Mac User Groups will once again have a significant presence at a major trade show, this time at the MacExpoLive in London from October 25 - 27.

Volunteers from the member groups of Mac Users UK will be manning the user group stall, promoting both existing groups and also encouraging the formation of new groups in areas not covered by those organizations.

To add to the festivities, the stall will feature two separate competitions. The first will be awarded for sending the most members to the stall.

The second will the the farther-reaching, third annual UK & Irish MUGs Photographic Competition. Open to all comers, entries can be made in this year’s categories of The Face, Water, Travel and Children. Entries are being accepted through January 20, 2008. Get complete details, rules and entry instructions on the contest web site.

If you’re attending the Expo, stop in, say hello, and learn more about the member groups and what they offer.

Whenever the Final Cut Pro User Group crowd gets together at a conference, you can count on party time. But they don’t just socialize…they invite interesting and influential speakers, gather up sponsors who donate product and more and make what could just be an informal gathering a true event.

That’s what will be happening this week at the NY Post Production Conference. The Final Cut Pro User Group Soiree is being organized by the Boston Final Cut Pro Users Group (BOSFCPUG) and Digital CONNtent Creators, and will feature a raffle with prizes totaling over $14,000, and a speakers and demo schedule that includes:

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The Portland Macintosh Users Group (PMUG) will hold the next edition of their semi-annual Mac event, MacCamp at the Silver Falls State Part in Oregon on October 26-28.

This event is part camping trip, part user group meeting and part tech conference. Structured sessions (this time the agenda includes Adobe Dreamweaver, Mac OS X Leopard, Getting the Most From Digital Images, Introduction to iMovie ‘08, Numbers ‘08 and Filemaker Pro ‘09.) are held during the day and informal sessions go on all night.

For complete details on the sessions, pricing and how to register, visit the PMUG web site.

The Apple User Group Advisory Board and UGAB Support Services have announced this year’s pre-Macworld Expo user group event: a Wine and Cheese Reception.

Announced to the September edition of the Apple User Group Bulletin, the event will be held will held at The Westin San Francisco Market Street (formerly The Argent) January 14, from 4-7 p.m. Unlike prior year’s leadership-focused events, the reception looks to be more social in nature, being open to the first 300 registrants with no user group credentials required.

The reception will reportedly feature, “vendor interaction, raffles, entertainment and some surprise guests.”

Registration is now open, and MUG members can enjoy a 50% discount on the $20 admission price by using the special user group member URL and discount code that is available from their group’s ambassador.

The September meeting of MacGroup-Detroit will feature a special guest who boasts the credentials to speak on Mac troubleshooting.

Christopher Breen of Macworld, PlaylistMag and MacNotables will visit the Detroit group on September 9 to share tips and tricks from his Mac 911 column in Macworld magazine. Chris is also known as an iPod authority, and can be expected to provide some insight into the announcements from Apple’s September 5 music event, the iPhone and more.

Visit the MacGroup-Detroit web site for information on their visitor policies, meeting location and more, then plan to stop by and hear one of the most popular Mac User Group speakers live and in person.

It is quiet on the Internet today. Not as in “peace and quiet,” with images of relaxation and content. The quiet is the deafening kind that comes crashing in when you’ve lost something important and might not get it back. And that’s exactly what may happen.

Today is the Day of Silence, a protest staged by the a long list of prominent internet radio stations and online music services to give us all a sample of what life could be like come July 15. That’s the day when a set of retroactive royalty rates kicks in and will effectively take much of the online music you enjoy offline…permanently. If that happens, the music you’re not hearing today from Pandora, HardRadio, Smooth Jazz and More, Live635.com, MTV Radio, and a whole host of others will become the norm, since they won’t be able to afford the initial hit from the royalties that, under the legislation, have stacked up since January 1, nor the royalties going forward.

If this matters to you, and it should, then you need to go to SaveNetRadio.org to learn more, and find out how to contact your Congressional representatives before this can’t be stopped. You don’t have to sign up for anything or give an email address; just visit the site to learn how to support the countering pieces of legislation, The Internet Radio Equality Act, S. 1353 in the Senate and H.R. 2060 in the House. Your phone call, email, fax or letter can drastically help.

Tim Westergren, the founder of Pandora, was the guest on MacVoices #774, talking about the situation, how it is unfairly penalizes online broadcasters of music, and how to most effectively communicate your feelings to your legislators. Listen, learn and act.

The Tri-Valley Macintosh Users Group (TMUG) has announced that Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak will be their guest at a special event on June 21. Steve will be talking about his experiences during the early days of personal computing, his thoughts on Apple’s most recent developments and computers in education.. There will also be an opportunity to have copies of his book, “iWoz, personally signed.

The meeting will be held at the Amador Valley High School in Pleasanton, California, starting at 7 PM. The meeting is open to the public, but you’ll want to get there early for a good seat.
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The O’Reilly User Group Program has announced this year’s Maker Faire will be held on May 19 & 20 at the San Mateo Fairgrounds in California.

The second annual Faire is, “… a two-day, family-friendly event that celebrates arts, crafts, engineering, science projects and the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset. It’s for creative, resourceful folks who like to tinker and love to make things.”

Among the many interesting activities scheduled for this year’s event, and of special interest to Mac User Groups will be an interview with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak on the main stage on Saturday.

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The Silicon Mountain Macintosh User Group (SMMUG) will welcome special guest speaker on May 3: Macworld Contributing Editor, author and MacNotable Christopher Breen.

Chris will visit the group live and in person and will speak on the topic of Troubleshooting. As the author of the monthly Mac 911 column in Macworld (which user groups can distribute in their newsletters), and the man who claims to have destroyed more Mac equipment that most of us have owned, he is eminently qualified on the subject.

Visit the SMMUG web site to get the details and if you’re in Colorado on May 3, stop by for an evening of fun and information.

Popular Mac author, Houston Chronicle columnist and MacNotables panelist Bob LeVitus is back will once again visit some of the premier Mac User Groups next month when he embarks on his Mid-Atlantic MUG Tour 2007.

Bob will be bringing his unique take on Macintosh hardware, software and use to these groups in May:

• Princeton Macintosh Users Group - May 8
• Hershey Apple Core - May 9
• Main Line Macintosh Users Group - May 12

In addition to the meeting appearances, Bob will be the guest of honor at a Dr. Mac Dinner on Monday, May 7 and a special cookout and presentation at Mac Outfitters in Doylestown PA.

Details on all appearances and events can be found on the indicated web sites. Please consult them before planning to attend, because space for several of the activities is limited.