Past Meetings

12 - 13 - 2005

Ten people braved the frigid weather to share lunch and some Mac chat - Tom B, John R, Mary B, Nancy C, Bob S, Jack H, Dave W, Bob G, Keith D, and Jim P. The theme for the meeting was: Cheap. A wide range of techniques, shortcuts, software and hardware were shared, based on their ability to save time, energy and dollars.

Acivity Viewer - feature found under Mail or Safari Menu > Window which shows current process of uploading/downloading mail or files. Helpful to keep track of time, speed, etc.

Gas Widget (OSX Tiger)- Find cheapest current gasoline prices in your locale by typing in your ZIP Code. Just go on-line, open Dashboard and click the + at bottom, then 'More Widgets.'. Search for 'gas' widget, Download. Shows top 10 prices.

Save money on Floppy Disks (if you still use them)- buy bulk PC-formatted floppies, and simply erase & reformat them in your Mac.

Reduce printer ink consumption and save time by setting your print preferences to lowest quality for most work.

The tiniest SlideShow application ever! PictShow 1.0 - use it to view full-screen images captured as Picts by Command-shift-4. It is amazing that a small app only 20k in size, created in 1992 by Oliver Dreer, will run on the oldest and newest Mac OS -7,8,9,10 classic. (Note: In OSX, you have to convert the captured PNG files to PICT files by opening in Preview and clicking SaveAs ..Pict). A newer version called FastPic (95k) works on OSX.

Or use Apple's Preview in OSX to quickly browse a folder full of images (picts, jpegs, giffs, etc). See how here.

Shop for your next motel reservation on-line, using providers such as Expedia, Orbit, etc. Find the cheapest price and look for Free in-room WiFi internet. This is quickly becoming a real bonus and very handy for anyone bringing a laptop with a wireless card in it. Check your e-mail and make travel adjustments on the go.

Design and maintain your own website for as little as $4.12 per month at Itsamac. Reserve your own Domain Name for $6.99 per year at Dotser. HTML files are uploaded via FTP.

One of the best maintenance application for OSX users is Macaroni. This little utility runs inconspicuously on your Mac and keeps the stuff in the invisible areas running smoothly. A onetime shareware fee under $10 is required after a free 15-day trial.

If your eyesight is getting worse, try enlarging the cursor in OSX. Go to Systems Folder > Universal Access > Mouse&Trackpad > slide cursor scale.

Looking for an inexpensive ISP to get on-line? In the Hammondsport area, try INFOBLVD. Accomodates both Mac and PC. Very dependable dial-up service- hardly ever a busy signal. Under $15/month. Excellent support. Another good ISP from non-local) is ISPWEST. As low as $6.95/month for Mac and PC, payable by check or credit card. Free access number near most larger cities.

USB Jump Drive - range in capacity - 256mb sold for $29 at Target - very tiny unit, fits on a keychain - cross-platform (PC or Mac) - Drivers for OS8.6 and Windows available here

Laptop HD --- 40gb as cheap as $79 - notebook 2.5" 5400rpm at Other World Computing (OWC) - get a FireWire enclosure for $39 here to keep your previous HD as a bootable backup.

DotMac from Apple --- upload / download files from website storage you can purchase for $99 a year. Host your own websites (such as this one that you are looking at).

Apple Rescue - sells reclaimed Apple install CDs very cheaply for Mac OS 8-9-10

Link to H'PORTMUG homepage

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