Hello,
If you're going to be in the Chicago area in May, why not check out
the Voiceover workshops going on each Saturday. These workshops will
be in the theater in the Family Room. That is located on the second
level of the store. You find the store at 679 N. Michigan Ave. and go
straight in the door for about 40 feet. You'll encounter a staircase.
If you miss it, you'll probably encounter some metal pillars next to
it. Backtrack to the front and feel free to ask a Concierge for
assistance. They will likely welcome you to the store when you enter
anyway, feel free to ask them for instruction.
the Voiceover workshops will be from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM on Saturdays
in May. Also, as a special treat, MacSpeech will have a presentation
May 10th on Dictate either before or after the VOiceover presentation.
These two really do go together.
After the presentations, why not go check out the different products
on the first floor. Here is a little text description of the store
layout that should be very easy to follow. We're lucky, the store does
have a pattern to follow. We will use the door as the orientation
point for this description.
After entering the store, there will be three major tables on the left
half, and on the right half. Along the left and right side walls are
bars stretching the entire length of the first floor. Starting with
the left three tables, the first contains MacBook Air portables. The
second contains MacBook portables. The third contains 20 inch and 24
inch iMac models. Along the far left bar, you'll first find MacBooks,
then MacBook pros. After a glass divider, you'll find Mac minis and
Mac Pros.
Along the right side of the store you will find a similar layout. The
first table contains iPod Touch with assorted types of headphones. The
second table contains iPod nano, iPod shuffle, and assorted
headphones. The third table contains iPhones, and assorted headphones.
Along the bar on the far right side of the store you'll find several
imacs and assorted iPods connected in docking stations.The AppleTV and
attached television are located at the far end of the right side bar.
Down the center of the store you'll simply find a very wide staircase
and two sets of metal pillars. You can choose to ascend the stairs, or
if you navigate to the left or right of the stairs, you'll be able to
pass to the back half of the store. Just beyond the back of the glass
box supporting the stairs is the checkout area for purchases. On the
left side you'll find accessories such as hard drives, cables,
TimeCapsules, and printers. On the top of the counter containing
accessories are computer speakers, external hard drives, and Airport
Extreme. A Time Capsule can be located for viewing at the part of the
counter closest to the front of the store, on the checkout side. To
the right of the checkout area, you'll find iPod related fun,
including all of the cases you could ever want to check out. There are
also sound docking stations lining the bar to the far right, and on
the counter you'll also find most of the same docking stations.
The second floor contains the theater directly ahead of the stairs.
Software titles can be found towards the front of the store along the
walls, along with more accessories and some demo iPods, scanners,
portable hard disks, etc. There is a platform towards the front of the
store for crossing the large gap between sides of the store, made
entirely of glass. People who have limited vision may become
disoriented on this glass, there are handrails here probably just for
that reason. On the left half of the floor you'll also find the Genius
Bar. The right half contains the iPod Bar, and Studio Bar. These bars
perform training and support functions at the store.
In the presentation we'll be covering the basics of using a Mac with
Voiceover in Leopard. We'll also cover how to keep your settings
available to you on any Mac using dot Mac. Final details of the
workshop are still being worked out. If you have any suggestions, feel
free to post them.
Please let any individuals or organizations that may have an interest
sign up for a workshop once it displays on the North Michigan Avenue
Apple Store website. I'm trying to get the word out a bit early, which
is perfectly OK in this situation. We need to make sure people don't
miss this opportunity.It is not necessary to sign up, and it is a free
service for anyone to attend. However, signing up tells us how many
people had a direct interest, and that really helps.
If you have any questions, feel free to post them on the list. If
people who are not on the list have questions, direct them to call the
store at 1-312-981-4104. Also, if you are in the Chicago area and want
to learn about Voiceover, why not make a personal shopping
appointment? We can spent the time you need going over the many
options available. It also helps us make sure someone will be
available who knows how Voiceover is used. If you follow the steps,
and choose to "make a reservation" you'll want to fill out the form on
the thank you page that allows for notes. Just let us know you're
interested in Voiceover.
I'll be presenting the workshops, I'd love to meet some of you there
at the store. Please spread the word, that's by far the hardest part.
Thanks,
Ryan Dour
