Apple, Tropical Software, MacSpeech, Quark and Prosoft Engineering Lead Top User Group Presenters Awards

More and more vendors are discovering and re-discovering the power of connecting with Mac User Groups, either through creating specific programs for Mac User Groups, creating special offers for Mac User Group members or the obvious: personal appearances and presentations at Mac User Group meetings. The latter is the front line of MUG/Vendor interaction and the best way for both sides to benefit from the relationship.

The MUG Event Calendar documents as many of these meetings, along with other activities and presentations, and is the basis for our Top User Group Presenters Awards. This is our second annual roll-up of the people and companies who showed up at Mac User Groups around the world most often, demonstrating products or just having fun being there.

For the second year, and again as no surprise, Apple tops the list with a total of thirty-six separate documented visits to Mac User Groups. While there are many different presenters who are popular with MUGs in different parts of the world, the leader is clearly Apple Senior Systems Engineer Dave Marra, who made fifteen of the thirty-six himself.

In second place, also for the second year in a row, is James Lee of Tropical Software and his presentation of TopXNotes and TopXNotes iPod. Jim’s roster of MUG appearances totaled twenty-nine. What is most impressive about Jim’s accomplishment is that he was the presenter for each and every meeting, making stops throughout the United States, not just in one region.

Coming in tied for third were representatives from MacSpeech showing off their speech recognition software for the Mac and Quark demonstrating the new version of their desktop publishing software, both with eight documented appearances each, followed by Prosoft Engineering with seven meetings showcasing Data Backup, Data Rescue, Drive Genius and more.

Vendors weren’t the only ones who showed up in the tally, though.

As a group, the members of the MacNotables panel accounted for twenty separate meeting appearances, with Bob “Dr. Mac” Levitus” leading the pack with nine presentations.

Take Control authors were also a busy group, clocking in with a total of ten appearances to talk about their works.

The list of vendor presenters is way too long to reproduce here; suffice it to say that software and hardware vendors of every description are on the list.

The MUG Center’s Most Frequent Presenter Awards are based on our interaction with the Mac User Group community and extensive weekly surfing of MUG web sites. To have your meeting topics included in this year’s tally, or if you are a vendor and want to have your appearances publicized and documented, please email us with your information and we’ll include you.