Mac Memorabilia Needs a Good Home

        Do you collect old Mac memorabilia or know someone does?  Jim Hamm has received info from the Arizona Macintosh Users Group, looking for someone who might be interested. From magazines from 1983, to some user guides, original manuals, conference ephemera, it's quite a list. The owner is a retired electronic engineer who has been an Apple certified software developer.  Contact him directly here.  

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Take Command of the Photoshop Basics

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        John Carter has some good news, "CreativeLive is offering a FREE online course in Photoshop.

        "Don’t let Photoshop overwhelm you! Get to know the power, functions, and features of this incredible image-editing program.
        "In his three-day live class, Photoshop Hall of Famer Ben Willmore will not only introduce you to Photoshop's interface and essential tools, but will also show you how to make simple changes that will have a big impact on your images. You'll learn how to:
• Retouch stray hairs and brighten eyes
• Combine separate images into a panorama
• “Open” closed eyes in a group shot and more!

        "If you feel intimidated by Photoshop, this beginner-level class will give you the skills and confidence to take command of the program for amazing results.  RSVP Now!

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A Fan of Photoshop?

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        "If you're a fan of Photoshop, following are comments from a blog I follow that might be of interest, " Jim Hamm begins, and he goes on to explain, "I've not checked any of the websites, but I fully trust the guy writing the suggestions (I know him), so you might see if any of this would be helpful." 
        (You'll find that word FREE by the end of the quotation!) 
        "I’ve mentioned some of this before, but for you Photoshop aficionados, or you Photoshop newbies, or wantabes, I’ve come across some great tutorial sites for you to take a look at.  http://petapixel.com/2015/01/08/photoshop-playbook-50-short-video-tutorials-fundamental-skills-photoshop/

        "Don’t have a copy of Photoshop and think it’s too expensive? You can go here:
and download a free, licensed version of Photoshop CS2 for either Windows or Mac. It’s about 340 MB and took me less than 30 minutes to download on a 3G connection. Be sure and grab the License Serial Number further down the page."
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Gmail: A Handy Tip

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        "Gmail saves everything you have deleted for up to 30 days," says John Carter.  He continues,  "You can find those deleted items in the 'All Mail' folder of Gmail. That folder contains the master of every message you ever received, ever sent, and ever deleted. If you have the 'All Mail' folder visible in the Mail app, you can do a search for any message using that folder.

        He goes on to explain, "Now let’s say you want to clean up the messages in 'All Mail.' First, click on that folder to select it (it will be highlighted). Next, enter a keyword or phrase in the search field (upper right corner of the Mail app) and hit the return key. In the list that is returned, select the items to be deleted and click on the 'delete' icon in the Mail toolbar. Those items will disappear from 'All Mail.'
        "You’re not done. What you just deleted will now show up in the Trash folder of Mail. Empty the Trash. If you don’t do this, then when you do another search with that keyword in 'All Mail,'  they will show up again, and that could be frustrating."  And if this tip is handy mention it to John.  He finds lots of good stuff for us.
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Automatic Security Update

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        Here's some unexpected news.  Jim Hamm lets us in on this, "Apple has issued a security update for the Mac, which doesn't require any action by you -- it's automatically installed. Further info in the article below. http://www.theverge.com/2014/12/23/7440157/apple-mac-first-automatic-update-ever  A quick search of Apple Security brings up other articles with info on this new fix. 

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Internet Videos Show "How To"

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           Want to do more on Mac, your iPhone, your iPad?  John Carter found a site for you that has 500+ video tutorials.  
        John says, "There are several places on the Internet where you can get video tutorials that clearly step through the processes one needs to know to accomplish what may seem at the outset to be only for gurus. 
        "For instance, you’ve probably heard about Pixelmator and how it can give you fine control over editing a photo at a fraction of the price of Adobe Photoshop CS. Or, now that Yosemite is out, just how much more can it do and how can you discover how to use those new features? 
        "From iOS to Mac, there is one place dedicated to helping Mac users learn all they can, and even introduce applications you’ve probably never heard of, and that’s ScreenCastsOnline.com."  

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Facebook Scam

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        "There's a new Facebook email scam going around now," John Carter warns.  "It has all the appearances of coming from Facebook, but it didn't. In the email, it says that your account has had some suspicious activity and that it has been blocked. You can unblock the account by clicking on the link in the email. DON'T! "
        And here's what to do, John says, "To confirm that your Facebook account is okay, just go to facebook.com and log in. Not surprisingly, you'll be able to log in with no problem.

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Being Careful to Avoid Viruses

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        John Carter knows what he's talking about.  He writes, "In my experience, there are NO Mac viruses that Apple hasn’t taken care of, and that the only threats found anywhere are in some email message or in an application that is not blessed by Apple; in the latter case, it won’t be found in the App Store.

        "If you have downloaded and installed an app from the Internet, such as Firefox or Chrome, that app may contain something that Sophos doesn’t like the looks of and declare it as suspicious or a threat. However, if you get the app from the source (e.g., Mozilla or Google), then you should not have any problems with that app. However, avoid links that claim to be the source or that offers extra features."
        And John goes into detail in a report to be posted at the Prescott Mac User Group's website, www.pmug.us so you'll learn more about Sophos (www.sophos.com) and how to use it. 
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Apple Store in Turkey Wins Supreme Award

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        On Cult of Mac, dated Dec. 12  we find fascinating facts about the amazing Apple Store in Istanbul, Turkey which just won a Supreme Engineering Award.  Called an "impossibly perfect glass lantern" the top consists of four glass panels seamlessly joined on site with structural silicone.  You'll want to see the photos here: http://www.cultofmac.com/305967/apple-wins-supreme-engineering-award-glass-lantern-store-turkey/   and here: http://architizer.com/blog/istanbul-apple-now-open/  

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Check out the PMUG Site

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        We're reminded to check out the Prescott Mac User Group website,  www.pmug.us for all sorts of good info.  John Carter wants to sell a used 20" iMac, and it will be listed there real soon.  You'll find the list of features under that heading of Benefits: "Member For Sale Items."  (You'll also find some helpful articles written by John in Benefits under "Tips 'n' Tricks." And he's written some "Software, Hardware, and Book Reviews" under the heading of Reviews.) 
        Of course, you'll want to check out the PMUG Calendar because that's how you find out that instead of meeting from 10 am to 12 on 1-17, the meeting will be from 1pm to 3.