera to take pictures of people.

Bob will show examples of good portraits, both simple and more complex. He'll setup lights to show the fundamentals of a studio shoot and cover some tips that make a pleasing portrait. An audience volunteer will sit as subject and then participate in immediate “Shot Selection” ? a process unique to the new world

Then the selected shot will be put thru Photoshop for retouching with the photo subject's participation before handing the file over to John O'Donnell for printing.

In 1888 George Eastman founded Kodak, and came up with a slogan for his new company. “You push the button, and we do the rest.” Well sure, you get a picture and some are not bad, but when you look at a professional studio portrait the difference is readily apparent. It is not just the set up, or the camera, or the background music. How do you get the subject to respond and let you capture a meaningful image? It has been described many ways; skill, luck, experience, the decisive moment? My theory is - this is magic, and like all good magicians Bob is going to explain at least some of his tricks.

Many of Bob Rowen's clients are actors who need shots for special purposes. A lot of his work is targeted toward websites that he builds for his clients. He will take a series or 20 or 30 shots and then bring them into a computer, project them for all to see and analyze the results with his client. These days a digital photographer keeps working long after the shutter is pushed. A lot happens in Photoshop after the exposure and we will get to watch and listen in while the photographer continues the creative process with his client. There is a lot more to this than Mr. Eastman led us to believe.

John O'Donnell, our co-presenter, is a technical expert for Professional Graphic Systems Inc. His company specializes in sales and service of high end graphic systems. One of his specialties is to help professional photographers produce exceptional digital prints.

He will bring his Epson Stylus Pro 4000 printer, which outputs high resolution archival quality 17” x 22” prints. That is a larger page size than the New York Times. John will take some of Bob Rowen's shots, perhaps add some more Photoshop magic to adjust the image for printing, and output the results on his large format printer. This is very high end professional output. John will also bring and print out some samples of his own work.

By the way has anyone noticed how far digital photography has progressed in a short time? It was just a few years ago when we had a presentation of one of the first consumer digital cameras. The presenter was able to take a few shots of the audience and project them. That fuzzy image, I believe it was 640 x 480 pixels, drew a round of applause for the big wow factor of simply being able to do it. What would George Eastman say about this evening's presentation?

By Bill Ginsberg

You can see some of Bob Rowen's work at http://bobrowen.com/

or on our web site nypc.org click on the Photoshop SIG, Members Gallery.

Pro Graphics, John O'Donnell's company site is: http://www.prographics.com/index.hml

Thursday, March 17, 2005

PS 41, 116 West 11th Street, just West of 6th Avenue

6 PM: Doors Open for Networking and "Meet the Geek"
6:45 PM: Presentation begins

Getting information YOUR way: RSS feeds

RSS is an exciting new technology that runs over the Internet. If you are a news junkie, or someone who routinely visits certain websites to make sure you keep up with what is going on, RSS can make this process quicker and more efficient. RSS (Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary) is a standardized way for websites to send you lists of headlines with links to the full articles. End users run a dedicated RSS "client," like FeedDemon, or access the feeds through RSS enabled software, like Firefox or Thunderbird.

As a consultant who needs to keep up on tech news, Laura Balsam, one of our speakers, runs FeedDemon daily. She has set up a list of RSS feeds; FeedDemon goes out and checks to see if there are new headlines. After a minute or so she has a list of articles to check out. Laura will demo FeedDemon and the RSS reader built into Firefox. She will also show you how to find and add feeds to your RSS reader. This is one of the great new things to come out of the Internet in the last few years. Come learn more about it.

Both Firefox, the open source browser from Mozilla, and Thunderbird, Mozilla's e-mail reader, are RSS-enabled. Thunderbird's friendly interface is reminiscent of its ancestor (cousin?) Netscape. Leftonred Atanycorner will demonstrate Thunderbird's features. Mary Ginsburg will show RocketMail, another popular and useful RSS aggregator.

Note: Using RSS has many advantages: You can keep up-to-date with information from favorite websites or blogs You can subscribe to as many or as few as you wish, and unsubscribe easily Unlike e-mailed newsletters, RSS feeds do not get mixed up with SPAM.

Laura has created some RSS Web Notes

This should be an enjoyable and informative evening.

February 2005 General Meeting

Computer Security: Anti-Malware Programs from Trend Micro
with David Perry, Global Director of Education for Trend Micro Inc.

Joint meeting with NYACC:
Note different date/place:
Date: Thursday, February 10th 2005
Time: 7 PM
Place: New York University Silver Building, 32 Waverly Place (Cross St: University)
Room 713 (Subject to Change)
***NOTE*** You will need a Photo ID (i.e.: Drivers License) to get into the building
Travel: 6 to Astor; N, R, W to 8th St; A, C, E, B, D, F, V to W. 4th/Washington Square; 1, 9, 2 to
Christopher St/Sheridan Square

NYACC, New York Amateur Computer Club Inc., has graciously invited NYPC to join them on Thursday, February 10, to hear David Perry, Global Director of Education for Trend Micro Inc., talk about computer security. Trend Micro is one of the leaders in anti-virus and Internet security software and services. David will give a comprehensive presentation about formulating a security strategy for our computers, both at home and at work.

You can never learn too much about computer security! Even if you're happy with your current protection, it helps to hear a real expert talk about keeping your computer safe. Come hear David Perry, an energetic and humorous speaker who can hold the audience's attention while discussing the driest topic.

David is a world-renowned speaker in the security area. He has addressed such varied forums as the National Security Council at White House Conference on Computing Threats in the Internet Age and the European Institute for Anti Virus Research (EICAR). His presentations and white papers are on the cutting edge of computer security. We are indeed fortunate for this opportunity to hear him.

Trend Micro provides computer security solutions from the enterprise to the desktop. Its products include PC-cillin Internet Security, HouseCall, Mobile Security, and Home Network Security.

Dave will probably offer PC-cillin Internet Security to meeting attendees at a very special price.

By: Mary Ginsburg

Thursday, January 20th, 2005

Getting Started with Digital Video
How to easily create DVDs using SONIC MyDVD 6 and Roxio's EASY CREATOR 7

Location: PS 41
116 West 11th Street, just West of Sixth Avenue

Date: Thursday, January 20thTime: Doors Open for Networking and "Meet the Geek" at 6 PM Presentation begins at 6:45 PM

This evening's NYPC presentation will consist of demonstrations on how to easily create DVDs, SVCDs, or VCDs, using the latest versions of Sonic MyDVD 6 and Roxio?s Easy Creator 7. To provide material to create the DVD, the speaker, Paula Poulafearh, will interview 5-10 individuals in the audience. She will then proceed to demonstrate how to easily output the videoed interviews to DVD, SVCD or VCD.

Features to be covered in these applications will be:SONIC MyDVD 6
1. Capture directly to DVD.
2. Use the default designs or create your own background or styles.
3. Create a still or animated background.
4. Add and loop your favorite music to the background.
5. Create still and animated menus or sub menus.
6. Edit by cutting out unwanted material and adding fancy transitions.
7. Insert titles.
8. Create Still Image Galleries
9. This program contains an easy-to-follow tutorial guide in pictorial form.ROXIO EASY CREATOR 7
Easy Creator does all of the above while still maintaining its strong reputation as a disc burning application. It also contains the Photosuite and VideoWave programs previously owned by Macromedia. Among its other features: besides creating DVDs and VCDs, it is a disc copier, and has a preview player, audio editor, and label creator. In this program there is a wonderful animated tutorial taking you step-by-step, through each of the featured programs.OUR SPEAKER:
PAULA K. POULAFEARH, born in New York City, is a Native American of Tuscaroran descent. She has a Bachelors Degree (BBA) from Baruch College in Business Management. Her previous experience has been in managing small businesses, and she is now engaged as a free-lancer in video editing. Presently, Paula is the executive producer of a bi-weekly television program titled "The Manhattan Classical Opera and Concert Series." The program features both well-known and less famous personalities, such as the world-famous conductor Nello Santi. There have been private interviews with great tenors such as Carlo Bergonzi, Fabio Amiliato, and Lando Bartolini, among others. Programming also features local artist and orchestras within the Metropolitan area. The show is sponsored by Public Access Television in Manhattan only, but simultaneously can be viewed worldwide on the Internet.On Saturday, January 29th, 2005, as she has in the past, Paula will be giving a full day CRASH COURSE on ADOBE PREMIERE PRO. This course will cover basic non-linear editing. For further information please check the syllabus calendar of NYPC for the month of January.This should be an enjoyable and informative evening.By: Mary Ginsburg

NYPC's November General Meeting

Hyper-Threading Technology by Intel.
Plus: So You Bought a New PC. Now What?

Location: PS 41, 116 West 11th Street, just west of Sixth AvenueDate: Thursday November 18thTime: Doors Open for Networking and "Meet the Geek" at 6 PM Presentation begins at 6:45 PM

Intel's Hyper-Threading Technology
Hyper-Threading Technology is a groundbreaking innovation that significantly improves processor performance. Pioneered by Intel, Hyper-Threading Technology provides a significant performance boost that is particularly suited to today's business computing climate, applications, and operating systems.

How Hyper-Threading Works
Faster clock speeds are an important way to deliver more computing power, and Intel has led the way with industry-leading processor frequency. But clock speed is only half the story. The other route to higher performance is to accomplish more work on each clock cycle, and that's where Hyper-Threading Technology comes in. A single processor supporting Hyper-Threading Technology presents itself to modern operating systems and applications as two virtual processors. The processor can work on two sets of tasks simultaneously, use resources that otherwise would sit idle, and get more work done in the same amount of time.The November general meeting of the New York PC Users Group (NYPC) will feature a presentation about Intel’s Hyper-Threading Technology and how it will affect your future computer purchasing decisions. Using materials provided by Intel, NYPC education chair Fred Kahn will describe the benefits and operation of Hyper-Threading technology.As a special treat, Intel has provided NYPC with handouts and a limited number of gifts for those attending this lecture. As always this meeting is free and open to the general public, all are welcome.We are grateful to Dave and Kathy Whittle, who work with user groups for Intel, for arranging this informative meeting. Dave also arranged for NYPC to receive a Pentium 4 3.06 GHz processor and mother board, which we will use to build a new SIG machine.

So You Bought a New PC. Now What?Our second presentation will be by Michael Horowitz, and it will be a review of tips, tricks and defensive measures for a new Windows XP computer. You can buy a computer from Sears, K-Mart or Dell, but despite the ads it is not yet a carefree appliance that you just plug in, start using, and forget. Well, I suppose you can, but it really, really is not a good idea. Here is a chance to learn what to do and what not to do during the initial shake-out period. Free diagnostic programs will help to insure the machine is in tip top shape. The Internet is a dangerous place and the presentation covers steps to take when connecting a new computer to the Internet. Michael will also suggest ways of customizing Windows to your liking, make recommendations of software to install, and talk about what to ask the computer manufacturer after purchase. Experienced users are likely to come away saying, "Gee I did not know that, and better do it." New users have even more to gain. Michael started with mainframe computers and then graduated to PCs. He is the web master for the WBAI page of info about the Personal Computer Show (Wednesday evenings at 8:00 pm at 99.5 FM). He teaches classes in Defensive Computing at NYPC and Hunter College. His own web site has a lot of useful information: http://www.michaelhorowitz.comby Bill Ginsberg

NYPC's September General Meeting

When: Thursday, September 30th, 2004

Where: PS 41, 116 W 11th Street, West of 6th Avenue Schedule: 6:00 P.M. Networking in Cafeteria
Meet the Geek: Q&A Networking
6:45 P.M. Announcements
7:00 P.M. Presentation Subway: A,C,E,F,Vor S to West 4th St
1,2,3,9 to 14th St @ 7th Ave
L to 14th St @ 6th Ave
N,R,W to 8th St @ Bway
(check with MTA)
Path: Take 33rd St line to 9th St Station

PC Utilities: Applications to enhance your computer use

A Panel Discussion with Demonstrations

A utility for your computer is a program, usually small with few functions, that makes your computer run more efficiently or adds a specific functionality. Often utilities perform "housekeeping" duties, such as resource management, file backup, and system protection and monitoring. Many utilities are freeware or shareware (try before buying)
.
A panel will demonstrate a variety of computer utilities to enhance your computer use. Utilities include:

• Anti-Viruses
• Firewalls
• Spyware detection/removal tools
• Antispam tools
• Disk management/diagnosis/repair tools
• File catalogers and managers
• File viewers and converters
• Zipping/unzipping tools
• Windows Registry and tweaking tools
• Desktop accessories and screen savers
• Audio and video viewers and players
• Web photo albums and slide show creators
• PDF readers and creators
• Web Browsers: Alternatives to Internet Explorer
• E-mail Clients: Alternatives to Outlook and Outlook Express
• Ways to access GMail and Yahoo Mail using an e-mail client
• RSS Clients

Finding and Using Freeware

There is a lot of free software out there. Some of it is wonderful, and some of it is terrible. Some of it is spyware or worse. We will demonstrate and discuss the best free utilities and show you how to spot the bad ones. We'll also tell you about the utilities some of us have found to be worth purchasing. Many great download sites on the web also have reviews of various utilities. We will show some of these sites and demonstrate how to use them. We will also discuss how to make sure the great new utilities you download don't contain viruses or install spyware or trojans. We will warn you about some of the programs we, and others, have found to cause problems. Members of the audience will be invited to talk about some of their experiences with free software, both good and bad. So if you have some program you love, or one that you hate, come and share it with the group.

Read more about utilities--free and otherwise--before you come to the meeting at:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1585315,00.asp (A lengthy article from the June 8, 2004, PC Magazine, in which authors Ben Z. Gottesman and Sarah Pike (and others) review 161 utilities in 21 categories)

http://www.pcworld.com/howto/article/0,aid,109696,pg,1,00.asp (Cheap Tweaks by Robert Luhn, from the May 2003, issue of PC World)

http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,116456,00.asp) ("The Best Free Software" by Laurianne McLaughlin, from the August 2004 issue of PC World magazine) A few sites with utilities and other software are:

http://www.winsite.com/ http://downloads-zdnet.com.com/2001-2018-0.html?tag=dir http://www.download.com/Utilities/2001-2018-0.html?tag=dir

http://www.slipstick.com/addins/ (Outlook & Exchange utilities)

http://www.tucows.com/ (both Windows and Linux apps)

http://www.linux.org/apps/ (for Linux users)

http://sourceforge.net (note that this huge open source site includes not only "mature" applications but also ones under development)

http://www.freshmeat.org (open source apps) At the General Meeting, you'll be able to pick up, at modest cost, a CD with a variety of useful freeware and shareware utilities.

No General Meeting this month.Instead, we hope you'll join us on Tuesday, August 24, 2004,
6:00pm-10:00pm for our second NYPC Party at Chelsea Piers!
Join us at Pier 63/The Frying Pan for an evening of visiting/relaxing/networking with other NYPC members!

Cash bar and cash food--prices are very moderate.

Pier 63 is at the end of West 23rd Street at the Westside Highway on the Hudson River. It is just one pier north of the Chelsea Piers Sports & Entertainment Complex.

The Frying Pan is an old lightship--with lots of character--located at the north end of Pier 63, behind Basketball City. For more information, go to http://www.fryingpan.com/

Entrance by car to the access road serving Pier 63 and Chelsea Piers is made at West 24th Street and the Westside Highway. On site parking is available at additional charge. It's a pleasant walk from NYPC's office, but it's also conveniently served by the M23 bus; the nearest subway is the C & E line at 8th Avenue and 23rd Street.

Though our goal is for you to relax and have a good time, you might bring your business cards to network with other NYPC members!

Bring a friend/spouse, etc.

Thursday, July 15, 2004
Fordham University
140 West 62nd Street, Room 205
6:00 PM Doors open/Q&A/Announcements
6:30 PM Presentation
Smart Computing
Technical Resources for Effective Computing
...Online and in Print
Plus: Computer Memorabilia Contest!

Smart Computing is one of a family of monthly magazines dedicated to providing solid, useful information to improve computer use. Another way of looking at this, in an era where people depend more and more on the Internet for information, is that the magazines are convenient print-outs of technical websites.

The members of the family are:
*Smart Computing (www.smartcomputing.com), including the Reference Series, Guide Series, and Learning Series. This is aimed at the general computer user, from beginner to intermediate, and provides a wealth of in-depth articles, tips, and tutorials on all aspects of computer use, ranging from buying advice to troubleshooting and repair—of both hardware and software.
*Computer Power User (CPU) (www.computerpoweruser.com). With an emphasis on high-end personal computing, CPU targets "tekkies"--knowledgeable users with a fairly sophisticated level of expertise. It assumes that readers want "the latest and greatest" and have the knowledge to upgrade/build to get it.
*PC Today (www.pctoday.com). The emphasis here is on the Windows operating systems. (There is even a column on PC Yesterday: Tips For Maintaining Windows 3.x/95 Systems.) However, many articles are not directly related to your OS, such as a review of shareware download sites.
*CE Tips (www.cetips.com).
Dealing with consumer electronics, it has many articles about PDAs.
Demo at our General Meeting
At our July General Meeting, Amber Coffin of Smart Computing Magazine will show us how to get the most out of this online resource. She will tell us what the magazines offer and demonstrate the extensive content and powerful search capabilities of the websites.
The online article archive contains more than 19,600 articles and other helpful tools and is growing daily. In addition to searchable articles from the magazines, the website has web-only articles, previews of articles yet to come, and links to outside resources. A great feature of each site is the ability to search across all the sites, so that a search for a word brings up entries from the computing dictionary and encyclopedia, plus articles from all the magazines.
Each site has a Forum and a Web Log. Each (except CPU) has a Daily Tip (with Archives). Smart Computing has a chat room. All have terrific product reviews and great technical articles.

Smart Computing
Amber’s emphasis will be on Smart Computing. Aimed at novice to intermediate computer users, Smart Computing extends the reader’s technological knowledge with easily understood writing. Unlike CPU, it defines terms and gives detailed instructions. Features include Tech Support, PC Operating Instructions, PC Project, and Quick Studies, which give directions for a single task in a particular application. Troubleshooting articles deal with specific error messages or with broad problems. Each issue focuses several articles on a specific topic: PC Speed or Backup and Restore, for example. The February 2004 issue’s focus was on Portable Power, with several articles about choosing a notebook computer.
Guide, Learning, Reference Series
Each issue in these series features over a hundred pages on a specific computing topic. Unfortunately, the excellent Guide series publications are no longer accessible; many of these were useful, though somewhat outdated.
Happily, the Learning Series is still available, with new volumes apparently being issued at intervals. Each has many in-depth articles on a specific topic. Take a look at the wealth of information on Windows XP in the August 2003 issue.
The Reference Series includes substantial volumes on such topics as
"How Computers Work" and "PC Errors."

Computer Power User
Each issue of CPU has a Spotlight theme, focusing on a single advanced topic. Following an overview, varied aspects of the theme are discussed in three to five separate articles. These give information about the scope of the technology plus URLs for further research. Features include technology news, reviews, instructions, and tips. Several deal with Linux, others with coding.
(A fifth website, www.processor.com, is aimed at the enterprise.)
Benefits of Subscribing
You can search these websites, find tips, and read some articles, without being a subscriber. In most cases, however, you find a partial article, followed by the words, "You must be a subscriber to PC Today, CE Tips, Smart Computing, or Computer Power User magazine to view the entire article." The subscription is well worth it! Notice that a subscription to one magazine grants you full access to all the sites!
Your Subscription Helps NYPC: If you use a special code to subscribe to a publication, NYPC will receive a free subscription (to use in a drawing, etc.) for every five subscribers. The codes are: Smart Computing - 11689, CPU - 320. You may order online at any of the websites given above, or pick up a subscription form at the General Meeting.
Try Before Buying! Many of you received the May issue of Smart Computing at the June General Meeting. We have a few more copies available in the NYPC office.

**************
Computer Memorabilia Contest
How many of you collect computer- vendor t-shirts...or hats...or pens... or tote bags? How many of you have items touting products no longer sold? Perhaps a Harvard Graphics t-shirt, a Handspring hat, an AST pen?
We’re giving you the opportunity to share these promotional items--and a few memories--with the rest of NYPC! After Amber Coffin’s talk about Smart Computing, we’ll have a Computer Memorabilia Contest, where you can show off and describe your favorite items.
We’re looking for vendor promotions, not actual software or hardware. (Please do not bring in your still-working 286! If you want to prove that you’re still using WordStar, a screen shot will suffice.) We’d love to see one of those pens that doubles as a bubble-blower, a Microsoft shirt promoting the newest release of DOS, or a pre-Symantec Norton Utilities hat.
We’d also like to share newer items! Perhaps you received a stuffed penguin at the Linux show, or a particularly gorgeous t-shirt at the Microsoft Security Strategies Roadshow. Bring it along!
We will have a contest! Possible categories include:
Prettiest item
Most useful item
Most useless item
Oldest item from a current vendor
Oldest item from a vendor of the past
___ (What would you suggest?)
Prizes? Promotional items, of course!
Come, learn about Smart Computing, and have fun with memorabilia!

Thursday evening, June 17th
Fordham Law School, 140 West 62nd Street, Room 205
Doors open at 6 PM
Presentation at 6:45 PM

“Your Next Computer, Buy It, Build It or Upgrade”

How do you know when it's time to upgrade or replace your current PC? What are the key factors in choosing your next computer or the components to use in upgrading? Computer Gurus Fred Kahn (education chair for NYPC) and Mike Ostrowe (A+ Certification Instructor) will tell you how to decipher the manufacturers' specifications and what to look for when shopping for the right computer to meet your needs. An exciting hands-on demo will show how unintimidating assembling a PC can be. The lecture will include advice on where to buy your next computer and how to shop for components


AUCTION

Our May General Meeting will be an NYPC Fund Raiser Auction.
Short demo's and tips & tricks will be interspersed during the evening
To see the Auction Listings Click Here

Thursday May 20th 2004
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue

Doors open at 6:00 pm Meet the Geek & Networking
Announcements at 6:45 PM
Auction at 7:00 PM

The NYPC auction helps us raise money for life's little necessities such as our rent in the Hotel New Yorker, telephone lines, high speed web access, and web site hosting. Other major expenses include class room computers, projectors, the portable sound system, and the printing and mailing of our monthly calendar.  Even though we are a Not-For-Profit group there are many, many ongoing expenses every month. 

The auction listings include computer products, and a variety of professional services.  Bidding for a service is a really inexpensive way to get to know a computer professional.  Often this short relationship turns into an ongoing resource for you, your company, or your digitally challenged friends.

The bidding for all services starts at $50.00.  You may win the bid for a high price pro at a fraction of their normal hourly rate. 

In addition to computer related topics our members are offering their talents and services in other fields.  Keep checking back, new items will be added from time to time.  Some older software and hardware will be shown at a flea market table in the lobby.

If you would like to contribute products or services send an email to nypc@nypc.org, or leave a phone message at 212-643-7005

Vendors or individuals who contribute professional services will receive a thank you notice in our calendar and on our web site for three months.

Just in case you don't have a computer product, or a used Ferrari that you can contribute to the auction, here is another way you can really help NYPC.  Starting in June we will be publishing a directory in our print calendar and our on our web site.  You can purchase a business card sized ad.  The cost for 11 months is $99.00.  This is a nice inexpensive way for you to advertise your product, your expertise, your company, or just your good will.  For more information or to purchase an ad contact Murray Strelitz, mstrelitz@bigfoot.com or call 212 691-7788

Every year some people walk away with big smiles and real bargains.

By Bill Ginsberg

Wireless in New York City: The Real Story

Thursday April 15th

PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue

Doors open at 6:00 PM
Announcements at 6:30 PM
Presentation at 7:00 PM

It looks so easy in the articles and on TV. You just buy a Wi-Fi adapter and a router/access point and you are up and running.
Not necessarily. New York City is a hard place to set up a wireless network, it is electronically noisy and older buildings contain a lot of metal and other dense substances. What do you do when you can't get a Wi-Fi signal from one room to another?

Our speaker, Ben Serebin, will explain how to make it work here.
There are now wireless hot spots all over the city. How do you find them? Which ones are free and which ones do you pay for? How do you use them?

Ben is on the board of directors of nycwireless, a non-profit that runs meetings on wireless technology and helps create free wireless hot spots.

Check out their map of hot spots: www.nycwireless.net

Ben will also discuss wireless security issues on private LANs and public services
.
Ben's consulting firm, REEF Solutions, provides computer networking, wireless, security, backup, and audit consulting to businesses & institutions in the New York City area. www.reefsolutions.com

Katrin Eismann
Photoshop Diva

Thursday March 18th 2004
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue

Doors open at 6:00 PM
Q&A at 6:30 PM
Presentation at 7:00 PM

Many demos by vendors start off with the presenters apologizing that they really have very little artistic talent.  They then proceed to show you the wonderful tools in their product.  The result is frequently ho hum. 

Our speaker, Katrin Eismann, started training as an artist, became a very good artist, and uses digital imaging as an artist's tool.  Her images are exceptional and need no apology. 

Her professional work includes commissions for major corporations such as Adobe, Apple, and Kodak.  She often teaches and has taught digital imaging for many years.  She started as an intern in Kodak's Creative Imaging Center in Camden Maine; three years later she became Director of Education.  She is an award winning educator, lecturer, and writer.  Her resume is longer than this article; follow the links to her website for more details. 

Photoshop has extraordinary tools, in the right hands they are a joy.  But when you start out it is very confusing to look at all the possibilities.  There are terms that even mystify experienced graphic artists or computer geeks.  It is like trying to order dinner from a Chinese menu, with half the items written in Mandarin.

Katrin has the skill to explain technical procedures clearly and simply; she writes well and speaks well.  I saw her do demos at the professional photographers' PhotoPlus show at Javits.  I watched pros in the audience appreciate her work, and as I watched I thought, "Hey, I could do that."

Digital originals are changing the way photographers work.  Recently I met a very talented amateur photographer who did not want to use Photoshop or digital photography because he wanted his colors to be "true" and not manipulated digitally.  He neglected to recognize that professional film photographers manipulate their light source, chose a particular film because it was warmer, cooler, or makes colors brighter.  The pros add filters to shift the color balance, and on and on.  Sounds like a lot of manipulation to me.  In fact it is very difficult to photograph say a painting and reproduce the original accurately without manipulation.

Katrin's books help a lot with the mechanics of digital photography, and retouching. Before you know it you are into creating "Digital Originals."  The photograph may be just the beginning.  Her books are aimed at serious amateurs and full time professionals. 

The second edition of her book, "Photoshop Restoration & Retouching" was published last summer.  We will see a live demo of many of the techniques from this book.  Copies will be for sale at the meeting.

Here is a quote from her website. 
"This book addresses salvaging historical images and righting the contemporary images that have gone wrong - the missed exposures, the poor color balance, the busy and distracting background, or the inevitable wrinkle, pimple, or extra pounds that are just driving you crazy every time you look at that photo." 

If you are a professional photographer you should not miss the opportunity to see this Photoshop Diva perform.  If you are an advanced amateur you will be excited.  If you are just starting out in the digital world, this is a very good place to start.
by William Ginsberg

Katrin Eismann's websites.

http://www.digitalretouch.org/
http://www.photoshopdiva.com/books.html
http://www.photoshopdiva.com/

NYPC's General Meeting
Thursday February 19th 2004
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue
Doors open at 6:00 PM
Announcements at 6:30 PM
Presentation at 7:00 PM
______________________________________

Multimedia ePublishing
What it is, how it can be used, and how to do it.
Publishing has come a long way since Johannes Guttenberg started moving type about.  What would he have said if could have clicked on a phrase and heard the angels sing? 

Our audience will get an insider's look at the issues and choices confronting builders of this rapidly evolving new form of publishing.  Adobe Acrobat is the program of choice.  Acrobat handles text, image, movie, and sound files using the universally acceptable PDF format.  This one program unifies many programming and presentation tasks. 

Our speaker has truly pushed the envelope in this field.  The results are impressive and are collecting outstanding reviews.  Michael Taft, Deputy Director of the American Folklife Center at the US Library of Congress says "100 years from now scholars will look at this package and say that it set the standard for multi-media academic publishing." 

Speaker, David M. Kleiman, former president of NYPC, is the founder and president of Heritage Muse, Inc and ESPB Publishing, Ltd. the companies behind this visionary use of PDF, XML, Javascript, and other technologies in digital publishing.

Their flagship publication "The English an Scottish Popular Ballads (digital edition)", is a based on a work by American scholar Francis James Child who made an exhaustive study of medieval and renaissance folksongs, poems and ballads about 120 years ago.  The Heritage Muse edition is considerably more than a digital facsimile of the original work. It is rather a fully integrated collection of multi-media documents, sound, and image files built to serve the needs of both casual readers and doctoral level scholars.  There are even new recordings of some of the folksongs by such notable singers as Joan Baez and Jean Ritchie.

Mr. Kleiman's presentation will focus on the business and technology decisions behind building a project like this, and will offer insights into some of the tricks and traps behind using PDFs as a multi-media delivery platform.  David is also founder and president of DKI, Inc. a systems consulting and a database development firm.  Personally he has had a longtime interest in folk music as both performer and educator.  He is Vice President of the New York Folk Music Society, performs regularly with the award-winning folk-ensemble Water Sign, and also works as a producer and impresario in the music industry.  The last three years were certainly challenging for computer consultants.  He took this as an opportunity to pursue a new career as a multimedia ePublisher. 

by Bill Ginsberg

Heritage Muse, Inc. and product descriptions can be found at: http://www.heritagemuse.com

David M. Kleiman
is the President & CEO
Heritage Muse, Inc. & ESPB Publishing, Ltd.

NYPC's General Meeting
Thursday January 15th 2004
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue
Doors open at 6:00 PM
Announcements at 6:30 PM
Presentation at 7:00 PM
______________________________________

Random Access Questions, Tips & Tricks
Everything You Wanted to Ask About Computers
(but didn't know who to ask)
Once again, we are presenting our popular evening of Q&A to our Pros.  This will be an evening of questions you submit to our panel.  Everyone has questions about computers, no one knows it all, there is just too much out there.  Our Gurus will share their expertise. 

Simple or complex, don't be afraid to ask.  There are no bad questions.  The person sitting next to you may be looking for the same answer.  If the panel does not have the answer, someone in the audience might.

A major value of NYPC is that you will get an honest and often highly opinionated answer.  You may indeed get different answers.  This is not a vendor's panel; no one is selling a product. 

Our panel will give first preference to questions submitted by email.  Next they will take on typed questions handed in at the beginning of the meeting.  Emailed questions will give our panel time think about the problem, to ask their personal gurus for help and even query secret sources. They may even go so far as looking in the manual.   

When you submit your question let us know the following:
(1) Which Operating System you have: i.e.  Windows 98, 2000, or XP Pro
(2) What processor:  i.e. Pentium III
(3) How much RAM memory: i.e. 256 mb.

You can generally find this information by right clicking on the My Computer icon, and then left clicking on properties.

At various times during the evening the panel will share some of their favorite Tips & Tricks.  One really good tip may be worth the price of your dues, and certainly worth the price of the meeting, which after all is free.  Here is a good tip.  Did you know that if you hold down CTRL and rotate the center wheel on a mouse that MS Word and many other apps will zoom up or down?

The early bird gets the answer, and there is no limit to the number of questions you can submit.  Email your questions to:

education@nypc.org

Don't miss out, this is a golden opportunity.  Our guru's are not outsourced, they won't put you on hold while you listen to elevator music, and all speak understandable English.  Did I mention the price - on January 15th our gurus are free.

The panel includes:
Fred Kahn
Fred will be our Moderator.  He a professional photographer, a digital imaging expert, an eBay Pro, and an A+ certified graduate of Mike Ostrowe's A+ class.   Fred is also NYPC's Education Chair.

Lefty
AKA Leftonred is NYPC's web master and Vice President.  He is a computer consultant, a networking specialist, and teaches some of our classes including Windows XP.

Mike Ostrowe
Mike is a computer pro and spends his days working on heavy duty computer systems.  He teaches our A+ certification course, runs our PC Clinic and is well qualified to answer a great many nuts, & bolts hardware related questions. 

Michael Horowitz 
Michael teaches a number of classes including a six week class on Defensive Computing, and a three hour class on Backing Up your Computer.  He is the webmaster for WBAI's Personal Computer Show and hosts his own personal Computer Gripes web site.  You can learn more about Michael by visiting www.michaelhorowitz.com

Aren't you glad you know about NYPC?

by William Ginsberg
Microsoft Office 2003
Presented by Alan Chitlik, Microsoft's User Group Rep.

This is a joint meeting with NYACC
The New York Amateur Computer Club

Thursday December 11th 2003
Note this is the second Thursday of the month
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue

Doors open at 6:00 P.M.
Networking in the Cafeteria 6:00 to 6:30 P.M.
Q&A 6:30 P.M.
Presentation 7:15 P.M.

This column is being written on MS Word.  Most of you use some version of Word, and some parts of the office suite.  The designers of this version have listened to users and concentrated on improving certain areas, rather than once again adding still more features.  (I have yet to meet someone who uses all the features in Word.)

So what's new?  Well the module that gets the most press is Outlook.  Email handling has really been improved, and automatic spam filtering is a blessing.  In his Circuits column, David Pogue wrote that during a two week trial Outlook blocked 95% of his incoming junk mail, and never mislabeled a legitimate message as spam.  A nice feature lets you create your own "white list or black list" of the good guys or the unmentionables. 

A common spammer tactic is to embed what appears to be a normal graphic. Actually this may be a phone home code that calls a web site, sends you some porn and tells the spammer the email was opened and you deserve many more hits.  Outlook thwarts the spammer by showing you only the text in this kind of message.  Regular attachments are not blocked. 

A new feature is called "Search Folders."  This is a kind of cross referencing trick that lets you file the same email under multiple topics.  Search folders are actually the result of a saved search.  You might have a folder of all the emails from your brother.  If he wrote about a fishing trip in the Caribbean, the same email could appear in another search folder labeled "Fishing" and yet another labeled "Caribbean."  The Caribbean folder might also have emails about hotels, restaurants, and sailing.

This presentation will include a look at OneNote which is a separate digital note-taking application that enables people to capture, organize, and share their notes on any laptop, desktop or Tablet PC.  (See Mary Ginsburg's write up about OneNote.)

This presentation will be by Alan Chitlik   Alan is the nicest, most responsive Microsoft rep we have had in years.  This is a good time to talk to a friendly ear from Redmond.

I would not be surprised to see some software for a drawing. 

Bring a friend, NYPC's General Meetings are free and open to all.

by Bill Ginsberg
NYPC October General Meeting

Thursday, October 16, 2003
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue
Doors open at 6:00 P.M.
Networking in the Cafeteria 6:00 to 6:30 P.M.
Q&A 6:30 to 7:00 P.M.
Presentation at 7:00 P.M. Open Source: Beyond Linux

The evening will feature a panel of leaders of our Open Source SIGs: Dario Castellanos, Alex Genna and Mark Halegua. During the evening there will be a demonstration of Open Source Software (OSS). In addition to the presentation in the auditorium, there will be computers in the cafeteria, where you can try out OSS applications FREE!What is "Open Source Software"?
These are programs or program modules which you can download free, and which allow the user access to the programming code. The user may modify the programmer’s original code and include it in new applications. Open Source Products
Open Source Software models, especially the Linux family of Operating Systems, have garnered quite a bit of attention in the press. There are many Open Source desktop software programs that are now feasible competitors to older established applications. Some of these are: The Gimp, Mozilla Web Browser, MYSQL and Postgre databases, and Open Office (in which this article was written). There are literally hundreds and thousands of Open Source projects, including programming and scripting languages and Open Source utilities.
These products, unencumbered by restrictive licensing fees, are often free. Best of all you can use them on your existing (Windows, Mac, Linux, BSD, OS/2) computer systems. OSS projects frequently extend the useful life of older computers since many applications are designed to be much less resource-intensive than their commercial counterparts without the "feature-loss" often associated with "light" versions of popular applications. They have the support of many respectable developers and an ever-increasing user base.
We have all been using Open Source Software for years, indirectly, whether we knew it or not. Every time we hit a web link or type in a URL to connect to a web page we use at least two or three OSS technologies.
BIND (Berkeley Internet Name Daemon) is the Internet telephone book. It’s responsible for finding and pointing our browsers to the web page we want to see. Most modern websites use the Apache Web Server for content delivery. For many years OSS has powered the Internet, which wouldn’t work without it. Thankfully, now OSS sets its sights on the end user experience.Free Software?
When we speak of free software, we are referring to freedom of use, not necessarily free of cost. We’ll discuss the General Public Licenses (GPL and LGPL), the BSD licenses and explain the differences. They are basically designed to make sure that:
*everyone has the freedom to distribute copies of free software (and charge for this service if they wish)
*you receive source code or can get it if you want it
*you can change the software and use pieces of it in new free programs
*you are informed that you can do these thingsPhilosophical Issues
We will discuss how software patents pose a constant threat to the existence of any free program. The Open Source models attempt to guarantee that a company cannot effectively restrict the users of a free program by obtaining a restrictive license from a patent holder on drop-down menus or progress bars. Therefore, GPL’d, LGPL’d, and BSD’d licensing insist that any patent license obtained for a version of the library must be consistent with the full freedom of use specified in these licenses.
Finally, we will also discuss some of the more philosophical points that enabled these products to become the viable alternatives they are today, and what we can do to protect future development, and thus all consumers’ rights. ....Alex Genna, alexgenna@netscape.net; Mark Halegua, phantom21@mindspring.comWe hope to have a raffle: some books related to Open Source and some OSS CDs to help you avoid long downloads!

NYPC September General Meeting

Computer Security
Worms, Viruses, Bugs, Bad Apps, and Bad Guys

Ben Serebin and Michael Horowitz, two experts on computer security, will talk about practical things we all can do to avoid letting the black hat hackers take control of our computers and our lives.Using email and the Web has become an essential part of our lives. Sure we all still mail letters with stamps, and we can light candles when the power went out. But loosing email and web access is more than an inconvenience; it disrupts our contact with others, our studies, our business, and our safety. This August many of us were exposed, bothered or harmed by the MS Blaster/Lovsan worm, and/or the SoBig virus. I spent the better part of a day getting rid of Blaster on one machine and protecting two others. Symantic.com was a big help with clear directions to follow and a link to the exact location on the Microsoft site to download the appropriate patch. Unfortunately the worm snuck in before Norton's anti virus team posted their live update. Once you have it, the fix takes longer.Another nuisance is spyware. This is a little program surreptitiously placed on your computer when you visit a web site. Spyware is silently active in the background and it sends reports to some dotcom agency that collects data about where you roam the web, or where you shop. There are effective inexpensive programs that will block this. On Saturday August 23rd the New York Times had a front page article and an editorial referring to these two particular viruses and on the problem in general. Notice this topic got the editorial attention of the New York Times, not a tabloid. The editorial says we all share the responsibility for making computing safer; Microsoft by improving the code, Internet Service Providers for not stressing security enough, and users for being sloppy about protecting ourselves. Well you can avoid all this by never going on line, never using email, never using a credit card, never taking a book out of the library and never having any fun. If you don't leave your apartment you can also avoid the risk of being hit by a car while crossing the street. Personally I would rather look both ways when crossing the street, and practice safe computing. This is a situation where knowledge is power, and our speakers will talk about reasonable inexpensive things we can all do to make ourselves secure on line.Ben Serebin is Security Consultant whose company Reef Solutions specializes in network design, and email gateways. Their mission is to combat viruses, spam, and install firewalls to protect against intruders. A lot of his work includes wireless network security.Michael Horowitz is the web master for the Personal Computer Show on WBAI. He teaches a six session course on Defensive Computing at Hunter College, and an upcoming one session course on backing up your computer at NYPC. Michael's classes always include the care and feeding your PC. There is no doubt that you will go home knowing a lot about safe computing.
Aren't you glad you know about NYPC?by William Ginsberg

NYPC's General Meeting
Wednesday May 14th 2003
PS 41
116 West 11th Street just West of Sixth Avenue
Doors open at 6:00 P.M.
Networking 6:00 to 6:30 in the Lunchroom
6:30 to 7:00 Q&A
Auction Begins at 7:00 P.M.

Our May General Meeting will be an NYPC auction. From time to time we
run a fund raiser auction. This is a good deal for all and helps us
raise money for life's little necessities like telephone lines, high
speed web access, web site hosting, class room computers, projectors,
networking supplies, printing and mailing our monthly calendar,
renting space for our General Meetings, and of course the monthly rent
on our SIG and class room space in the New Yorker Hotel. Even though
we are a Not-For-Profit group there are many, many ongoing expenses
every month. We will have products contributed by various vendors such as, two
boxes of Microsoft Office XP Professional 2002 which includes Word,
Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Access. This is the full version not
an upgrade with a street price of $507.00. Microsoft's MapPoint, is a
high end mapping and demographic program with a street price of
$240.00. Adobe Photoshop Elements, which does all the photo editing
most people need, has a street price of $90.00. Once again the New School's computer section, (the CIC) will make some
of their excellent computer classes available to us for the auction,
and NYPC will also offer some of our own classes as well. All in all,
lots of good stuff for nerds. Many other items with fuller descriptions will be added to the web
page. Some older software and hardware will be shown at on a flea
market table in the lobby. A variety of computer related professional services will be offered.
This is an inexpensive way to get to know a computer professional who
may well become a valuable future resource for you, your company, or
your digitally challenged friends. In addition many of our members
will be offering their talents and services in other fields, vocations
or special interests for you to bid upon. As always, some people will
walk away with big smiles and real bargains. For the most up-to-date info on current auction offerings be sure to
keep checking our website NYPC.org and click on the auction for up to
date listings. Many thanks, once again, to Laura Balsam for designing
and hosting our auction page and to Leftonred who maintains our web
site. If you would like to contribute products or services send an email to
nypc@nypc.org, or leave a phone message at 212-643-7005
Vendors or individuals who contribute professional services will
receive a free business card sized ad or a thank you notice in our
calendar and on our web site for three months. This is a nice
inexpensive way for you to advertise your product, your company, your
expertise, or your services, or just your good will.
Credit cards, checks and greenbacks will be accepted. by Bill Ginsberg

David Pogue
New York Times Circuits Columnist The New School Tishman Auditorium
Tuesday April 1st 2003 6:00 P.M.
66 West 12th Street
An April Fools Treat (No Fooling)
Note: The Different Location and Time

These days many of us know David Pogue from his weekly column on the front page of the Circuits Section of the New York Times. He has a knack of making complicated technical subjects understandable and amusing. His writing appeals to the Nerd Herd, and computer neophytes. Including those people who are just now reluctantly buying a computer because they can no longer find anyone to fix their IBM Selectric typewriter.Then there is the group of folks who cruise the computer bookshelves of Barnes & Noble, or Amazon looking for salvation from the programs that arrived without sufficient documentation. David has been filling this gap with his "Missing Manual" series. With titles that appeal to users of both PC and Mac persuasions, such as "Windows XP, the Missing Manual", and "Mac OS X, the Missing Manual."Here is a quote from an interview with David where he talks about his approach to writing technical manuals."In other technical books you'll read a description of some element in a dialog box. It'll say, "Frame module discombobulator. Use this control to discombobulate your frame modules." Well, thanks a lot! Instead, ours will read: "A frame module is a form that you might fill in on a Web page, such as when Amazon.com asks for your email address. When you are discombobulated, that means you've changed your address." If you have been feeling discombobulated you will enjoy this meeting. If you are a long time Mac user you will remember his regular columns in Macworld, and his frequent appearances at NYMUG the New York Mac Users Group. Fear not, David has not forgotten his first crush on computers, and Apple reviews are frequent and often favorable in his current columns.Those of you who save the Playbills you got at Broadway shows will find David Pogue listed as the conductor. This is described in the bio on his home page."After college, Pogue moved to New York City, with aspirations to compose and conduct Broadway shows. He worked as conductor, synthesizer programmer, arranger, or assistant on several Broadway shows (Carrie, Welcome to the Club, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Anything Goes at Lincoln Center) and a few Off-Broadway ones (Pajama Game, Godspell, and Flora, the Red Menace, which he also orchestrated)."
In deference to April 1st, David will play some of his "Song Spoofs". How can that not be fun? I am not sure which songs w