Richard Beaty
Remodeling project shuts down summer classes? Not quite.
The HOA2 Arts and Crafts Center is in the middle of a major remodeling project. This will result in enhanced facilities for the fall, but for now it’s shut down the computer club classroom, along with other clubs’ facilities within this complex. While this means we cannot offer normal classroom-based classes this summer, SaddleBrooke Computer Club still has options.
We are scheduling discussion/demonstration classes that will be held in alternate meeting rooms. As of this writing, one such class is already on the calendar for July 12. RootsMagic is a powerful genealogy program for maintaining family background data. To sign up for this RootsMagic demo session, go to our website – saddlebrookecc.org – and select Enrollment > Classroom.
Other demonstration classes are being planned and will appear on our website calendar as they become available. For the latest list, see saddlebrookecc.org/calendar.html. And don’t forget about our online classes where you can view courses anytime from anywhere. See saddlebrookecc.org and select Enrollment > eLearn to access the online class area of our website.
Investing in the Future – Again
The recent Mac Mini conversion to solid state drives (SSD) resulted in a dramatic performance improvement for our Mac students so we couldn’t resist doing the same for our PC crowd. We’re taking advantage of the classroom remodeling shutdown to do a little upgrade on our computers. By the time formal classes start up again in the fall, all student PCs will be sporting their new, faster SSDs.
We’ve got our members to thank for this. It is your membership dues and annual class fees that make these kinds of upgrades possible, keeping SaddleBrooke Computer Club on top of its game in providing computer and related technical education to our community.
Computer Tidbits
Cloud storage goes above the clouds – The “cloud,” as it applies to data storage, may soon have a whole new meaning. Movements are afoot to launch data centers into space. Space-based data center satellites would be independent of the Internet and all the fiber and wiring that connects earth-bound computers to the Internet. This should make communication faster and less susceptible to hacking and malware that proliferates on the Internet. This could happen as early as 2019. But don’t plan on signing up for a space cloud account yet. This will probably be expensive and initially available to large companies and organizations only.
The Levi’s Smart Jacket – Oh, give me a break. The “Internet of Things” (IoT) is really starting to run amok. I previously reported on the smart toothbrush on my blog (https://goo.gl/6j1TUD). Now we have a smart jacket? Soon bicyclists may be able to buy a smart jacket that will allow them to control their smartphone using sensors woven into the cuff. I can’t quite picture this. But users should draw lots of askance looks as they ride by talking into their cuff.