2020-05 BMUG Newsletter

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	BMUG Newsletter 2020 May

		Greetings! How have you been managing in the last few weeks? It is a question everyone is asking along with the question about what will change in the future? Have we actually learnt anything? Will life be the same or different from now on? We certainly hope you have been OK during these many weeks and feel pleased that you have been able to endure whatever was needed to make Australia one of the great places to live. Having had members of four families living together in my house, I can say how very lucky we (my family) have been. One thing has been space - frustration goes quite quickly when you go out and chop wood! It's satisfying to build something that has been on the list for ages but for which there never seemed to be time. Learning to bake bread is sure to come in handy sometime in the future. And learning to appreciate what we have in this country is of value for ever. Technology wise??? well, the frustrations seem to continue with that. Personally, the bandwidth problem has not been an issue but trying to install and use Microsoft's Teams software for a not-for-profit has been terrible :-( Somehow, Australian not-for-profits do not fit the US model well so being classified is a tricky procedure. Then, despite Microsoft's best effort to make it simple, the software is complicated. All the relevant association wants is to have a single place to meet online, share, and store, and interact with files, etc. Nothing very special but to start a meeting it seems you have to use Outlook and then ask for the meeting to be transferred to Teams - who would have thought (especially after the ease with which we have managed to use Zoom). How easily will participants share files using different devices and software? The now saga is continuing but hopefully not for too much longer. Our next Meeting on June 9 This will be an online meeting. A link to the Zoom page will be posted prior to the meeting on Tuesday June 9) and, in case anyone would like to learn to use Zoom before the meeting, there will be a practice session also available the Monday before the meeting (Monday 8th June at 10.00 am). The link to this meeting will also be sent out with the link to the main meeting on Tuesday June 9. The June meeting will be one in which participants will 'play' with sharing images, video, etc. This will involve useful skills for those who want to be able to communicate with family and friends online, and it will help those who already have the skills, to try something a bit daring (of their own choice). Working together is often about making mistakes from which we can learn. We are not expecting people to be experts but rather to be willing learners - experimenting and making mistakes will be as good as 'getting it right', whatever that means! Agenda for the Meeting What3Words We are going to start by talking about the 'What3words' App. It is a clever technology and perhaps should be known by all of us - see https://what3words.com How does such a thing come about and why is it clever? How does it work? Why should we use it? All these are good questions and we will share ideas. Sharing a Screen on Zoom As we are all trying to live a normal life but doing it on screen, we are often in the position of wanting to show someone something or ask for help and show them our problem. This will be a quick tutorial on how to share a screen or just a part of it, with someone in another location. Sharing some moments Now we know how to share our screens, we will invite people to show us an image or two and tell us about them - it is not a photography competition but the aim is to share something interesting, curious, funny, puzzling, beautiful, or whatever. Everyone is asked to choose 2 or 3 photos in anticipation of this event and be ready with a simple story... In coming months, we plan to take some virtual tours - we will invite members to prepare a series of photos they can share in ten minutes while telling us about a place they have visited. If you don't have the photos you want to use, of course you can search on the Web and collect them from someone else. Remember to write down where you got them from. And we advise you to make a separate folder before you start so your chosen pics don't get lost in thousands of others. What to watch Next we will have a focus piece on options for films etc on devices - Stan, Netflix, iView, ... We will want to hear what you have been watching, what you recommend and what to avoid. There are so many options - perhaps note down a few before the meeting and think what you have to say about them. You can help others a lot by recommending good things. Everyone can contribute even if it is to say you don't watch anything! We will include a short session on gadgetry - there are lots of connectors available - which ones might you need? What do they do? John Rozbach will guide us through this exercise. Looking and Learning Finally we will consider where should you go for accurate information about the pandemic and how should you use the Covid-19 App? When should we resume Face-to-Face Meetings? The Committee would like to know what you would like us to do. We believe that online meetings offer something that we cannot have with face-to-face meetings. We observe couples sitting together and imagine friends could do the same - but not have to travel to meetings. We have also been able to include members who live far from Ocean Grove. That is fun :-) On the other hand, it is always nice to catch up with people. One option might be to have face-to-face meetings every second month. But equally they could be every month or never. We can now record the meetings so people can watch what happens after the event - especially good when we have speakers or learn something new. Please think about the following possibilities and let us know your opinion (opinions can be sent here). Tell us what best suits your opinions: When the Commonwealth health officer notifies that meetings of up to 50 are allowed? When the Victorian health officer notifies that meetings of up to 50 are allowed? When effective vaccines are available? Only if all participants have the Covid-19 app active on their iPhones? When Dr Norman Swan, ABC Health commentator, considers that meetings of up to 50 are safe? When Ocean Grove Community Centre deems large group meetings safe? What's the difference between Apple TV, Apple TV app, and Apple TV+? "If you instantly know the difference between Apple TV, Apple TV app, and Apple TV+, then remember there's also Apple TV Channels, Apple TV 4K, Apple TV HD, and the Apple TV apps for Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, Mac, and TV sets. What words are being overused here?" For an amusing read, you can go to the Apple Insider article. Learn about the difference between these technologies, if they are different, from Apple Insider 17/5/2020 (https://appleinsider.com/articles/20/05/17/whats-the-difference-between-apple-tv-apple-tv-app-and-apple-tv)

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