Computer Classes And Events Help Cure Boredom (NAPSA)—Contrary to what many rock & rollers have sung, there is a cure for the summertime blues. There are several cures, actu- ally, which maybe a bigrelief for parents who’ve heard choruses of “T'm bored” since school let out. One way to keep everyone in the family busy, challenged and having fun is by encouraging them to take up a new hobby. Another is by taking them to interesting events in the community. Apple’s new retail stores offer a great place to do both. Anyone can stop by and take free classes covering topics like digital photography. For example, attendees can learn how to use iPhoto, Apple’s free application that makes it easy to save, organize and share digital pictures. The program makes preserving this summer’s fun times a snap. You can even create a custom printed, professionally bound photo book of your favorite shots. The stores also teach how to organize digital music with iTunes—which many consider to be the world’s easiest-to-use “digital jukebox”—and burn music onto a CD or download it to iPod, Apple’s breakthrough MP3player. Another class is on iMovie, the easy-to-use, consumerdigital video-editing software that has everything you need to create your own desktop movies. For those interested in attending an event rather than a class, “Made on a Mac”features celebrity photographers, authors, musicians and directors who come to speak at Apple’s retail stores on how they use popular products like iMac and iPod, and applications such as iMovie and iPhoto, in their work. These events have included: Celebrity photographer Greg Gorman; David Pogue, New York Times Apple retail stores offer a number of options for summer fun. technology columnist and author of the well-known Missing Manual Mac books as well as Classical Music for Dummies and other titles; and Charlie Clouser, Grammy nominated songwriter, audio engineer and producer for music acts including David Bowie, Jamiroquai, Nine Inch Nails andothers. J.J. Abrams, writer and producer for TV shows Alias and Felicity. All upcoming eventsare listed online at www.apple.com/retail and are free to attend. If you just want to get help conquering a tough computer issue, Apple stores can assist. Belly up to the Genius Bar and ask the advice of a Mac “Genius.” The community’s most knowledgeable Mac people, Geniuses do repairs, answer questions and sometimes perform near miracles. Recently one recovered a college student’s thesis from an iMac that burned in an apartment fire. These mavens are available whenever stores are open. Whether your new passion is music, gaming, movies, photogra- phy or writing, Macintosh offers a much simpler, richer and more human-centric computing experience—and Apple’s retail stores are a great cure for the summertime blues.
