Come visit our booth at the 2013 WebVisions event. Celebrating our 10th year as a sponsor!

We will have Wacom Cintiq demonstrations, information about Adobe Creative Cloud and more.

Be sure and sign up to win a Wacom Intous 5 Touch Tablet.

About WebVisions: 


WebVisions Executive Director Brad Smith

WebVisions explores the future of design, content creation, user experience and business strategy in an event that inspires learning, collaboration and entrepreneurism. Since 2001, we’ve built a loyal audience of designers, developers and industry leaders. Join us for an event that’s seen as “the creative conference for the Web.”

Cheers,
Brad

Event Planning
Staging and planning involves the brainpower and muscle of a group of talented and dedicated individuals who have gladly given up their time to bring this important conference to Portland. If you happen to meet them, please thank them for their efforts.
Advisory Board
The following industry professionals provide the brain power and muscle to make WebVisions possible. Contact us to find out how you can join the ranks.
Worldwide
• Brad Smith, WebVisions
• Stephen Peters, Hot Pepper Studios
• Kit Seeborg, Bumper Tunes
• Ross Olson, Planar Systems
USA / Chicago
• Russ Unger, Author and Speaker
• Shay Howe, Code Academy
• Carolyn Chandler, Manifest Digital
• Andrew Hullinger, Harrington College of Design
USA / NYC
• Chris Pallé
• Peter March
USA / Atlanta
• Andrew Hinton
• Lynn Browder
Europe
• Mariona Aloy Ciller
• Silvia Calvet

Presenting Organizations
Hot Pepper Studios:
Hot Pepper Studios is an award winning design firm with the proven ability to successfully convert complex information into high-value solutions for Web, print and film.
Special Thanks
Thank you to all of our volunteers for your hard work every year!

Still making due with your original Mac G4 or G5 tower? Looking for more speed, capacity and something that can run OS X Lion? Bought a new camera that needs new software?

Budget or CFO says you can’t buy a brand new Mac Pro?

We may have a solution for you!

One of our largest clients just refreshed their towers and we have created a great package for you.

MacPac refreshed Mac Pro Tower:

Dual – 2.66 Dual-Core Intel Xeon Mac Pro’s with 8GB of Ram and a new 1TB hard drive for only $795.

If you are editing video or running Adobe Photoshop, add an ATI 5770 video card for $200 (reg $249), upgraded system only $995.

This is a great upgrade to your existing system for under a grand.

Call your favorite Apple Specialist at 503-256-5210 and reserve one for you.

Hurry, supplies are limited. (40  22 units in stock)

I often get asked, “Why should I use Apple Mail instead of Outlook for Mac 2011, or gmail.com web mail?

The number one reason is INTEGRATION. Apple Mail is so well integrated with the Mac OSX operating system, and other Apple applications, that you lose a lot of cool features and productivity opportunities.

A second compelling reason to switch from Outlook for Mac to Apple Mail is bugs in the software. In the last month I’ve had two different Outlook for Mac 2011 users call me because they lost data with in Outlook.

Here is a list of features that are integrated between Apple applications: Mail, Calendar, Contacts, iPhoto, Safari and more:

• Mail to iPhoto – when you receive an email with photo attachments in the message, click the Details link in the header, and the header will expand (this is a 1-time setup). Click the down arrow on the right side of the Save button. Select Add to iPhoto in that drop-down menu. It will automatically import your attached images into your iPhoto library.
• Mail to Contacts – To add someone’s email address to Contacts, float your cursor over their name in the header of the email until it turns blue. Click the white arrow on the right side and select Add to Contacts in the drop-down menu. You will get the option to Create a New Contact or Add to an Existing Contact.
• Mail Data Detectors – Inside of email messages, any piece of data that’s related to a different application will have what is called a Data Detector. Addresses can be added directly to your contacts. Websites can be opened in Safari. Phone numbers can be added to Contacts. Dates and times can be added to the Calendar by clicking the date and time within the message. To take advantage of this feature, place your mouse over the information and it will be outlined with a dotted line. Click the down arrow and select the appropriate option from the drop-down menu.
• Contacts to Calendar – If you use the Birthday field in Contacts, the dates will automatically show up on your calendar with the person’s age in the title of the event!  In the Calendar menu, select Preferences. At the bottom of the General tab, check Show Birthdays calendar. (Learn how to add Birthdays to Contacts here).
• The new Share button was introduced in Mountain Lion 10.7. It can be found in Safari, iPhoto, and even Finder windows. The Share button gives you access to sending content through email, iMessages, and even Facebook and Twitter. You can also share photos and videos through Vimeo and Flickr.
• Safari to Mail – Click the Share button and then choose Email. Once the email is created, choose from the drop-down whether it is in Reader mode, a PDF, a link, or the entire webpage with graphics included.

Gmail users often tell me that they like using gmail.com’s web application. I can’t guarantee that in five years, Google and Apple’s technology will still be compatible. But I can guarantee that Apple technology will always work with Apple technology, so the time to make the conversion is now, while it’s seamless!

If you’re going to give Apple thousands of dollars for hardware, why not leverage their free services? Just drink the Kool-Aid! Don’t limit yourself and miss out on all these cool features.

FYI, I wrote this entire article using the dictation feature on my iPhone 4S. I spoke all of this information into my Evernote app so that I could edit and refine it later.

Dictation is your Mac’s latest feature, allowing you to say what you want to write. Your voice is sent up to Apple’s servers, translated into written text, and then added to your page.

To get started, first make sure that Dictation is turned on. Go into System Preferences >  Dictation & Speech. Click on the Dictation tab at the top if it’s not already there. Verify that Dictation is on. Close the System Preferences pane when done.

Open up a blank email or word processing document. Press the Function (fn) key twice (it’s in the bottom left corner of your laptop keyboard, or in the “6-pack” on your extended iMac keyboard).

A tiny little square with a microphone appears. Dictate what you want to say in 30 to 40 second snippets. You’ll see your voice register with the purple microphone. Click Done, and in a few seconds your text will appear. You may have to correct any words it didn’t understand, but Dictate will learn your voice over time and increase accuracy.

To add punctuation, you need to say each mark. For a capital letter, say “cap”. For a comma, say “comma.” For an apostrophe s, say, “apostrophe s.” To go to the next line, say “new line.” To start a new paragraph, say, “new paragraph.”

You can even say “smiley” to insert an emoticon! :-)

Click here for a list of Dictation commands directly from Apple.

To see a video of Alicia writing an email using Dictation, click here.

Looking for a great deal on a MacBook air? Save $300 if you do not need the .1Ghz of speed or USB3 of the newest model. These new in box, full warranty MacBook air’s are perfect for the road warrior, or anyone who wants a small, super light portable to check e-mail, browse the web, or write the next best seller… Basically anything an iPad can do – plus a full size keyboard, a bigger screen, a bigger drive, and the ability to run Office or print to any printer.

Call us at 503-256-5210 to reserve yours today. Hurry, limited to stock on hand.

SPECS:
11″ MacBook air
1.6Ghz Intel Core i5 processor
4GB ram, 128GB Solid State Hard Drive
Thunderbolt,
Mac OS X, Mail, Safari, iPhoto, iMovie, Contacts and Calendar

CONNECTIONS:
Wi-Fi 802.11n
Bluetooth Bluetooth 4.0
Ethernet Optional Apple USB Ethernet Adapter
Modem – None
USB 2 – 480 MBit/s
Thunderbolt 1 – up to 10 Gbps
Display Thunderbolt digital video output (Support for one Thunderbolt display)
Infrared None
Audio In 1 – Built-in microphone
Audio Out 1 – 3.5-mm analog output jack, 2 – Built-in speakers
SENSORS:
Motion Sensor None
Liquid Sensor Liquid Contact Indicators (LCI)
POWER:
System Battery Built-in 35-watt-hour
Battery Life Up to 5 hours
Backup Battery –
Power Adapter 45W MagSafe Power Adapter
Maximum Continuous Power –
Line Voltage 100-240V AC
ENVIRONMENTAL:
ENERGY STAR Meets ENERGY STAR 5.2 requirements
EPEAT Gold

When you check that box, iCloud becomes the default Saving location in Apple programs like Pages, Numbers, TextEdit, and other OSX 10.8 Mountain Lion-friendly applications.

For example, when you Save a document in Pages, it starts by trying to save your file to iCloud. This allows you to automatically open that file right in Pages from your iPad or iPhone. You can even access it on any other computer through iCloud.com.

If you want to Save your file onto your computer instead, you would need to click the drop-down arrow next to Where: iCloud, change it to your Documents folder, then click the little arrow to the right of the file name, expanding out the Save dialog box so you can navigate to any subfolder (this is an essential tip for any Mac user, iCloud or not!).

These extra clicks are kind of a pain if you save to your computer most of the time, but wish to have iCloud as an optional Save location. I think Apple uses iCloud as your default as a way of promoting the service, since most people wouldn’t even know it’s there.

I did run into a glitch at one point. Even though switching to my hard drive to save a file usually works fine, one time I got the message, ‘The file “Untitled.pages-tef” couldn’t be opened,’ and I couldn’t save my work.

The fix was to turn off the iCloud Documents & Data option, quit Pages, then open it again. I only got the error one time, and it didn’t return after I turned Documents & Data back on.

So, in the end, if you’re using apps on your iPad or iPhone that share files with your computer over iCloud, check Documents & Data in System Preferences > iCloud. Otherwise, leave it blank to save yourself a few clicks every time you save a document.

Go into your Settings, and then into the General group. Tap on Keyboard at the bottom of the list. At the bottom of that screen you’ll see a list of Shortcuts.

One comes built-in: “omw” will autocorrect into “On my way!”

Tap on Add New Shortcut…. Type in the phrase that you want your device to fill in for you. Add the initials or abbreviation to the Shortcut line.

Be sure to use a combination of letters that you wouldn’t type under normal circumstances. If necessary, start with a . or other punctuation mark to distinguish it from regular typing. For example, instead of using just my initials, which I may type into a document, I would use .akp as my Shortcut.

The next time you’re sending an email or text message, typing this combination of characters will cause your iPhone or iPad’s autocorrect to substitute your frequently-used phrase!

Watch our YouTube video to see this technique in action!

AppleCare Protection Plan

It’s a new year—how about resolving to put an end to wasting time with imprecise editing tools, unreliable media management, and needless rendering and round-tripping. If your current editing system isn’t cutting it, now’s the best time to kick it to the curb and get a fresh start—and even fresher savings—with the system trusted by more professionals in the film, television, and video industries.

For a limited time, save $6,000 (USD) when your purchase Symphony with one year of Avid Expert Plus Support and either a Mojo DX or Nitris DX interface:*

Buy a Symphony 6.5 with Mojo DX bundle for just $5,499 (that’s over 50% off), or
Buy a Symphony 6.5 with Nitris DX bundle for just $7,999 (that’s over 40% off)

Why Symphony?
Symphony offers all of the same tools and features of Media Composer, plus advanced and secondary color correction, mastering tools, and the stunning Boris Continuum Complete visual effects suite.

Accelerate your storytelling with ultra-accurate yet flexible editing tools and 64-bit performance.
Directly access and edit RED, ProRes, QuickTime, AVCHD, ARRI ALEXA, XDCAM, P2, and other file-based media without transcoding.
Mix and match formats, frame rates, resolutions, and more in the same timeline—in real time.
Edit on the fly with the Smart Tool or with high precision using full-featured editing tools.
Edit stereoscopic 3D projects with a full set of advanced tools and workflows.
Create studio-quality surround mixes right within your editing software.
Integrate into any production pipeline and collaborate with ease.
Create stunning visual effects and transitions with the included Boris Continuum Complete.
Correct and enhance color, with full 4:4:4 HD RGB color support, using advanced and secondary color correction tools, including Luma, Channels, and source side correction.
Create and deliver multiformat finals in the highest quality with Universal Mastering. (with Nitris DX only)

Choose your interface
When you pair Symphony together with Mojo DX or Nitris DX, you’ll discover the tightly integrated, accelerated hardware advantage of Avid Intelligent Architecture—from capture and edit to monitoring and output. These optimized designs take care of the heavy lifting, eliminating bottlenecks and freeing up computer power for effects and playback, so you achieve highly responsive real-time editing—even when using the latest generation of HD codecs.

If you work mostly in the digital domain and don’t require Universal Mastering, bundle Symphony with Mojo DX, which offers HD Anamorphic (thin raster) support, a variety of digital I/O (SD-SDI, HD-SDI, ADAT, and S/PDIF), analog I/O (TRS), HDMI monitor output, and timecode and sync connections.

If your work ranges from tape to tapeless and analog to digital—or you work with AVC-Intra media—bundle Symphony with Nitris DX, which offers real-time DNxHD and/or AVC-Intra encoding, full-frame stereo 3D support, HD Anamorphic (thin raster) support, Universal Mastering, ancillary data support, a variety of digital I/O (SD-SDI, HD-SDI, AES/EBU, ADAT, S/PDIF), a variety of analog I/O (component, composite, S-Video, XLR, TRS), HDMI monitor output, and timecode and sync connections.

Stop waiting and start working now—visit or call The MacPac for details and take advantage of this limited-time offer.

*Expiration: Offer expires March 15, 2013.

This offer cannot be combined with any other offers or promotions; special or volume discounts and other fees may apply. All offers are while supplies last. Product features, specifications, systems requirements, and availability are subject to change without notice. All prices are USMSRP for the U.S. and Canada only and are subject to change without notice. Contact your local Avid office or reseller for prices outside the U.S and Canada.